Area's Drought Continues

Moderate precipitation deficit persists into 2008

Chart by Capital Weather Gang. Click on image to enlarge.





While enough to get you wet without rain gear, today's semi-springlike showers have done little to dampen the impact of a prolonged dry spell in the Washington metro area. Rainfall amounts of around a tenth of an inch or less have barely equalled the long-term daily average, although more rain is possible tonight. With only two days left in the month, there have been only six days, counting today, with measurable precipitation (0.01" or more). That is less than two-thirds the average of 9.8 rainy/snowy days in the average January in the base period of 1971-2000. Total precipitation for the month is less than 50 percent of the "normal" (long-term average).

The regional 30-day precipitation percentage of average from the National Weather Service (NWS) Precipitation Analysis shows a lot of sub-average yellows and oranges, with the near to above-average grays and greens mostly limited to parts of the Northern Neck of Virginia and southern Maryland. The intensity of the dryness increases generally northward and westward of the Beltway, with Montgomery, Fairfax, and Loudoun Counties faring the worst within the near 'burbosphere.

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