RSS FeedsHydrologic Summary for December 2003 for the Area Served by the NWS Forecast Office at Sioux Falls, SD
Summary
The weather across the region in December was a tale of two stories. The first half of the month saw normal to below normal temperatures and above normal precipitation, with the last half of the month characterized by extremely warm temperatures and very little precipitation.
Flooding
There was no flooding in southeast South Dakota, northwest Iowa, southwest Minnesota, or extreme northeast Nebraska in December.
General Hydrologic Information
Temperatures in December ended the month much above normal despite a cool beginning. Average temperatures for the month were generally 6 to 8 degrees above the 30 year average, placing the month in or near the top ten warmest Decembers on record.Precipitation for the month was below normal for most areas. Monthly departures from normal were generally between -0.10 and -0.25 inch. Portions of the central parts of the region did receive around 1 inch of precipitation for the month, which is around 0.5 inch above normal. The was very little snow cover remaining in the region as of the end of the month.
Soil Moisture conditions at the end of December were slightly below normal throughout the region. Deficits of 1 to 3 inches were common. The National Drought Monitor showed moderate drought across the western, northern and eastern portions of the region, with severe drought along and west of the Missouri River upstream of Fort Randall Dam. Abnormally dry conditions were shown for the central and southern parts of the area.
Mike Gillispie
January 2, 2004
January 2, 2004
