Weekly Global Climate Highlights Map for October 5, 2002

1. North-Central United States and South-Central Canada:

COLD ANOMALY DEVELOPS
Temperatures averaging 2°C to 5°C below normal dominated the region from northeastern Colorado and western Kansas northward to northern portions of Saskatchewan and Alberta. The mercury failed to reach 20°C in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and western Manitoba while readings remained below 30°C elsewhere. Subfreezing lows pushed as far south as southern Colorado and western Nebraska [COLD - 2 weeks].

2. Central United States:

PRECIPITATION DEFICITS PREVAIL
Although central Missouri and northeastern Illinois received 25 to 100 mm of rain, weekly precipitation totals across the vast majority of the region were only 10 to 25 mm. Between August 11 and October 5, less than 125 mm of precipitation accumulated in Illinois and Missouri, resulting in shortfalls of 50 to 145 mm. Please see the United States Drought Monitor for more details [DRY - Up to 7 weeks].

3. Southern United States:

HURRICANE LILI DELIVERS TORRENTIAL RAINS
Hurricane Lili rapidly weakened upon landfall, but delivered torrential rains (100 to 225 mm) to Louisiana and southwestern Mississippi [Episodic Event].

4. Eastern United States:

ABOVE-NORMAL TEMPERATURES DOMINATE
Temperatures were 3°C to 8°C above normal across the East from the Ohio River Valley to the Atlantic Seaboard. Highs in the thirties (°C) covered the region south of 40°N and pushed as far north as central Michigan while readings in the twenties (°C) prevailed elsewhere. Subfreezing lows were restricted to New England [WARM - Up to 6 weeks].

5. South America:

WARM ANOMALY OVERSPREADS MUCH OF CONTINENT
Weekly departures of +4°C to +8°C dominated Paraguay, northern Argentina, and southwestern Brazil while departures ranged from +2°C to +4°C elsewhere. Highs soared above 40°C in Paraguay and adjacent parts of northern Argentina and southwestern Brazil while readings in the thirties were reported as far south as 35°S in Argentina. The mercury failed to reach the freezing mark throughout the region [WARM - Up to 3 weeks].

6. Northern Uruguay and Extreme Southern Brazil:

HEAVY RAINS DRENCH REGION
Heavy rains (100 to 200 mm) soaked central Rio Grande do Sul in extreme southern Brazil and adjacent portions of northern Uruguay while abundant precipitation (50 to 100 mm) covered the remainder of the region [Episodic Events].

7. Northeastern Atlantic:

ABOVE-NORMAL TEMPERATURES PREVAIL
Weekly departures ranged from +2°C to +6°C across Ireland, western Scotland, Iceland, coastal southeastern Greenland. Highs generally ranged from 10°C to 23°C, except in Greenland. Subfreezing lows were restricted to Greenland and parts of Iceland [WARM - Up to 5 weeks].

8. France and British Isles:

STILL VERY DRY
Little or no rain fell on France and most of the United Kingdom while only 10 to 25 mm of precipitation were recorded in Ireland and the western portion of Great Britain. During the last 8 weeks, precipitation generally totaled less than 125 mm, resulting in shortfalls of 50 to 180 mm [DRY - Up to 9 weeks].

9. Southeastern Europe:

UNUSUALLY WET WEATHER CONTINUES IN REGION
Moderate to heavy rains (50 to 100 mm) soaked Serbia and Bulgaria while lesser amounts (25 to 50 mm) were reported elsewhere. During the last 8 weeks, 70 to 320 mm of rain has accumulated across the region, resulting in short-term moisture excesses of 50 to 200 mm [WET - Up to 9 weeks].

10. Northeastern Africa and Southern Asia:

MORE VERY WARM WEATHER
Temperatures averaged 2°C to 7°C above normal across interior southern Asia, while weekly departures ranged from +2°C to +4°C elsewhere. Highs were generally in the forties (°C) in Egypt and the Middle East, while highs in the thirties (°C) covered the rest of central southern Asia [WARM - Up to 5 weeks].

11. Northeastern China:

MANCHURIA RECORDS LIGHT RAINS
Precipitation totaled 10 to 25 mm across Manchuria, with scattered heavier amounts (25 to 50 mm) in Heilongjiang and Jilin. Fewer than 125 mm of rain fell on the region since August 11, yielding short-term moisture deficits of 50 to 170 mm [DRY - Up to 11 weeks].

12. Southeastern China:

ABUNDANT RAINS ABATE
Moderate to heavy rains (50 to 200 mm) were restricted to central Guangdong while only 10 to 50 mm were reported elsewhere. Short-term moisture excesses of 200 to 500 mm resulted from 8-week precipitation totals of 375 to 1000 mm in central Guangdong; elsewhere precipitation excesses ranged from 50 to 200 mm in the wake of 300 to 500 mm of rain [WET - Up to 11 weeks].

13. Northern Indonesia:

PRECIPITATION DEFICITS REPORTED
Between 25 and 100 mm of rain fell on the region last week, but 4-week totals at many locations were among the lowest 10% of the climatological distribution, and 8-week moisture deficits approached 270 mm at Pontianak in extreme western Borneo [DRY - Up to 5 weeks].