WeatherWeather Science

Actions

Over forty percent of Colorado is either abnormally dry or in a moderate drought

Posted
and last updated

Rain has been hard to find for the last couple of months in Southern Colorado. While some parts of the state have picked up several inches this month, locally, most of southern Colorado has seen little rain. The best moisture has been trapped up in the mountains and San Luis Valley.

Colorado Springs has been particularly dry this June. June is typically the third wettest month of the year in Colorado Springs with an average of around 2.25" of rain. Instead...the Springs has seen only about 1/3rd of an inch. Pueblo has done well - comparatively.

Colorado Springs is an inch and a half below average, while Pueblo is sitting nearly an inch above average for rainfall this month

The latest drought map has around 40 percent of the state seeing abnormally dry conditions, with 16 percent in a moderate drought. This is a modest rise - of around 5 percent - from the prior week - but not that notable.

About 43 percent of the state is either abnormally dry or in moderate drought right now.

Drought maps don't tell the full story - though. The hot and dry weather is causing moisture to leave plants faster than usual over almost the entire state. This experimental National Weather Service Product called the Evaporation Demand Drought Index (EDDI) shows how much the atmosphere is trying to pull water out of plants. The areas in yellow are experiencing evaporation levels around 70 to 80% above normal. In orange, the levels are 80-90% above normal! This can lead to highly localized flash-drought conditions, and can prime fuels for wildfires.

Evaporation Demand measures how strongly the atmosphere is trying to pull water out of plants

Looking ahead, the Climate Prediction Center has high chances for a very dry summer in Colorado...especially in the Four Corners region, because of a developing La Niña.

The Climate Prediction Center's summer outlook shows very strong chances for continued dry conditions in Colorado

Temperatures are also likely to stay toasty for the summer season...with unusually strong chances for significantly above average temperatures statewide.

The Climate Prediction Center also suggests temperatures will continue to be strongly above average for the rest of summer

____

Have a question or story idea you would like the First Alert 5 Weather team to consider? Email: weather@koaa.com

Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching.