Weekly High Plains Drought Update - February 22, 2018

Most of the High Plains experienced cooler than normal temperatures this week. A winter storm left much of the High Plains covered in snow, however that was not enough to improve drought conditions. According to the February 20th US. Drought Monitor, moderate drought (D1) conditions expanded to northeastern Kansas, while extreme drought (D3) conditions were introduced in southwestern Colorado. Northeastern Kansas continued to experience seasonal precipitation deficits and above-normal temperatures, while snowpack continued to suffer in southwestern Colorado. The total population in drought is now above 6 million in the High Plains.

Slight improvements in Colorado’s snowpack were recorded this week due to local precipitation. Colorado’s statewide Snow Water Equivalent (SWE) was 73% of median, and the following are updated SWE percentages of median for the Colorado basins as of February 22nd: Arkansas (65%), Colorado (85%), Gunnison (62%), North Platte (90%), San Miguel, Dolores, Animas, and San Juan (54%), South Platte (90%), Upper Rio Grande (56%), and Yampa and White (80%). Wyoming snowpack continued to be above 100% of median due to ample precipitation in the northern and southeastern portions of the state.

The National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center’s 6 - 10 outlook favors a continued winter-like pattern for the High Plains as both above-normal precipitation and below-normal temperatures are expected in the majority of the region. The Quantitative Precipitation 7-day Forecast is predicting precipitation across most of the High Plains, with the highest amounts expected in Nebraska, eastern South Dakota, eastern Kansas, and the mountainous regions in both Colorado and Wyoming.