1. Central and Southern United States:
LATE-SEASON HEAT PERSISTS
Temperatures averaged 2°C to 5°C above normal across the southern
and central Great Plains and parts of the desert Southwest. The mercury
approached 41°C in parts of Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas while highs
soared to 44°C in Arizona. Readings remained above 20°C in southern
Texas and in parts of central and western Arizona [WARM - Up to 9 weeks].
2. Central United States:
ABNORMALLY DRY WEATHER DOMINATES
Little or no rain fell on the Great Plains while light precipitation (up
to 25 mm) fell on the Ozarks and lower Missouri Valley. Moderate to heavy
showers (25 to 110 mm) were restricted to parts of Wisconsin, southwestern
Ozarks, and portions of Louisiana and eastern Texas. Most of the region
has received less than 100 mm of rain during the last 8 weeks, resulting
in precipitation shortfalls of 50 to 150 mm [DRY - Up to 23 weeks].
3. Central and Southern South America:
COLD ANOMALY EXPANDS
Weekly departures of -2°C to -5°C dominated South America from
Paraguay and central Bolivia southward to the Tierra del Fuego, with temperatures
averaging 6°C to 9°C below normal in portions of Mendoza and Chubut
provinces. Subfreezing lows were reported as far north as central Buenos
Aires and western San Juan provinces while highs failed to reach 20°C
in sections of Argentina south of 35°S. In addition, the mercury remained
below 30°C across Uruguay and Rio Grande do Sul state of southern Brazil
[COLD - Up to 5 weeks].
4. Brazil:
UNUSUALLY WET WEATHER CONTINUES
Torrential rains (100 to 500 mm) drenched southern Parana, most of Santa
Catarina, and extreme northern Rio Grande do Sul while moderate to heavy
rains (50 to 100 mm) soaked the remainder of southern Brazil from Sao Paulo
southward through Rio Grande do Sul. Farther north, 25 to 50 mm of rain
were reported. During the last 8 weeks, between 100 and 500 mm of rain
accumulated across the region, engendering moisture surpluses of 100 to
330 mm [WET - Up to 5 weeks].
5. Central Asia:
WARM ANOMALY COVERS MUCH OF CENTRAL ASIA
Weekly temperature departures of +3°C to +6°C prevailed over a
large area of central Asia, extending from northeastern Iran and Kazakhstan
eastward to southeastern Siberia. The mercury climbed to 37°C as far
north as Sam, Kazakhstan (45°N) and Tamdy, Uzbekistan (42°N). Temperatures
also averaged 2°C to 5°C above normal over most of Japan
as highs reached 36°C at Fushiki, Japan (37°N) [WARM - Up to 15
weeks].
6. East-Central Asia:
TYPHOON SAOMAI DELUGES JAPAN AND KOREA WITH TORRENTIAL RAIN
Typhoon Saomai raked Japan's Ryukyu Islands with strong winds (up to 205
kph) and torrential rains (up to 700 mm) before striking the main islands
of Kyushu, Shikoku, and southern Honshu. The typhoon combined with a stationary
front to produce as much as 850 mm of rain, flooding of thousands of homes
and causing mudslides and a number of deaths, according to press reports.
Saomai weakened as it slowly moved north into the southern Korean Peninsula,
but the storm fueled more very heavy rains (100 to 500 mm). Further south,
the coastal section of China's Zhejiang province was also inundated with
torrential rains (up to 300 mm) from Typhoon Saomai earlier in the week
[Episodic Event].