Weekly Global Climate Highlights

1. South-Central United States:

UNSEASONABLY COOL WEATHER SHIFTS EASTWARD Temperatures averaged 3°C to 6°C below normal across northwestern Texas, western Oklahoma, southwestern Kansas, southeastern Colorado, and northeastern New Mexico. Lows reached 7°C as far south as Dodge City, KS (38°N) [COLD - 2 weeks].

2. Northeastern United States and Southeastern Canada:

MOISTURE DEFICITS PERSIST Scattered thunderstorms brought 25 to 100 mm of rain to southern Piedmont and the mid-Atlantic last week, but areas receiving the heaviest rains experienced considerable runoff. Fewer than 30 mm of rain fell on the central Appalachians, eastern Great Lakes, New England, and Canadian Maritime Provinces. Since the beginning of May, most areas received 50 to 200 mm of rain, which is up to 200 mm below normal. During the weekend (June 19 - 20) additional rain moved into the region, promising some relief from the persistent dryness [DRY - 4 to 13 weeks].

3. Western Venezuela:

SCATTERED HEAVY RAINS BRING SOME RELIEF Between 25 and 100 mm of rain fell on western Venezuela last week; however, moisture deficits since May 1 were in the 100 mm to 330 mm range [DRY - 5 to 6 weeks].

4. Southwestern Bolivia:

COLD CONDITIONS PERSIST Temperatures averaged as much as 5°C below normal during the past week, with the mercury plummeting as low as -14°C at Oruro and Charana, which are both high altitude stations in the Andes at about 18°S [COLD - 2 to 4 weeks].

5. Eastern Europe, Northeastern Africa, and Southwestern Asia:

LARGE WARM ANOMALY EXPANDS Weekly departures of +3°C to +7°C prevailed across eastern Europe from the Urals southwestward to the Mediterranean while temperatures were up to 6°C above normal in northern Africa from Tunisia southeastward to the Red Sea and as much as 8°C above normal over southwestern Asia. Temperatures reached as high as 32°C at Riga, Latvia (57°N), 46°C at Hon, Libya (29°N), and 42°C at Hassakah, Syria (36°N) [WARM - 2 to 13 weeks].

6. Western Africa:

HIGH TEMPERATURES EXACERBATE DRYNESS The mercury soared above 40°C across most of Mauritania, Mali, Niger, northern Senegal, and northern Burkina Faso while highs were 30°C to 39°C elsewhere. The high temperatures aggravated very dry conditions across the western Sahel [WARM - 2 to 4 weeks].

7. Western Sahel:

PRECIPITATION DEFICITS REPORTED Precipitation shortfalls since May 1 ranged from 100 to 200 mm in Togo and Benin while moisture deficits of 50 to 100 mm prevailed across southwestern Mali and southern Burkina Faso. Weekly totals of 20 to 70 mm suggest that the rainy season may finally be underway [DRY - 4 to 7 weeks].

8. East-Central Africa:

MORE VERY DRY WEATHER Little or no rain fell on Kenya and adjacent parts of northern Tanzania and southern Ethiopia last week while up to 25 mm were reported in Uganda. Moisture deficits since May 1 reached as high as 130 mm [DRY - 6 to 9 weeks].

9. Southern South Africa:

UNUSUALLY DRY CONDITIONS DEVELOP Except for 20 to 40 mm of rain around the Cape of Good Hope, little or no precipitation was observed across the region. Since the beginning of May, moisture shortages of up to 100 mm have developed at some locations [DRY - 5 to 8 weeks].

10. Central Asia:

COLD ANOMALY DEVELOPS Temperatures averaged 3°C to 7°C below normal across south-central Russia and north-central Kazakhstan for the second consecutive week. Subfreezing temperatures were reported as far south as Berezovo, Russia (64°N) and Atbasar, Kazakhstan (52°N) [COLD - 2 weeks].

11. Northeastern China:

ANOTHER DRY WEEK Little or no rain fell on northern Manchuria as dry weather continued to prevail; however, short-term moisture shortages (May 1 - June 19) were generally less than 100 mm [DRY - 4 to 9 weeks].

12. Indonesia:

DRYNESS CONTINUES Fewer than 20 mm of rain fell on Java and the Lesser Sundas. Since the first of May, precipitation amounts have ranged from 20 to 110 mm, which is as much as 230 mm below normal [DRY - 5 to 7 weeks].

13. Northeastern Australia:

WARMTH REMAINS Weekly departures of +6°C to +12°C prevailed in northern Queensland, with the mercury soaring to 33°C at Curtin (18°S) and 21°C at Lismore (29°S) [WARM - 7 weeks].