Weekly High Plains Drought Update - April 12, 2018

This week the US Drought Monitor indicated several improvements and degradations in the High Plains. Areal coverage of abnormally dry (D0) conditions were reduced in both northeastern South Dakota and north central Colorado. The area of moderate drought (D1) in north central Colorado and south central Wyoming was also reduced due to beneficial precipitation. However, less precipitation was received in eastern Colorado and Kansas, where the degradations of this week were noted. The severe drought (D2) in east central Colorado expanded east of Pueblo and Colorado Springs, while extreme drought (D3) in south central Colorado also expanded in areal coverage. All drought conditions in Kansas expanded northerly, with exceptional drought (D4) now covering 7% of land in Kansas.

Winter wheat and topsoil moisture continued to be affected by the drought, as all states in the High Plains, except Wyoming, have below 5% topsoil moisture surplus. The current conditions of winter wheat that are rated as poor to very poor are as follows: Colorado (19%), Kansas (44%), Nebraska (8%), and South Dakota (16%). These conditions, along with reports from Texas, Oklahoma, and the twelve other states that produce winter wheat, were reported to be worse than conditions in April of 2002, according to the USDA’s Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin.

The Climate Prediction Center’s 6-10 day outlook is favoring below-normal temperatures for all of the High Plains and above-normal precipitation for the whole region as well. The 7-day Quantitative Precipitation Forecast looks promising with precipitation expected across a majority of the High Plains, with the highest amounts expected across South Dakota and northern Nebraska.