Quarterly Climate Impacts and Outlook for the Southern Region for December 2017 – February 2018.  Dated March 2018. 

Temperatures deviated slightly from normal this winter for most of the Southern Region. Parts of Mississippi, western Texas, and southeastern Louisiana experienced above-normal temperatures. Winter precipitation varied spatially throughout the Southern Region. Parts of Texas and Oklahoma received five percent or less of normal precipitation.

Due to the severity of drought conditions across the southern high plains, a collaboration of drought and climate experts will provide the latest information on current conditions, impacts and outlooks. In this March 16 webinar, John Nielsen-Gammon (Texas State Climatologist) will present information for the southern high plains, which includes portions of Kansas, Colorado, Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma. 

Quarterly Climate Impacts and Outlook for the Southern Region for September – November 2017.  Dated December 2017. 

Discussion of La Niña in winter; outlook for precipitation and temperatures; impacts on drought, agriculture, and the economy; how past La Niñas have unfolded.  

NOAA’s Regional Climate Services Program created these Outlooks to inform the public about recent climate impacts within their respective regions. Each regional report contains easy-to-understand language, and anyone can access them through the Drought Portal at https://www.drought.gov/drought/resources/reports. 

Quarterly Climate Impacts and Outlook for the Southern Region for June – August 2017.  Dated September 2017.  

Five of six states in the Southern Region experienced cooler than normal temperatures this summer (June–August). This is in direct contrast to this past winter and spring. Precipitation was abundant in southwestern Louisiana and southeastern Texas in August due to Hurricane Harvey. Summer 2017 was the wettest summer on record (since 1895) throughout the entire Southern Region.

Summary of meeting discusses conditions in the Southern Plains 2011-12. Topics include key messages from the forum, forecast uncertainty and the potential for long-term trends, drought webinars, and impacts of the 2011 drought to water, agriculture, wildfire and ecosystems.

Summarizes drought assessment and outlook forum held in Lubbock, TX in 2012.

The Southern Plains DEWS Strategic Plan outlines priority tasks and activities across the region to build drought early warning capacity and resilience. It includes a list of current partners, outcomes, and key milestones. The Plan is a “living document” to which additional actions and partners may be added as needed.

Quarterly Climate Impacts and Outlook for the Southern Region for March – May 2017.  Dated June 2017. 

It was a warmer than normal spring (March-May) for the southern region, with all six states reporting warmer than normal temperatures for March, April, and May collectively. The year 2017, at this point (Jan–May), is the second warmest year on record for the southern region.