Drought Conditions for Sonoma County
people in Sonoma County are affected by drought
of people in Sonoma County are affected by drought
driest February was in 2021, over the past 127 years
driest year to date in 127 years occured in 2021
The U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) is updated each Thursday to show the location and intensity of drought across the country using a five-category system, from Abnormally Dry (D0) conditions to Exceptional Drought (D4). The USDM is a joint effort of the National Drought Mitigation Center, USDA, and NOAA. Learn more.
The 30-day departure from normal temperature shows the difference of the last 30 days from the usual conditions for the same time period averaged since 1980.
This map uses the gridMET and PRISM temperature datasets, which are delayed from the current day by 2 to 3 days to allow for data collection and quality control.
Departure from Normal Temperature (°F)
| ≤ -8 | -6 | -4 | -3 | -1 | 0 |
| 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 8 |
* Currently, data is only available for the contiguous U.S.
The 30-day percent of normal precipitation shows the difference of the last 30 days from the usual conditions for the same time period averaged since 1980.
This map uses the gridMET and NLDAS precipitation datasets, which are delayed from the current day by 2 to 3 days to allow for data collection and quality control.
Percent of Normal Precipitation (%)
| 0% - 25% | 25% - 50% | 50% - 75% | 75% - 100% |
| 100% - 150% | 150% - 200% | 200% - 300% | ≥ 300% |
* Currently, data is only available for the contiguous U.S.
- Soil is dry; irrigation delivery begins early
- Dryland crop germination is stunted
- Active fire season begins
- Dryland pasture growth is stunted; producers give supplemental feed to cattle
- Landscaping and gardens need irrigation earlier; wildlife patterns begin to change
- Stock ponds and creeks are lower than usual
- Grazing land is inadequate
- Producers increase water efficiency methods and drought-resistant crops
- Fire season is longer, with high burn intensity, dry fuels, and large fire spatial extent; more fire crews are on staff
- Livestock need expensive supplemental feed, cattle and horses are sold; little pasture remains, producers find it difficult to maintain organic meat requirements
- Fruit trees bud early; producers begin irrigating in the winter
- Federal water is not adequate to meet irrigation contracts; extracting supplemental groundwater is expensive
- Fields are left fallow; orchards are removed; vegetable yields are low; honey harvest is small
- Fire season is very costly; number of fires and area burned are extensive
- Many recreational activities are affected
These experimental drought blends integrate several key drought monitoring products and indices into a single short-term or long-term product, based on the methodology developed at the NOAA Climate Prediction Center. The blends are created using the Climate Engine tool, and apply the CPC weighting ratios to the high-resolution gridMET gridded research dataset. The data is updated daily, with a delay of 2 to 3 days to allow for data collection and quality control.
The short-term blend combines PDSI, Z-Index, 1-month SPI, and 3-month SPI to estimate the overall short-term drought. Please refer to the product documentation for more information. This product is an example of current NIDIS-funded research.
This data is updated every 5 days, with a delay of 4 to 5 days to allow for data collection and quality control.
* Currently, data is only available for the contiguous U.S.
| D4 | D3 | D2 | D1 | D0 | W0 | W1 | W2 | W3 | W4 | |
| 0-2 | 2-5 | 5-10 | 10-20 | 20-30 | 30-70 | 70-80 | 80-90 | 90-95 | 95-98 | 98-100 |
| D4 | D3 | D2 | D1 | D0 | |
| 0-2 | 2-5 | 5-10 | 10-20 | 20-30 | 30-70 |
| W0 | W1 | W2 | W3 | W4 |
| 70-80 | 80-90 | 90-95 | 95-98 | 98-100 |
These experimental drought blends integrate several key drought monitoring products and indices into a single short-term or long-term product, based on the methodology developed at the NOAA Climate Prediction Center. The blends are created using the Climate Engine tool, and apply the CPC weighting ratios to the high-resolution gridMET gridded research dataset. The data is updated daily, with a delay of 2 to 3 days to allow for data collection and quality control.
The long-term blend combines PDSI, Z-Index, and 6-month, 1-year, 2-year, and 5-year SPI to estimate the overall long-term drought. Please refer to the product documentation for more information. This product is an example of current NIDIS-funded research.
This data is updated every 5 days, with a delay of 4 to 5 days to allow for data collection and quality control.
* Currently, data is only available for the contiguous U.S.
| D4 | D3 | D2 | D1 | D0 | W0 | W1 | W2 | W3 | W4 | |
| 0-2 | 2-5 | 5-10 | 10-20 | 20-30 | 30-70 | 70-80 | 80-90 | 90-95 | 95-98 | 98-100 |
| D4 | D3 | D2 | D1 | D0 | |
| 0-2 | 2-5 | 5-10 | 10-20 | 20-30 | 30-70 |
| W0 | W1 | W2 | W3 | W4 |
| 70-80 | 80-90 | 90-95 | 95-98 | 98-100 |
The USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) conducts hundreds of surveys every year and prepares reports covering virtually every aspect of U.S. agriculture, including agricultural commodities statistics for crops and livestock. This map displays shows agricultural products alongside the current U.S. Drought Monitor. Learn more.
* Currently, data is only available for the contiguous U.S.
D0 - Abnormally Dry
D2 - Severe Drought
D4 - Exceptional Drought
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) produces maps of real-time streamflow conditions compared to historical conditions. The map depicts streamflow conditions as computed at USGS streamgages. The colors represent real-time streamflow compared to percentiles of historical daily streamflow for the day of the year. Click on a streamgage to view more data for that location. Learn more.
Much below normal
Normal
Much above normal
Not-ranked
The National Weather Service (NWS) Climate Prediction Center (CPC) produces precipitation outlooks for the U.S., including 6-10 day, 8-14 day, monthly, and seasonal outlooks. This 1-month outlook depicts whether there is a greater chance for above-normal, below-normal, or near-normal precipitation conditions in this region. Learn more.
Probability of Below-Normal Precipitation
Probability of Above-Normal Precipitation
U.S. Drought Monitor
This map shows the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) Social Vulnerability Index alongside current U.S. Drought Monitor drought designations. CDC's Social Vulnerability Index uses 15 U.S. census variables at tract level (including poverty, lack of vehicle access, and crowded housing) to help local officials identify communities that may need support in preparing for or recovering from hazards, like drought. Learn more.
0.5001 - 0.75
0 - 0.25 | Lowest Vulnerability
This map shows active National Weather Service (NWS) Excessive Heat Watches, Heat Advisories, and Excessive Heat Warnings alongside current U.S. Drought Monitor drought designations.
Heat Advisory
U.S. Drought Monitor
The Evaporative Demand Drought Index (EDDI) is an experimental drought monitoring tool that can serve as an indicator of both rapidly evolving "flash" droughts and sustained droughts. It examines how anomalous the atmospheric evaporative demand (E0; also known as "the thirst of the atmosphere") is for a given location and across a time period of interest. Learn more.
| ED4 | ED3 | ED2 | ED1 | ED0 | EW0 | EW1 | EW2 | EW3 | EW4 | |
| 100% | 98% | 95% | 90% | 80% | 70% | 30% | 20% | 10% | 5% | 2% |
* Currently, data is only available for the contiguous U.S.
NOAA's Climate Prediction Center issues Monthly and Seasonal Drought Outlooks each month. The Monthly Drought Outlook predicts whether drought will emerge, stay the same, or get better over the next 30 days or so, while the Seasonal Drought Outlook predicts whether drought will emerge, stay the same, or get better in the next three months.
| Drought persists | Drought remains but improves | Drought removal likely | Drought development likely |
The U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) is a national map released every Thursday, showing parts of the U.S. that are in drought. The USDM relies on drought experts to synthesize the best available data and work with local observers to interpret the information. The USDM also incorporates ground truthing and information about how drought is affecting people, via a network of more than 450 observers across the country, including state climatologists, National Weather Service staff, Extension agents, and hydrologists. Learn more.
The Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) is an index to characterize meteorological drought on a range of timescales, ranging from 1 to 72 months. The SPI is the number of standard deviations that observed cumulative precipitation deviates from the climatological average. NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information produce the 9-month SPI values below on a monthly basis, going back to 1895. Learn more.
Tree-rings are used to extend the instrumental record of drought to over 2000 years. The Living Blended Drought Product (LBDP) is a recalibrated data series of June-July-August Palmer Modified Drought Index (PMDI) values in the lower 48 U.S. states. This dataset blends tree-ring reconstructions and instrumental data to estimate the average summer PMDI values, which extend over 2000 years in some parts of the U.S. Learn more.