Regional Breakdown

May brought precipitation to some who desperately needed it; however, it was not widespread. Temperatures were once again close to normal, but there were some brief periods of warmth this month. Severe weather continued to be active this month, with each state being impacted.

Agriculture continued to struggle this month, with every state but North Dakota dealing with significant drought. Winter wheat conditions were in even worse shape at the end of May, with 80 percent rated as poor to very poor in Nebraska. Colorado and Kansas were equally as bad, with 67 and 55 percent rated poor to very poor, respectively. Corn planting is well behind normal in Kansas, with some in the north-central part of the state not even started due to dry soils. Pasture conditions also remained abysmal, with 80 percent rated as poor to very poor in Nebraska.

Multiple days this month featured severe weather, with the most notable being a storm in central Nebraska on the 17th. Just north of Grand Island, a high-end EF3 tornado touched down near St. Libory. It quickly moved to the east, where four homes would be directly impacted and caused significant damage. After this, it would pass through unpopulated areas and cause ground scouring before finally lifting. Hail up to 3.5 inches (8.89 cm) would also fall from this storm, but thankfully there were no injuries reported from the tornado. Other severe weather notables included a 92 mph (148 km/h) wind gust near Leavenworth, Kansas on the 19th and a 4.5-inch (11.43 cm) hailstone near Last Chance, Colorado on the 21st.

Temperature and Precipitation Overview

Above: Departure from 1991-2020 normal temperature (left) and percent of normal precipitation (right) for May 2026 in the High Plains region. Maps are produced by the High Plains Regional Climate Center and are available at: http://hprcc.unl.edu/maps/current

Precipitation

May was another disheartening month for precipitation within the High Plains. Most of the region reported below-normal amounts, with just a few places being near normal or above. Southwestern Colorado was the driest, with multiple locations observing less than 0.10 inches (2.54 mm) this month.

Starting with the positive news, parts of northern and eastern Colorado finally received adequate precipitation this month. Kirk led the way with 4.68 inches (11.89 cm), which is one of the second wettest Mays and the fifth wettest month overall since the station was established in 1996. The story was similar in nearby Idalia, with 4.51 inches (11.46 cm) falling to rank as the seventh wettest May. Several CoCoRaHS observers nearby reported higher amounts, with the highest being 5.20 inches (13.21 cm) from the station Liberty 15SW. For some in the area, this was nearly double the amount of precipitation they had received from September of last year through the end of April. In the northern half of the state, the mountains and foothills between Boulder and Fort Collins received over 3 inches (7.62 cm) this month. Some areas in the mountains, including Estes Park, reported over 4 inches of much-needed rain. The southwestern half of the state was not quite as fortunate, however. The Cortez area was below 0.25 inches (6.35 mm), with the airport only reporting 0.03 inches (0.76 mm). It was a similar story in nearby Durango, where several stations observed less than 0.05 inches (1.27 mm). The lowest amount in the state was a mere 0.01 inches (0.25 mm) to the south of Alamosa near the border of New Mexico.

Across the border in Kansas, the western half of the state finally had meaningful amounts of precipitation for the first time in months. Dating back to October of last year through the end of April, Atwood was ranked in the top ten driest seven-month periods on record and recorded only 2.63 inches (6.68 cm) of precipitation. In May, 4.11 inches (10.44 cm) of desperately needed moisture fell. Not far away, Goodland reported 3.85 inches (9.78 cm) while areas near Hays recorded up to 5 inches (12.7 cm). While these aren’t record-breaking numbers, it did provide some relief for agriculture in the western half of the state.

The rain this month, for the most part, helped save many places from their driest spring. Sidney, Nebraska still ranked driest, with only 1.78 inches (4.52 cm), while in Wyoming, Basin only observed 0.20 inches (5.08 mm) to rank driest by a wide margin. Elsewhere, Dodge City, Kansas ranked fourth driest with only 1.79 inches (4.55 cm), which was even drier than 1934. To the west, Alamosa, Colorado ranked sixth driest with 0.37 inches (9.40 mm). Looking at the water year, which begins on October 1st, Scottsbluff, Nebraska ranks second driest with only 3.86 inches (9.80 cm), and Denver, Colorado ranked third driest with 3.79 inches (9.63 cm).

Regional Precipitation

Above: Total precipitation in inches (left) and departure from normal precipitation in inches (right) for May 2026. Maps are produced by HPRCC and can be found on the Current Climate Summary Maps page at: http://hprcc.unl.edu/maps/current.

Temperatures

After being the hot topic these past few months, temperatures in the region have mellowed out recently. While many places were slightly warmer than normal, there were no major records broken. For the most part, the region was anywhere from up to 3 degrees F (1.7 degrees C) above or below normal.

While the overall average was nothing out of the ordinary, there were still several exceptionally warm days. Sheridan, Wyoming hit 95 degrees (35 degrees C) on the 13th to tie with 1948 and 1960 for the warmest May temperature. To the west, Dayton recorded the warmest temperature for all of Wyoming this month and the second warmest May temperature on record for the state, with a toasty high of 99 degrees F (37.2 degrees C).  On the same day just to the south, Casper reached 92 degrees F (33.3 degrees C) to tie for the second warmest May temperature. The following day, several other long-term stations tied or broke their records, including Kaycee, Worland, and Farson.

On the last week of the month, it was scorching hot in the Dakotas. Fargo, North Dakota was at or above 90 degrees F (32.2 degrees C) for five consecutive days, which is their record for the month. Further west, it was similar, with Minot and Bismarck recorded four consecutive days to rank second. Down in South Dakota, Aberdeen and Huron also ranked second with four consecutive days. Despite this late burst of heat, both states were in the middle of the road for average temperatures this month.

Despite temperatures becoming more seasonal towards the latter half of spring, many places in the southern half of the region were in the top five warmest springs. In Colorado, multiple locations recorded their warmest spring, including Pueblo, while Alamosa, Colorado Springs, and Grand Junction ranked second. Across the border in Wyoming, Thermopolis ranked as the warmest while Cheyenne and Lander came in second. Other notable locations in the top five included Lincoln, Grand Island, Omaha, North Platte, and Scottsbluff in Nebraska and Dodge City, Goodland, Salina, and Wichita in Kansas.

Drought Conditions

The overall extent of drought increased this month; however, the intensity reduced slightly. This was particularly evident across northern Colorado, where the above-normal precipitation did wonders. Overall, the percentage of the region in D0 to D4 (abnormally dry to exceptional drought) increased by over 1.5 percent.

After several months of minimal precipitation and warmer temperatures, D4 covered a large portion of northwestern Colorado. Included in this were several prominent places such as Rutt National Forest and Rocky Mountain National Park. After the much-needed rain this month, drought improved up to three categories in this area. It was a similar situation along the border with Kansas between Wray and Burlington, where three classes of improvement occurred. In total, D3 (extreme drought) was reduced by 18 percent this month while D4 shrank by 8 percent.

Just north in Wyoming, most changes this month were in the eastern half of the state. The southeastern corner benefited from the heavier rain as well, with D4 being removed and a reduction in D3 around Cheyenne and Laramie. In the northeastern corner, D3 now engulfs Gillette, and Sheridan is in D2 (severe drought). The east-central part of the state remained in D3, which includes the city of Casper.

South Dakota has slowly taken steps in the wrong direction these past few months, with over 90 percent of the state in D0 to D4. For the most part, the state is split right down the middle with the northern half abnormally dry and the southern half in drought. The worst conditions, which are D3, are found in the southwestern and eastern corners. Elsewhere in the region, both improvements and degradation were observed. According to the Climate Prediction Center’s U.S. Monthly Drought Outlook for June, drought is likely to improve in eastern Colorado and western Kansas.

U.S. Drought Monitor	Drought Monitor 1-Month Change

The U.S. Drought Monitor is produced as a joint effort of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), National Drought Mitigation Center, U.S. Department of Commerce, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). For current Drought Monitor information, please see: http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/.

Climate Outlooks

According to the Climate Prediction Center, an El Niño Watch is present.  For more information, visit: https://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/lanina/enso_evolution-status-fcsts-web.pdf

The National Weather Service’s long-range flood outlook indicates limited chances of flooding for the next few months. According to the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), fire potential will be elevated in the northern and western portions of the region through August.  

The seasonal temperature and precipitation outlooks presented below combine the effects of long-term trends, soil moisture, and, when applicable, the El Niño Southern Oscillation cycle (ENSO). To learn more about these outlooks, please visit http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov.

Temperature

The three-month temperature outlook shows an increased chance of above-normal temperatures across the majority of the United States except the Great Lakes. In the High Plains, warmer temperatures are favored everywhere except in the eastern portions of the Dakotas and Nebraska.

Precipitation

The precipitation outlook for the next three months indicates above-normal precipitation in the northeast and the Rockies, while below-normal precipitation is favored for the northwest and central United States. Below-normal precipitation is favored for the eastern half of the Dakotas and Nebraska, while above-normal is possible for Colorado and Wyoming. 

Drought

The U.S Seasonal Drought Outlook released on May 31st indicates drought will likely improve in Colorado and Kansas, while developing in northern South Dakota and across North Dakota.