Ticker for June 11, 2014

                
MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ...
June 11, 2014      June 11, 2014      June 11, 2014      June 11, 2014


Count 'em ... 71!

A majority of the Oklahoma Mesonet sites have seen more rain in the last 21 days
(May 21-June 10) than they had the previous 139 days (Jan. 1-May 20).



Wrong, Dude ... these are facts! Stats, actually. Check out the Mesonet rainfall
for all three periods we're speaking of here:

Jan 1-May 20




May 21-June 10




And here's the combined period, also known as "Hey, why isn't the newest Drought
Monitor map a blank slate?"

Jan 1-June 10





So in a nutshell, at least based on a statewide average, our Jan 1-May 20 period
was the 2nd driest since at least 1921 ... the May 21-June 10 period (smack
dab in the wettest part of the year in Oklahoma) was the 16th wettest since at
least 1921 ... and finally, for the year thus far we've experienced our 7th
driest Jan 1-June 10 since at least 1921.

Wild, no? So that begs the question, just how much of our year-to-date moisture
has come in the last 21 days? Well, let's look at the stats. Based simply on a
percentage of that May 21-June 10 period vs. the entire period, our good friends
in Goodwell (Hi, Rick K.!) come out the big winners with a whopping 85% (4.30
inches) of their Jan 1-June 10 total of 6.12 inches having fallen since May 20.
On the low end of the dial comes Hugo. They came up short during the last 21
days with only 2.56 inches of rain, or 17% of their Jan 1-June 10 total of
14.96 inches.

Of the 119 active Mesonet sites (so long for now, Claremore), 71 received more
rain in the last 21 days than the previous 139 days. I said that already, but
now maybe you believe me? Just as a teaser, here are the top (those stations
that received at least 75% of their year-to-date rainfall in the last 21 days)
May 21-June 10 performers. The headers are self-explanatory, so I'll go ahead
and explain them to be a pain.

Mesonet site = Mesonet site (Hello, McFly!!!)
Jan 1-May 20 = Total rainfall over that period in inches
May 21-June 10 = Total rainfall over that period in inches
Jan 1-June 10 = Total rainfall over that period in inches
May 21-June 10 vs. Jan 1-May 20 = The total over the last 21 days minus the
total over the previous 139 days



So you can see the entire data set, I'll just post a pdf file so you can see
the plethora (dare I say smorgasbord??) of information.

https://content.mesonet.org/ticker/archive/20140611/jan1-june10-rainfall.pdf

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For those 48 stations that are below the 50% value, our rainy late-spring
period ain't over yet. Word from our friends at the NWS is that we could
see another of those late-night MCS (Mesoscale Convective System ... in
technical terms, a great big blob of showers and storms) move out of the High
Plains of Colorado into our area. A cold front will also enter the picture
and bring more rain chances through the day tomorrow.

Easier told with pictures rather than words.








Severe weather will be possible with severe winds, heavy rains (flash flooding)
and large hail being the most probable impacts. The rainfall totals over this
period might be as high as a couple of inches, but probably not quite as
widespread as we'd like to see.



Rain chances over the weekend and into next week are increasing, hence the
somewhat optimistic 7-day rainfall forecast.



We still need lots of rain across a large area of Oklahoma (again, check out
that Jan 1-June 10 departure map). Regardless, summer's looking a bit better
for most than it did 22 days ago.


Gary McManus
State Climatologist
Oklahoma Mesonet
Oklahoma Climatological Survey
(405) 325-2253
gmcmanus@mesonet.org