Weather

Beneficial moisture on the far southern Plains

Across the Corn Belt, snow showers are occurring downwind of the Great Lakes. Elsewhere, cloudy conditions accompany patches of light snow and freezing drizzle. Temperatures are not unusually low for this time of year, although several readings below 10° were noted early Tuesday across the snow-covered upper Midwest.

On the Plains, snow is blanketing an area—including southwestern Kansas and the panhandle of Oklahoma—that has been suffering from drought. The snow is causing some travel disruptions but should benefit winter wheat. Meanwhile, rain is spreading across the remainder of Oklahoma, as well as parts of northern and eastern Texas. Elsewhere, generally mild weather covers the northern Plains, although a few snow showers are occurring in Nebraska and the Dakotas.

In the South, rain is spreading across areas west of the Mississippi Delta. In eastern Texas, where pockets of drought exist, the rain is boosting topsoil moisture. Meanwhile, mild, dry weather prevails in the Southeast.

In the West, unsettled weather continues from the Pacific Northwest to the northern Rockies. In contrast, dry weather prevails from central and southern California to the central and southern Rockies. Following a promising start to the winter wet season in California’s key watershed areas, the average water equivalency of the Sierra Nevada snowpack stands at 12 inches—less than three-quarters of the typical late-January value.