drought conditions

El Niño is making an exit, but La Niña could bring dry conditions back to California

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After a year of dominance, El Niño’s wrath has ended, but its climate-changing counterpart, La Niña, is nipping at its heels and could signal a return to drought for California. El Niño is the warm phase of the El Niño Southern Oscillation, also called ENSO. The tropical Pacific climate pattern is the biggest driver of … Read more

The American Drought Monitor is a crucial tool for the arid West. Can it keep up with climate change?

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Known for its glowing swaths of yellow, orange and red, the U.S. Drought Monitor has warned farmers, residents and officials across the country every week since 1999 of impending water shortages. Backed by data on soil moisture, temperature, snow cover, meltwater runoff, reservoir levels and more, the map has become an essential tool for determining … Read more