1. Eastern Alaska and Northwestern Canada:
STILL UNSEASONABLY COLD
Temperatures averaged 2°C to 5°C below normal across the region;
however, the cold air began drifting southward. Subfreezing lows (down
to -3°C) dominated the Yukon and eastern Alaska. Further south, the
cold air began pushing into the northwestern United States, providing relief
to Idaho and Montana (see Item 2 below) [COLD - Up to 4 weeks].
2. Western Montana:
LIGHT RAIN REPORTED ALONG WITH COOLER CONDITIONS
Fewer than 25 mm of rain fell on western Montana, but even this light rain,
along with lower temperatures, provided some relief for fire
fighting efforts. Total precipitation since July 9 was below 50 mm
across the region, resulting in precipitation shortfalls of up to 100 mm
[DRY - Up to 7 weeks].
3. Central United States:
HIGH TEMPERATURES SHIFT EASTWARD
Hot weather, characterized by temperatures averaging 6°C to 8°C
above normal, covered the central states from north-central Texas and central
Kansas eastward to the Mississippi River while weekly departures of +3°C
to +6°C dominated the remainder of the region. Highs soared above 40°C
across southeastern Nebraska, western Missouri, most of Kansas and Oklahoma,
central and eastern Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, and western
Alabama. Lows remained above 20°C across most of the southern Plains
and the middle and lower Mississippi Valley [WARM - Up to 7 weeks].
4. Central and Southern United States:
ABNORMALLY DRY CONDITIONS CONTINUE
Little or no rain fell on the Great Plains, Ozarks, and Mississippi Valley,
but heavier rains (up to 200 mm) were reported in the Southeast, particularly
eastern Alabama and the northern half of Georgia. Short-term (8-week) moisture
shortages of 50 to 200 mm prevailed across the entire region. On a longer-term
basis, the Palmer Drought Severity Index remained lower than -3 (severe
drought) from Texas eastward to Georgia and Florida. Preliminary rankings
for August indicate that Oklahoma and Texas experienced the driest August
in 106 years while precipitation totals for Summer 2000 (June through August)
were among the 10 lowest for Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama,
and Florida. Please see the U.
S. Drought Monitor for more details [DRY - Up to 21 weeks].
5. Central Argentina:
COLD ANOMALY DEVELOPS
Weekly departures of -2°C to -4°C dominated much of Argentina,
with subfreezing lows covering the entire region. The mercury failed to
reach 20°C as far north as northern Cordoba province [COLD - Up to
3 weeks].
6. Central Europe:
MOISTURE DEFICITS REMAIN
Between 25 and 50 mm of rain dampened Austria and Hungary while lesser
amounts fell elsewhere during the past week. Since early July, only 100
to 200 mm fell on Austria, and fewer than 100 mm were reported elsewhere,
resulting in short-term moisture shortages of 50 to 150 mm [DRY - Up to
10 weeks].
7. Southern Europe and Northwestern Africa:
HEAT CONTINUES
Hot weather persisted over Tunisia, northeastern Algeria, and southern
Italy. Temperatures averaged 2°C to 6°C above normal over the region,
with a high of 45°C reported at Medenine, Tunisia (33°N) [WARM
- Up to 10 weeks].
8. Southern Africa:
WARMTH CONTINUES
Temperatures again averaged 2°C to 4°C above normal across southeastern
South Africa and Lesotho, with the mercury reaching 32°C at Umtata,
South Africa (32°S) [WARM - Up to 5 weeks].
9. South-Central Asia:
ANOTHER WARM WEEK
Weekly temperature departures of +3°C to +6°C prevailed over much
of central Asia from southern Iran northeastward to southern Kazakhstan
and far western China. The mercury climbed to 41°C as far north
as Turkestan, Kazakhstan (43°N) [WARM - Up to 6 weeks].
10. Eastern Asia:
WARMTH REMAINS
Temperatures again averaged 2°C to 5°C above normal over most of
northeastern China, Japan, and the Korean Peninsula. Readings pushed
as high as 40°C at Kumgaya, Japan (36°N) [WARM - Up to 13 weeks].
11. Korea and China:
TYPHOON PRAPIROON DELUGES KOREA AND EASTERN CHINA WITH HEAVY
RAIN; TROPICAL STORM MARIA STRIKES SOUTHEASTERN CHINA
Typhoon Prapiroon raked China's Provinces of Jiangsu and eastern Shandong
with high winds (up to 145 kph )and torrential rains (up to 260 mm), causing
flooding, mud slides, and several deaths (according to press reports).
The storm weakened as it brought heavy rains (50 to 250 mm) to the central
Korean Peninsula. Further south, Tropical Storm Maria dumped torrential
rain (up to 200 mm) on Guangdong and Fujian Provinces (Episodic Events).
Since July 9th, between 300 and 1200 mm of rain has inundated much of eastern
China and the Korean Peninsula, allowing moisture surpluses to range from
50 to 700 mm [WET - Up to 9 weeks].