Tuesday, June 18, 2019

Can't Have It Both Ways...

If you keep up with the weather like I do, you know California had one of the wettest & snowiest seasons in history.  Gone is the recent drought with no part of California showing up in the weekly Drought Monitor as having a shortage.  So you can see why I'm confused by an article in the USA TODAY which states..."Wildfires maybe worse this year."    Now I could buy into that headline if the author said the recent above normal rainy season will allow for abundant growth in the underbrush which will create fuel during the normal dry season later this summer.     But noooo.  Here's what the author (Doyle Rice) said.   "Devastating fire seasons could be the rule...in the decades to come if climate change leads to increased temperatures (warming cycle) and reduced rainfall (not happening) - ideal conditions for large, ferocious wildfires".   Wait a minute.  We just had a super wet rainy season, not a drought, yet wildfires maybe worse this year?   Hummm!

Locally, my yard has seen 2 days of soaking rainfall (2.37") triggered by several fast moving upper air disturbances.  it appears we should see much less coverage Wed-Sat. with coverage dropping to below normal (20-30%).  Less rain usually means hotter temps and highs should rebound back into the lower 90s for the rest of the week.   The Tropics remain quiet Worldwide and our high Mississippi actually dropped slightly today.  If the rains farther north finally let up, river levels here should start falling rapidly once we get into July.   Let's hope so as fishing & oyster farming east of the River is terrible.  Stay tuned!

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