Weekly High Plains Drought Update - June 15, 2017

This past week, the Dakotas experienced some relief from a slow-moving storm system, but despite above-normal precipitation across much of South Dakota and the eastern half of North Dakota, it was not enough to significantly improve drought conditions. The heat has also been a big factor, as temperatures were 6-10°F above normal during the past week in these areas. An estimated 590,000 people were being affected by drought in the High Plains region, all of which reside in the Dakotas. The area of severe drought (D2) doubled in North Dakota over the past week and now covers 27% of the state. The largest area of D2 extends from central North Dakota southward into northern South Dakota and includes areas along the Missouri River, as well as parts of the Standing Rock and Cheyenne River Reservations.

Some pockets of dryness also exist throughout Wyoming, Colorado, and Kansas. Conditions have improved in northeastern Wyoming, as the abnormally dry (D0) area decreased by about 4% from last week. However, D0 persisted in parts of Colorado and D0 was introduced to southeastern Kansas. Both eastern Colorado and Kansas saw above-normal temperatures with below-normal precipitation during the past week. Nebraska is currently the least affected by dryness in the region, with D0 conditions affecting only one-half percent of the area in the northern part of the state. Unfortunately, the heat is leading to several reports of rust on spring wheat and corn, as well as dry pastures across the eastern part of the High Plains.

The 6-10 day outlook provided by the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center indicates above-normal temperatures across much of Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska, and Kansas, while below-normal temperatures are expected for North Dakota and northern South Dakota. Precipitation is expected to be below normal for the western half of the High Plains, including the area of drought in the Dakotas.