National Current Conditions...
2022 trends continue. This past week was status quo out West as a dry January was counterbalanced by the wet December—but early February looks dry too. Meanwhile in the South, southeastern Texas saw heavy rain, but drought conditions worsened in other parts of Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas. As of February 1, 2022, 46.33% of the U.S. and 55.2% of the lower 48 states are in drought.
Looking Ahead:
As of Wednesday, February 2, a large-scale winter storm was causing snow and ice accumulation across much of the southern Great Plains and lower Midwest. Precipitation, both wintry and plain rain, was forecast by the National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center to continue eastward and northeastward through the middle of the weekend, with some heavier precipitation amounts possible, particularly from Alabama northeast to southern Ohio. On Sunday and Monday (February 6-7), mostly dry weather was in the forecast across the contiguous U.S., though some precipitation was expected along the southeastern coast.
For the period from February 8-12, the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center forecast strongly favored drier than normal weather across much of the West region. Drier weather was also favored from the central and southern Great Plains east to the Atlantic Coast. Wetter than normal weather was favored in south Texas, the northern Great Plains, and northwest Great Lakes. Above-normal precipitation was also favored for this period in most of Alaska. Warmer than normal temperatures were strongly favored along the Pacific Coast, and in the central and northern Great Plains and Upper Midwest. From New Mexico eastward, colder than normal temperatures were favored across the far southern U.S. Colder than normal temperatures were favored in western Alaska, while southeastern Alaska was more likely to see above normal temperatures.
