A Chilling Mid September

Frost and freezing temperatures have made an early appearance in the central and northeastern U.S. this year.  Last week's strong cold front that swept through the central U.S. brought the first freezing temperatures to the Midwest as far south as southern Wisconsin  Another sprawling cold air mass spilled south across much of the country east of the Rockies this weekend ending the growing season for many locations as far south as northern Missouri Sunday morning. Last night frost warnings were in effect for eastern Wisconsin, all of Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan (except areas close to the Great Lakes), and parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Maine, West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina.

The areas in blue indicate the frost advisories in effect for Sunday night, September 23rd.

Low temperatures this morning reached the low to mid 30s south to the Ohio River, and frost was noted on the grass and rooftops in many areas.  On nights with strong radiational cooling, the vertical temperature gradient can be rather steep. The temperature at grass level can be degrees lower than the temperature at five feet, the approximate height of temperature sensors. If the temperature at sensor level is 33°F, the temperature right at the ground can be below freezing.  Even on such days, there may not be much damage to plants.  Damage to plants depends not only on whether or not it is below freezing, but how long the temperature is below freezing.

Minimum temperatures for the morning of September 24.

The colored dots on the map indicate locations where 32°F has occurred this fall.

The first occurrence of 32°F is about on schedule for the upper Midwest and Northern Plains, and anywhere from a week to two weeks early in the central U.S.  The temperatures in the low and mid 20s are a few weeks early.  The maps below show the extend of freezing weather so far this fall n the central U.S., and the median dates for the first occurrence of 32°F and 28°F.

This map shows the median date of the first occurrence of 32°F in the central U.S. Within a range, the earlier dates typically occur in the north and the later dates in the south. However, terrain and surrounding land use can have a significant influence on overnight low temperatures.

Same as the map above, except for 28°F.

September 11th

As I was on my way in to work this morning it struck me how much today's weather here in central Illinois was like that on the morning of September 11, 2001, one I distinctly remember as many of us probably do.  Today most of the country on the CoCoRaHS precipitation map is showing zeroes, and here in Illinois it was a cool, clear early fall morning without a cloud in the sky.  In 2001 our morning low was 54°F, this morning it was 51°F. The high temperature in 2001 was 82°F, and that's about our forecast high for today.

I thought I would take a look at the Daily Weather Maps for both days, and was amazed at how similar they are.  The map for this morning is about 12 hours "ahead" of the map for 9/11/01.

The surface weather map for 7:00 a.m. EST on September 11, 2001

The surface weather map for 7:00 a.m. EST on September 11, 2012

What started as a magnificent fall day in 2001 turned into a day of horror, shock, sadness, and grief.  As you enjoy the weather on September 11, 2012, pause to remember the victims and heroic efforts of those who risked and lost their lives on 9/11.

Thanks, Isaac!

Hurricane Isaac caused a lot of grief and damage in Louisiana and Mississippi, mostly from the heavy rain and flooding. However, the heavy rains with the remnants of Issac were most welcome in the central U.S. despite the fact they made for a soggy Labor Day weekend.

Most of the Midwest received from two to more than seven inches of rain from Isaac. However, the amount of rain depended greatly on whether or not your gauge happened to be underneath one of the heavier bands of showers and thunderstorms rotating around the center of Issac.

As you might expect, Isaac gave the drought a good kick in the teeth from Missouri eastward. If you compare the U.S. Drought Monitor of August 28 to that of September 4 the areas of improvement are clearly apparent. One thing to note, however, is that "islands" of Severe and Exceptional Drought (darker reds) persist within the larger areas of improvement.  These "islands" are a reflection of the banding of showers and thunderstorms in Isaac's circulation in which some areas received much less rain than areas not far away..

This is an animation created from maps of 24 hour precipitation amounts from
August 31 through September 3, 2012. The maps in this animation
are from the NWS Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service.

Note that while Issac improved the drought situation by one to two categories in some areas, Severe to Exceptional drought is still firmly entrenched over much of the central U.S.

Midwest Braces for Isaac's "Leftovers"

Late this afternoon Tropical Depression Isaac was located near the Louisiana/Arkansas line. moving in a northerly direction at about 12 mph, twice the speed it was moving yesterday.  Isaac left up to 20 inches of rain behind in Mississippi and Louisiana, and those areas can expect more rain in the next two days. CoCoRaHS observers in Hancock County, MS near Kiln reported 24-hour rainfall totals of 14.18 and 13.89 inches. This was on top of 2.8 inches received the day before. In Tangipahoa Parish in Louisiana the CoCoRaHS observer at LA-TG-2 near Hammond reported 11.00 inches this morning. Observations in southern Louisiana were few and far between because of the flooding and power outages.

This is a map of the 24 hour precipitation accumulation produced by combining radar and rain gauge measurements. Source: NWS Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service

Now the Midwest is bracing for Isaac's rain.  A flash flood watch is in effect for much of Arkansas, and will probably be extended through Missouri and Illinois tomorrow and Saturday. The forecast track of Isaac has varied a little over the last 24 hours, but the axis of heavy rain is still likely to be an area from Arkansas through most of Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. Generally 3 to 6 inches of rain can be expected, with some locations receiving more. Some of the squalls will be accompanied by strong gusty winds, and a few severe thunderstorms are not out of the question.

Forecast track for Isaac issued at 4:00 p.m. CDT

Quantitative precipitation forecast for August 30-September 4

Tropical Rain, and Lots of It

Deep tropical moisture along the southeast coast of the U.S. has been responsible for torrential rains in areas far removed from Hurricane Isaac.  For the 24 hour period ending on August 28th the heaviest rain was found along the central east coast of Florida.  CoCoRaHs observers in Indian River, St. Lucie, and Martin Counties reported seven to more than 10 inches of rain for the 24 hours ending Tuesday morning, with the CoCoRaHS observer at FL-IR-32 in Vero Beach reporting 10.50 inches of rain.

Rainfall for the 24 hour period ending Tuesday, August 28, 2012 in Florida

Yesterday the heavy rainfall fell along the South Carolina coast, with CoCoRaHS observers north of Charleston, SC reporting four to more than 6 inches of rain.   6.80 inches was reported this morning by the observer at SC-CR-46. A flash flood watch is in effect for the Charleston area through tonight with more rain expected.

Rainfall for the 24 hours ending the morning of Wednesday, August 29, 2012 in Charleston, SC

Meanwhile, Isaac continues his agonizingly slow crawl to the north and west through southern Louisiana. In the past 14 hours Isaac has moved only about 75 miles. As of 10:00 CDT this morning Isaac was still a minimal hurricane with gust over 80 mph measured in some areas. Isaac is pretty impressive on radar and exhibits a distinct but somewhat ragged eye. Radar estimated rainfall is almost 12 inches east of the storm center as of noon CDT.  With Isaac moving only at about 5 mph, much more rain can be expected the rest of today.

Radar estimated rainfall for the Gulf Coast at 12 noon CDT, August 29, 2012.

Hurricane Isaac as seen from the New Orleans, LA radar at 12 noon CDT, August 29, 2012

Isaac Pounding Gulf Coast

Hurricane Isaac has made landfall once already, moving over the Mississippi River delta shortly before 7:00 p.m. CDT August 28, but has since moved back out over the water. He is expected to make landfall again near Grand Isle, Louisiana later tonight.  Here is the radar image of Isaac as of 9:52 p.m. CDT tonight (August 28). 

Hurricane Isaac just off the coast of Louisiana, 9:52 p.m. CDT August 28

 

 

 Isaac is "just" a Category 1 storm with top winds of 80 mph. However, it is producing dangerous storm surge from the Mississippi River Delta eastward.  Isaac's slow movement means that the Gulf coast will deal with prolonged high winds and very heavy rain. The NWS Hydrometeorological Prediction Center's latest 5-day quantitative precipitation forecast paints an impressive amount of rain from the Gulf Coast northward through the southern half of the Midwest as Isaac moves slowly northwest inland and then turns north and northeast.

 

CoCoRaHS observers across the central and southeastern U.S. will be getting a lot of practice measuring rainfall the next several days. In much of the Midwest there could be more rain the last week of August than fell in all of June and July.  In my post on July 31 I suggested that the central U.S. would love to see a tropical system bring it's rain to drought stricken areas, but that it was probably a long shot. Maybe I should buy a lottery ticket!

A "Warm Up" for Isaac?

On Tuesday and Wednesday more than nine inches of rain fell in southern Pinellas County, Florida. On the morning of August 22 two CoCoRaHS observers in South Pasadena (west of St. Petersburg). Both reported more than seven inches of rain, and added another 1.50 inches by the morning of August 23. Station FL-PN-17 measured 7.95 inches on August 22 and 1.60 on August 23 for a two-day total of 9.55 inches.  Station FL-PN-6 measured 7.07 and 1.45 inches on th two days for a total of 8.52 inches. At station FL-PN-17 4.27 inches fell in the first 80 minutes of the storm! The thunderstorms were part of a complex of storms that moved from the Gulf east across central Florida.

Rainfall in Pinellas County, FL for the 24 hour period ending the morning of August 22, 2012

Buckets of rain could be in the cards for the Tampa area and western Florida early next week depending on the track and intensity of now Tropical Storm Isaac. The latest path projection takes Isaac into the western Gulf of Mexico. If that's the case the west coast of Florida will be in for some significant wind and rain.  In the meantime, the Tampa area will be generally dry the next couple of days as winds swing into the northeast cutting off the flow of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico.

Position and projected track of Tropical Storm Isaac as of 8:00 p.m. EDT August 23, 2012

Record Heavy Rain in Alaska

While almost 62 percent of the lower 48 states deals with drought conditions, a series of storms systems have dumped excessive amounts of rain on northwestern Alaska so far this week. Amounts in excess of five inches have been recorded so far, with 5.0 inches at Red Dog Mine, 3.50 inches of rain at Kivalina and 2.50 inches a Kotzebue. Northwest Alaska is a relatively dry region, and the amounts received this week amount to about one-third of the average annual precipitation. In this region, a three inch rainfall in three days is a once in a hundred year event!

Image courtesy of NWS Alaska Region

The heavy rain has caused flooding and river levels are expected to remain high the rest of the week. Two more storm systems are forecast to hit the area in the next two to three days producing additional rainfall one one to three inches.

Weather map for Thursday, August 16.  Source: NWS Anchorage, AK

Forecast map for Saturday, August 18, 2012.  Source: NWS Anchorage, AK

Interestingly, it has been dry in central southern Alaska.  Anchorage has received only 0.61 inches of rain so far this month, with a normal August total 3.30 inches.  Fairbanks, with an average total of 1.88 inches in August, has only mustered 0.13 so far this month.

Most of our CoCoRaHS stations in Alaska are in and around Anchorage. A couple of the Anchorage CoCoRaHS stations have recorded a little over an inch for the month, but as is typical during the summer, precipitation can vary a lot over a small distance, even in Alaska.

Thanks to colleague Sam Shea for the "heads up" on this unusual event.

What Happened to Summer?

The recent spell of cool weather in the eastern half of the country has been a welcome respite from the brutal summer weather this year. Some may argue that most of the central and eastern U.S. has experienced two years worth of summer in two months this year.  Although August started out on the warm side, a significant change in the upper level wind patterns has brought an early taste of fall to the central U.S.

This all began at the end of the first week of August with the passage of a strong upper low through the middle of the country. As the trough developed over the eastern half of the U.S. the upper level ridge retreated westward. A second, even strong upper level low dropped into the Midwest this weekend, reinforcing the trough over the eastern U.S.

The 500 millibar map (~18,000-20,000 ft) for the morning of Friday, August 10
showing the strong upper low over the Great Lakes.

It's been a welcome turnaround. Temperatures the last week have averaged near to well below normal across much of the central U.S., while the western U.S. is experiencing the hot weather. In addition, there have been several rounds of much needed rain. It certainly hasn't broken the drought, but has slowed any worsening for the time being.

After piling up massive numbers of record high temperatures the last two months in the central U.S., record low minimum and record low maximum temperatures have been the rule the past few days. Saturday was a very cool day in Michigan with high temperatures topping out only in the low 60s, many of those records. Record low temperatures were also scattered through the upper Midwest this weekend with minimum temperature dropping into the low 40s.

Locations that set record low maximum temperatures on August 11.
A complete list of records can be viewed at the National Climatic Data Center Records Lookup page.

The surface low pressure system associated with the upper trough was of record proportions itself. The low generated gales across Lake Michigan and rare lake-effect thunderstorms dropped more than three inches of rain along the lake in northern Illinois. You can read an excellent discussion about this unusual storm system , including graphics and photos, at the National Weather Service Chicago web site.  Heavy rain also fell eastward through Michigan, with close to four inches in Bay County.

CoCoRaHS map for August 10. Note the high rainfall in northeastern Illinois and along the
south end of Saginaw Bay in Michigan.

CoCoRaHS map for August 10 showing high rainfall along the Lake Michigan shoreline in northern Illinois

 
So will this cool weather last? The 8-14 day outlook issued by the Climate Prediction Center on August 12th indicates a higher probability for cooler than normal weather for the central U.S.  I like that sound of that.

Stirrings in the Atlantic

The tropical storm season has been a relatively quiet one so far this year, but  in the last two days there have been some a couple of tropical waves that bear watching.  The latest advisory by the Tropical Prediction Center has identified two areas of disturbed weather.  One is in the central Caribbean and is producing showers and thunderstorms from Hispaniola eastward several hundred miles. Upper level winds are unfavorable for much further development of this system.  To the southeast of this wave is another tropical wave about midday between African and the Lesser Antilles, and this has a better chance for development into a tropical cyclone over the next several days.

Tropical outlook for the Atlantic issued at 1:33 pm EDT on July 31, 2012

So far the have been four named tropical systems this season. Tropical Storm Alberto formed in mid-May and spun around off the northeast coast of Florida. Tropical Storm Beryl formed a few days after Alberto's demise and brushed the southeast U.S. with tropical storm force wind gusts and heavy rain in northeast Florida and southeast Georgia.  Hurricane Chris was a short-lived tropical system that developed southeast of the Canadian Maritimes on June 19. Tropical Storm Debby formed over the central Gulf of Mexico the last week of June and was a huge rain producer over the west coast of Florida and the Florida panhandle. On the morning of June 25 most CoCoRaHs observers in Hernando County, FL reported 10 to more than 14 inches of rain in 24 hours. Two CoCoRaHS observers in Crawfordville, FL (Wakulla County in the panhandle) reported more than 16 inches of rain in 24 hours!

While no one wants the damage and headaches associated with a landfalling tropical system, a good portion of the central United States would love to see a tropical system bring its moisture and rain inland to drought-affected areas. That is probably a long shot at this point. By the way, "Ernesto" will be the name of the next tropical cyclone.

More information on tropical systems in both the Atlantic and the Pacific can be found at National Hurricane Center web site.

Rain Around the Ridge

You may have noticed on this week's national CoCoRaHS precipitation maps that the rainfall pattern was generally in a large arc extending from the Rockies across the Dakotas, the upper Midwest, through the southern Great Lakes and then to the mid-Atlantic coast. South of that arc was a large area of from Nebraska and Iowa southward with no rain.   The arc of precipitation marked the northern edge of the upper level ridge of high pressure anchored over the Central Plains and Midwest. The pattern did not change much during the first four days of this week as can be seen from this animation:

National CoCoRaHs map July 21 through July 25

The 500 millibar upper air chart for July 22, 2012.

The subsiding air underneath the ridge kept the weather hot and dry. An upper level low pressure wave moving through the northern U.S. (seen just on the British Columbia coast on the map above) weakened the ridge and allowed a cold front to drop through the central U.S. today. It brought some rain to the parched Plains and Midwest last night and this morning. At the time of this post a line of storms extended from Texas to New Jersey, and severe thunderstorm watches were in effect from the mid-Mississippi Valley to the Atlantic coast.

Weekend Dust-Up in Phoenix

A haboob advances toward Yellow House Canyon near
the community of Ransom Canyon, Texas. June 18, 2009.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons

In the last post about monsoons one of the hazards listed was dust storms. Phoenix experienced a spectacular dust storm, or haboob, on Saturday, July 21. It was the first of the season for Phoenix.

Haboobs (Arabic for "strong wind") are common in arid parts of the world. In the U.S. haboobs occur in the Desert Southwest. They typically result from strong downburst thunderstorm winds. These winds spread outward from the storms, picking up loose, dry sand from the desert floor.  They often appear as a wall of dust hundreds of feet high advancing along the ground.

The haboob in Phoenix this weekend resulted from the outflows of thunderstorms that developed to the southeast of Phoenix and moved northwest.  The two radar images below show the outflow of the thunderstorms as they approached Phoenix, which likely marked the leading edge of the haboob.  It crossed through the Phoenix metro area from about 5:00 p.m. to near 7:00 p.m. local time. (Note that I was unable to find the time of the dust storm in news reports, but I did find it in the comments from our CoCoRaHS observers!)

This is the radar image from the NWS radar at Phoenix at 5;13 P.M. MST. The city of Phoenix is northwest of the radar. The white arrows point to the blue linear echo marking the outflow from the thunderstorms. The thunderstorms were moving from southeast to northwest.

This radar image shows the outflow boundary (marked by white arrows)
just about at the NWS radar site at 5:55 p.m. MST

The strong winds left almost 10,000 homes without power, and the dust reduced visibility to near zero in many areas. The dust was a nuisance and a health hazard, but it was also a boon to pool service companies and car washes in the area.

Here are some of the comments about the haboob from our CoCoRaHS observers, all from the observations on the morning of July 22. Suprisingly there were no Significant Weather Reports filed for this event!


AZ-MR-5    Sun City West 1.9 NNE    Apx 6pm Sat very strong winds with heavy blowing dust and poor visibility. Apx 8pm thunder/lightning/rain started. Apx 9:12pm VERY LOUD boom over our house with strong vibration and lightning. Heavy rain followed.

AZ-MR-25    Phoenix 4.2 NE    peak wind gust 47mph at 18:02:46 hours.

AZ-MR-68    Mesa 1.3 NNE    Haboob struck from ESE @ 1658 on 072112W? gusts < approx 50 mph. Rain began approx 1610, lasting about 20 min. (All blow and no show)

AZ-MR-72    Paradise Valley 2.8 NNW    A lot of dust and wind last evening around 6pm. To call the rainfall "trace" is a gross overstatement. There was a lttle dust in the rain guage, probably associated with a few rain drops.

AZ-MR-157    Chandler 6.6 SE    dust storm, 50+ mph winds started about 6 pm with heavy rain and thunderstorm starting at 6:30 pm, lasted until 6:45 pm, 20 degree temp drop in 1/2 hour, rain and wind stopped with gradual clearing

AZ-MR-174    Surprise 5.1 NW    The blow came through about 6PM with lots of dust and high winds followed by loud and very close lighting and thunder around 8Pm and rain toaling 0.04 inches. Lost power little after 9PM for about an hour. This AM skys are clearing, winds very light from the North, humidity 63%, temp 84 degrees.

AZ-MR-287    Surprise 10.9 NE    1.28"... 2 miles NE of Happy Valley Rd./67th Ave close to Pyramid Peak. Was not home, but could tell from where we were near 107th Ave/Deer Valley that our home was being hit hard both by the haboob and later by the thunderstorm.

AZ-MR-57    Phoenix 7.4 NE    partly cloudy. About 5:15 pm huge dust storm rolled in last night, totally obscuring the mountain from our location. Gusts of wind blew through the yard, whipping trees, then stilling. Later we would see lightning to the north, but we received no precipitation.

A freelance photographer for the Phoenix New Times took some spectacular photos of the haboob as it swept across Tempe and Scottsdale toward Phoenix. You can view these photos on the Phoenix New Times web site.

Monsoon Season

A monsoon is a seasonal change in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the differential heating of land and and ocean. This differential heating, where the land is warmer than the water, results in large scale changes to the wind patterns allowing moisture-laden air to flow from the ocean sources to the land.  We typically associate monsoons with southern Asia and subtropical locations.  However, the North American Monsoon is an important mechanism bringing rain to the southwestern U.S. For many locations the monsoon accounts for 50 to 60 percent of the average annual precipitation.

The Southwest Arizona Monsoon Project (SWAMP) in 1990 and 1993 established the fact that a true monsoon, characterized by large-scale wind and rainfall shifts in the summer, develops over much of Mexico and the intermountain region of the U.S.  In 2004 the North American Monsoon Experiment (NAME) conducted in northwest Mexico and the southwest U.S sought to better describe the monsoon in North America, and increase our ability to predict it on a daily, weekly and seasonal basis. NAME showed that the weather pattern in the southwestern U.S.during the summer is not only a true monsoon, but it also affects the weather over a large portion of North America.

This map depicts the general weather pattern for the
North American Monsoon.The thermal low sets up
over the Desert Southwest,while the subtropical high
moves into the Southern Plains. The resulting wind
pattern draws moisture from sources in the Gulf of California,
the Sierra Madre mountains, and the Gulf of Mexico (green arrows).
Source: NOAA National Weather Service

The North American Monsoon (NAM) is associated with an area of high pressure, the subtropical ridge, that moves northward during the summer months and a thermal low (a trough of low pressure which develops from intense surface heating) over the Mexican Plateau and the U.S. Desert Southwest. The NAM usually occurs in five general phases, although this can vary from year to year. In general the monsoon season extends from June 15th to September 30th. The Ramp-Up phase usually occurs from mid-June through early July. The onset of the NAM occurs from late June through mid-July.  At this time winds over the southwestern U.S. shift into the east and southeast drawing moisture in at both the surface and aloft. The National Weather Service officially marks the start of the monsoon when there have been three consecutive days with the dew point above 54°F.  The peak of the NAM occurs from mid July through mid August.  The Late Monsoon phase occurs from mid August to mid September, and the monsoon Decay can occur from late August to late September.

While the monsoon brings beneficial rain to the normally parched southwestern U.S., it also produces a variety of weather hazards including intense heat, enhanced wildfire risk, flash flooding, severe thunderstorms with damaging winds and hail, lightning, and dust storms.

The North American Monsoon is a busy time for CoCoRaHS observers in Arizona, New Mexico, and southwestern Texas.  After weeks if not months of reporting zeroes they are finally able to measure something other than dust and bugs in the gauge. Check out the Daily Comments on the CoCoRaHS web site to get the observers' perspectives on the North American Monsoon.

You can learn much more about the North American Monsoon at two web sites in particular. The National Weather Service office in Tuscon, AZ has assembled an excellent series of web pages on the Monsoon in Southeastern Arizona and was the source for much of the information in this post.   There is also a web site dedicated to monsoon safety and preparedness, monsoonsafety.org.

Houston, We Have a Problem

That problem is rain, and lots of it. A nearly stationary upper level trough along the Gulf Coast combined with a steady flow of moist air from the Gulf of Mexico resulted in torrential rain in the northwest side of Houston for the past couple of days.

This is the water vapor satellite image for Thursday, July 12, 2012 at 2:45 pm CDT. The yellow dashed line marks the upper level trough, and the green arrow depicts the flow of very moist air. The orange area northwest of the trough is dry air, and the white to blue colors depict the moist air.

More than 15 inches of rain have accumulated at some locations since Tuesday, pushing several creeks and rivers to major flood levels.  Numerous homes were flooded with anywhere from a few inches to several feet of water. Some roads were still closed due to flooding late Friday afternoon.

This graph shows the river stage on Cypress Creek. The blue line tracks the observed values, and the purple dots are the forecast stages.

The National Weather Service reported that one rain gauge on the border of Harris and Waller counties recorded 10.30 inches of rain in a 10 hour period.

CoCoRaHS maps for July 12 (top) and July 13 (bottom)

 On the positive side, the three days of rain will likely put an end to the drought in southeastern Texas.

"It’s like farming in hell.”

That was a statement from Fred Below, a plant biologist at the University of Illinois in Urbana quoted in an article in Bloomberg Businessweek.  He estimated that during the heat wave last week corn yields were dropping by five bushels per day in the driest parts of the Midwest. Commodity prices are rising as yield estimates continue to tumble.

The U.S. Drought Monitor for July 10 (released today) depicts only two states not affected by abnormal dryness or worse - Vermont and Maine.  Eighty percent of the lower 48 states is affected by abnormally dry weather to exceptional drought. Severe to exceptional drought covers 37 percent of the lower 48. Both numbers are a few percentage points higher then the week before.
 

Although the focus has been on the corn crop in the last few days, that is by far from the only crop or agricultural sector affected.  Today the U.S. Department of Agriculture named more than 1,000 counties in 26 states as natural-disaster areas, the biggest such declaration ever by the USDA.

To get a feel for the scope of this disaster you have to look no farther than the drought impacts reported by CoCoRaHS observers across the country.  Here is a sampling.

Cracks in the ground are getting larger.   KS-JF-3   Jefferson County, KS   7/12/12
   
Very little irrigation water so we won't get a hay crop and will have to buy all of our hay this year. We are planning on selling some of the livestock. Horses. Also, the drought has caused wildfires which have closed roads to our area, thus stemming the flow of tourists we rely on for income. Thankfully no fires in the immediate area.  CO-JK-25 Jackson County, CO  7/3/12
   
We have reached a point that everything is so dry that fires are starting to pop up. Tuesday's fire took out over 500 acres. Fortunately no one lost Life or homes. It did get close and evacuation was necessary. This drought is at a very severe point, where we are going to see fires pop up every where. The loggers were shut down late last week, until we get some rain. Whole herds of cattle are being sold off because the producers can't feed them or they have run out of water or both. Tri-County water is in a severe shortage of water and has even mentioned that the lack of water may put some home owners with no water in an area from 105 north across to Gum Log. The fire fighting Tuesday was handy capped by the shortage of water to fight fire with. AR-PP-15    Pope County, AR  7/5/12

I've measured 1.21 inches of rain this calendar year. You can't raise a cactus on that!!  NM-RV-1    Roosevelt County, NM  7/2/12

Lawns are crisp and dry, and the ground is cracked. Plants are drying up and dying and watering is necessary for vegetable gardens. Corn in fields is showing signs of needing water. Water restrictions have not been put in place as of yet. Risk for fire is high.  PA-MT-56   Montgomery County, PA  7/11/12

Milo crop in area is averaging between 400 - 1100 lbs/acre. Normal average is 3000 - 3500 lbs/acre. Corn crop is burned up but harvest has not begun on the corn. Drip watering to keep trees and shrubs alive. Wildlife coming to water troughs near house to drink.  TX-JW-6  Jim Wells County, TX  7/11

Some friends here in the Sierra foothills are on "survival mode". Some of our wells are low because of little snow in the mountains this last winter.   CA-MP-1  Mariposa County, CA  7/9/12

Drought conditions continue to intensify from the drought which has developed back in May. Lawns across the region have gone completely dormant (brown). Larger landscape plants are constantly wilted and smaller plants are dying off. Large trees are now showing stress with color change and leaves falling off. Most streams and rivers have very low flows. OH-SN-3  Seneca County, OH  7/9/12

Watching friends and neighbors lose their crops. Ii [is] very discouraging. The field corn is turning blue and the soybeans keep losing blooms and stunted growth.  KS-SN-7  Shawnee County, KS

Some of the trees are starting to show yellow leaves. The ferns are either wilted or turning yellow. Fire danger is still extremely high. Been using leaf blowers to move the dead leaves away from the house & outbuildings.  MI-VB-2  Van Buren County, MI  7/6/12

Ground settling around lagoon knocked fence out of alignment. Pastures are very dry. Are having to feed some hay to the horses. tree leaves are starting to shrivel up. Pond and lagoon levels are dropping. electric use is up because we are using the AC's more and have to run a fan in the barn to keep the horses cool. We have been able to keep up with watering the garde and plants. Which means more electric use and wear and tear on the well pump. If we don't get significant rain Monday or Tuesday things will begin to look dire. Did have five deer grazing in my South pasture this morning which is competition for the horses.  MO-BN-20  Boone County MO  7/6/12

Corn is devastated. Cotton and soybeans are hurting. Severe fire dangers too. Showers this week have been spotty and light. Thankful for what we did get. TN-LC-7  Lincoln County, TN  7/6/12

We began chopping our corn crop for silage to feed the animals on July 1st. Two other farmers in the area have begun doing the same. The corn in our area has not produced corn cobs and will likely yield nothing. The only areas that appear to be salvageable for yields are low-lying areas near creeks and rivers.  IL-EF-13  Effingham County, IL  7/5/12

You can view all of the drought impacts reports submitted by CoCoRaHS observers on the CoCoRaHS web site. Select View Data in the top line menu, then select Drought Impact Reports in the left hand menu.