Weekly Global Climate Highlights Map for July 6, 2002

1. Alaska:

COLD ANOMALY DEVELOPS
Weekly departures of -3°C to -7°C dominated northern and central Alaska during the past week. Temperatures failed to reach 20°C throughout the region. Lows generally ranged from 1°C to 9°C, but dropped below freezing at Barrow (71°N) [COLD - 2 weeks].

2. United States and Canada:

ABOVE-NORMAL TEMPERATURES DOMINATE
Temperatures averaged 4°C to 8°C above normal across eastern Canada while weekly departures ranged from +2°C to +6°C from central Nevada eastward to the Middle Atlantic States and New England. Highs in the thirties (°C) dominated the United States, Ontario, and southern Quebec while readings soared into the forties (°C) in the desert Southwest [WARM - Up to 6 weeks].

3. Eastern United States:

DRY ANOMALY EXPANDS NORTHWARD
Little or no rain fell on much of the region, except for 10 to 100 mm from a few scattered showers and thundershowers in the Southeast.  Between 100 and 300 mm of rain has fallen during the last 13 weeks, yielding moisture shortages of 50 to 200 mm [DRY - Up to 14 weeks].

4. Texas:

EXCESSIVE RAINS TRIGGER SERIOUS FLOODING
Torrential downpours deluged central Texas with 100 to 1000 mm of rain. According to press reports, significant flooding affected several counties of central Texas [Episodic Event].

5. Southern South America:

COLD CONDITIONS PERSIST
Weekly departures of -2°C to -5°C dominated the northern and central portions of Chile and Argentina, with subfreezing lows pushing as far north as extreme northern Argentina. The mercury plummeted below -10°C as far north as 40°S while highs failed to reach 20°C throughout the region [COLD - Up to 6 weeks].

6. British Isles:

PRECIPITATION SURPLUSES REMAIN
Between 10 and 50 mm of rain fell on Ireland, Northern Ireland, and Scotland during the past week. Precipitation for the last 13 weeks totaled 200 to 500 mm, yielding moisture excesses of 50 to 250 mm [WET - Up to 13 weeks].

7. Southern Europe and North-Central Africa:

WARM ANOMALY ABATES
Temperatures averaged 2°C to 3°C above normal, with departures reaching as high as +5°C at a few locations. Highs generally ranged from 25°C to 37°C during the week [WARM - Up to 14 weeks].

8. Western Sahel:

HIGHLY VARIABLE RAINS REPORTED; ABOVE-NORMAL TEMPERATURES PREVAIL
Scattered thunderstorms dropped 50 to 200 mm of rain at some locations while other areas received only 10 to 50 mm. Short-term moisture deficits of 50 to 200 mm dominated the western Sahel [DRY - Up to 9 weeks]. Dry conditions were aggravated by temperatures averaging 2°C to 4°C above normal, with highs ranging from 35°C to 45°C. The mercury remained above 20°C throughout the region [WARM - Up to 9 weeks].

9. Western Siberia:

MORE VERY DRY WEATHER
Little or no rain fell on western Siberia, but 8-week moisture deficits were generally less than 100 mm [DRY - Up to 15 weeks].

10. Southeastern China:

TORRENTIAL RAINS DRENCH SOUTHEASTERN CHINA
Monsoon thunderstorms dumped 100 to 500 mm of rain from eastern Guangxi northeastward to Shanghai, with weekly precipitation totals dropping rapidly to the 10-50 mm range southeast and northwest of the aforementioned region. Since the middle of May, 400 to 1100 mm of rain has accumulated, resulting in short-term moisture surpluses of 100 to 400 mm, with locally higher excesses to 600 mm [WET -Up to 8 weeks].

11. Northeastern Australia:

UNUSUALLY COLD CONDITIONS PREVAIL
Temperatures were 2°C to 5°C below normal during the past week, with subfreezing lows reported as far north as 20°S. The mercury failed to reach 30°C at most locations during the past week [COLD -2 weeks].