With the winter weather season upon us, farmers, water managers and ordinary citizens are fervently hoping for relief from moderate to severe drought conditions afflicting more than 25 percent of the North American continent.
That percentage represents a slight improvement from July, when more than 28 percent of the continent was in drought — the highest since these analyses began in 2002.
Will we see continued improvement, and where might that be likeliest to happen? What about temperature — which in the parched Western United States, is particularly tied to drought? What should we expect?