1. Northwestern United States and Adjacent British Columbia:

UNUSUALLY WET CONDITIONS DEVELOP

Moderate to heavy precipitation (50 to 190 mm) drenched northwestern Oregon, western Washington, and southwestern British Columbia. Since the beginning of December, the region has received 100 to 260 mm more precipitation than normal [WET - 4 to 7 weeks].

2. Great Lakes and Upper St. Lawrence Valley:

PRECIPITATION SURPLUSES DIMINISH

Up to 40 mm of precipitation across the region fell primarily as snow. Youngstown, OH received an all-time monthly record snowfall of 93 cm during January, while the 147 cm in Erie, PA yielded the 2°nd snowiest January on record. Moisture surpluses since December 1 were generally less than 50 mm, but reached as high as 190 mm at Wiarton, Ontario [WET - 4 to 7 weeks].

3. South-Central Texas:

DRY CONDITIONS EASE

Up to 160 mm of precipitation brought relief from dryness to central Texas, but only scanty precipitation fell on southern Texas. Short-term (December and January) moisture deficits were generally less than 50 mm [DRY - Ending at 4 to 7 weeks].

4. Northern South America:

SATELLITE OBSERVATIONS SUGGEST UNUSUALLY WET WEATHER

Outgoing long-wave radiation observations via satellite indicate excessive precipitation has occurred across the region. Scattered surface data reports reveal that 60 to 150 mm of rain fell on the Amazonas and northwestern Para provinces of northern Brazil, and parts of Suriname and Guyana. Although reliable data from the region are lacking, some areas received 100 to 600 mm of rain during December and January, which yields moisture surpluses of 50 to 330 mm [WET - 4 to 6 weeks].

5. Austria and Hungary:

DRY ANOMALY DEVELOPS

East-central Austria received 10 to 40 mm of precipitation, but little or none fell on Hungary, southern Slovakia, western Romania, and the remainder of Austria. Since December 1, precipitation totals were 50 to locally 150 mm below normal [DRY - 4 to 5 weeks].

6. Turkey and the Middle East:

RAINS DAMPEN COAST; STILL VERY DRY ELSEWHERE

Between 10 and 50 mm of rain fell on the eastern Mediterranean coasts of Israel, Lebanon, and adjacent parts of Turkey, but little or none was reported in southeastern Turkey and the remainder of the Middle East. Moisture deficits since December 1 ranged from 50 to 305 mm across the region [DRY - 4 to 18 weeks].

7. Kenya, Tanzania, and Northwestern Madagascar:

MOISTURE DEFICITS REMAIN

Little or no precipitation fell on Kenya and Tanzania, but torrential rains (100 to 200 mm) soaked northwestern Madagascar. Moisture shortages since December 1 reached as high as 130 mm in Kenya, 180 mm in Tanzania, and 355 mm in northwestern Madagascar [DRY - 4 to 18 weeks].

8. Mozambique, Malawi, and Eastern Zimbabwe:

WET WEATHER CONTINUES

Heavy rains (80 to 150 mm) drenched northeastern Zimbabwe while 40 to 100 mm fell on Malawi and coastal Mozambique. Lesser amounts (10 to 40 mm) were measured elsewhere. Between 350 and 800 mm of rain have fallen on the region since the beginning of December, resulting in precipitation excesses of 70 to 480 mm [WET - 4 to 14 weeks].

9. Japan:

STILL VERY DRY

Up to 50 mm of precipitation fell on Shikoku and southern Honshu, with locally heavier amounts (50 to 70 mm) reported on south-central Honshu. Further north, little or no precipitation was observed, except for 10 to 50 mm on the Sea of Japan coast. Precipitation deficits of 50 to 240 mm have accumulated since December 1 [DRY - 4 to 9 weeks].

10. Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines:

MORE HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS

Torrential rains (100 to locally 500 mm) drenched the Philippine Islands of Mindanao and Samar, southern and extreme northeastern Celebes, scattered portions of Malaysia and Borneo, and parts of Java. Between 20 and 100 mm of rain fell on the remainder of Indonesia while fewer than 40 mm were observed in Vietnam. Precipitation surpluses for December and January accumulated across Vietnam (80 to 210 mm), Malaysia and Borneo (120 to 260 mm), Sumatra (100 to 400 mm), Java (90 to 595 mm), Celebes and the Lesser Sundas (100 to 610 mm), and the central Philippines (100 to 945 mm) [WET - 4 to 23 weeks].

11. Australia:

WARM ANOMALY DIMINISHES

Temperatures were generally within 5°C of normal last week, but locally higher departures (+5°C to +7°C) were reported. Highs ranged from 40°C to 43°C throughout the interior [WARM - Ending at 2 to 5 weeks].