Average minimum temperatures nationwide for August (+3.20 deg F) and the July-August (+3.12 deg F) periods were the warmest on record, according to NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI). experienced its 3rd warmest June-August period on record since 1895 in terms of average temperatures (+2.52 deg F anomaly). Looking back at the 2022 summer months, the contiguous U.S. In the Southeast, most of the region remained drought-free with exception of coastal areas of east-central and southern Florida, where rainfall deficits for the past 90-day period ranged from 4 to 12+ inches, causing some concerns regarding hydrologic drought (some low groundwater and surface water levels) with the end of the wet season approaching. In the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states, widespread shower activity this week helped to improve drought-related conditions in the southern portion of the Northeast region as well as alleviate short-term (past 30-60 days) precipitation deficits in areas of the Coastal Plain and Piedmont of North Carolina. Elsewhere in the region, a combination of short and longer-term precipitation deficits in Iowa led to degradation on the map, with rainfall deficits during the past 90-day period ranging from 4 to 8+ inches in southern Iowa. In the Midwest, widespread heavy rainfall accumulations ranging from 2 to 6+ inches impacted northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin over the weekend-erasing some of the short-term precipitation deficits. In Texas, areas of isolated heavy rainfall accumulations (3 to 5+ inches) this week continued to ease drought-related conditions in the Rio Grande Valley and South Texas. In the High Plains, above-normal temperatures (2 to 6 deg F) and generally dry conditions during the past week continued to exacerbate drought conditions across areas of the central and northern Plains, with a growing number of drought impacts within the agricultural sector being reported to the National Drought Mitigation Center.

Unfortunately, the overall impact of the precipitation on the long-term drought in California was negligible. Overall, the heaviest accumulations were observed in very isolated higher-elevation areas of the Peninsular Ranges and Transverse Ranges of Southern California with accumulations ranging from 3 to 5-inches in addition to reports of wind gusts between 70-100 mph. Over the weekend and early this week, the residual moisture from the system moved further onshore impacting areas including Southern California, southern Sierra Nevada, Desert Southwest, and portions of the Great Basin. Drought Monitor (USDM) week saw areas of isolated heavy rainfall in Southern California and the Desert Southwest in association with remnant moisture from Tropical Cyclone Kay late last week.

Outlook 2015 download