Drought Status
Drought Status
Drought Status
The Arizona Drought Monitoring Technical Committee confers weekly to advise the U.S. Drought Monitor authors on the current drought conditions in Arizona, and makes recommendations about the position of the drought boundaries for Arizona. The U.S. Drought Monitor is the official record of drought for Federal drought relief claims. Information used by the MTC in advising the Drought Monitor authors includes numerous drought indices, precipitation and stream flow data, and impacts data. Every Thursday, the Drought Status web page automatically updates with the latest U.S. Drought Monitor map of Arizona.
Monthly Drought Status Summary: MAY 2022
While a trace of precipitation was observed in the Flagstaff area on May 23, there was no measurable precipitation reported anywhere in Arizona this May, ranking with the top driest months of May on record. Temperatures across the state were warmer than normal, with Phoenix and Tucson ranking near or within the top ten warmest months of May on record.
Arizona moved back into Exceptional (D4) drought (3%) for the first time since August 2021, branching into western Mohave County. Extreme (D3) drought returned to Cochise and Santa Cruz counties and expanded along western and northern counties, increasing coverage to 24% of the state. Severe (D2) drought slightly decreased to 51% of the state, while Abnormally Dry (D0) conditions and Moderate (D1) drought dropped to 22% of the state.
Weak La Niña conditions should persist through the fall and winter. There is a very slight chance this could aid in monsoon season rainfall across the southern parts of the state.
This report was prepared by the Arizona Drought Monitoring Technical Committee on June 6, 2022. Arizona's short-term drought status map is updated during the first week of each month.
Quarterly Drought Status Update: JANUARY-MARCH 2022
Statewide precipitation for Water Year 2022 was below average at 3.78 inches at the end of March, a departure from the average precipitation of 6.32 inches. Northern Apache, central Navajo, and central Coconino counties, while still below average, received closer to normal amounts of precipitation. Statewide temperatures for Water Year 2022 were above average.
The long-term drought map is calculated from the average of 24-, 36-, and 48-month Standard Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) data. For the January to March long-term drought map, the time frames used in this calculation were noticeably less dry than longer-term time frames. Consequently, long-term drought appeared to improve in central and southern counties. Exceptional (D4) long-term drought persisted in small portions of Navajo and Coconino counties and in pockets of Mohave County. Most Severe (D2) long-term drought remained in Yuma County and central Maricopa County. Extreme (D3) long-term drought continued in La Paz, Mohave, Coconino, Navajo, Apache, and Greenlee counties.
La Niña conditions continue to linger but should slowly wane during the summer. There is a very slight shift in odds that the 2022 monsoon season could be wetter than average in the southeast part of the state.
This report was prepared by the Arizona Drought Monitoring Technical Committee, April 12, 2022. Arizona's long-term drought status map is updated quarterly and the next update in early July, it will reflect the conditions of April, May, and June. The long-term drought status for each watershed is determined by comparing the precipitation and streamflow percentiles for the past 24, 36, 48 and 60 months to a 40-year historical record.