Midwest Weekly Highlights - October 11-17, 2010

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Dry Again

Drier than normal weather predominated again during the second week of October (Figure 1). Rainfall totals ranged from nothing in the northwest parts of the Midwest to small pockets of half inch rains in Michigan, Ohio, and Kentucky (Figure 2). The rains that fell did little to alleviate drought conditions along the Ohio River. The US Drought Monitor introduced Extreme Drought in southern Indiana and expanded the Abnormally Dry designation across more of Indiana and Illinois (Figure 3). Farmers have taken advantage of favorable field conditions to put corn and soybean harvests ahead of the 5-year average in all Midwest states (Figure 4). The dry conditions also allowed rivers to return to their banks with only the Des Moines River at Estherville, Iowa remaining above flood stage by the end of the week (Figure 5).
 

Warm Temperatures

Temperatures ranged from near normal to more than 5°F above normal for the week (Figure 6). The warmest temperatures extended from northwest Minnesota to Cincinnati, Ohio with near normal conditions along the southern and northeastern edges of the Midwest. Maximum temperatures were even warmer than the average temperatures, ranging up to 8°F above normal (Figure 7). Daily temperature records set during the week were mostly record highs on the 11th and 12th.
 

-MST-