Industry Resources

Summary: In spite of days of smoke, September was warmer than average[1] across the vast majority of the western US. September also continued the ongoing dry conditions throughout California and the Great Basin, although western Oregon and Washington saw initial falls rains that helped with wildfires. The western US drought footprint is now at 90%, with [...]

Summary: August was warmer than average1 across the vast majority of the western US. August was also seasonally dry, although remnants of a tropical storm brought intense thunderstorms and a record number of lightning strikes along the California coast, unfortunately starting numerous wildfires. The drought footprint continued to expand over the west and is forecast to [...]

Summary: July started relatively cool for many but ramped later in the month. The month ended up average to cooler than average1 in the PNW and the central coast south through California, while northern California, southern Oregon, Nevada, and the southwest were warmer than average. The western US was seasonally dry during July, with only some [...]

Summary: June held true to forecast with relatively mild temperatures over most of the west, with portions of California warmer than average and portions of Washington and extreme southern California cooler than average. Precipitation over the western US during June produced a slightly wetter than average north and much drier than average south. Short to [...]

Summary: May flip-flopped from unseasonably warm in the first ten days of the month, to average or cooler than average during mid-month, back to a relatively warm last ten days, ending overall warmer than average. Mid-month rains brought some welcome relief for dry conditions in northern California and the PNW with 110 to 250% of [...]

Summary: April brought relatively mild temperatures across most of the western US, albeit with some frost/freeze pressure early in the month. Dry conditions continued over most of the western US, with northern California to the PNW seeing below normal precipitation for the month of April. Mountain snowpack at the end of the winter left many [...]

Summary: March was relatively cool for much of the western US, slowing what appeared to be an early spring. Temperatures where slightly above normal to 2.5°F below normal over most of the west. March extended the relatively dry winter over most of the western US, with northern California to the PNW seeing below normal precipitation. [...]

Summary: January continued the relatively mild first half of the winter with warmer than average temperatures over much of the west and throughout the rest of the United States. January brought welcomed rain/snow to the PNW, but little to no precipitation across most of California, the Great Basin, and southwest. Mountain snowpack development for the [...]

Summary: January continued the relatively mild first half of the winter with warmer than average temperatures over much of the west and throughout the rest of the United States. January brought welcomed rain/snow to the PNW, but little to no precipitation across most of California, the Great Basin, and southwest. Mountain snowpack development for the [...]

Summary: A mild December continued the warmer than average start to winter over much of the west and throughout the rest of the United States. Precipitation amounts in December were lower than average across the PNW into Montana, while higher than average across most of California and the Great Basin. Mountain snowpack development for the [...]

Summary: A mild November was experienced over much of the west, while the east shivered in substantially colder than average temperatures for the month. The rainy season continued its slow start for the majority of the western US during November, except the last few days to a week which brought much needed precipitation to many [...]

Summary: The cool circulation pattern experienced in September continued in October ushering in one of the coldest Octobers in a long time. However, contrary to the wet September experienced in much of the west, October was moderately dry (PNW) to extremely dry (California). The cool September and October added little no heat accumulation and was [...]

Summary: September was a stunner of a month for many locations in the west; with a rapid shift into more October like temperatures. The month was saw record-breaking precipitation amounts northward, while much of California and the southwest were dry. The cool month slowed heat accumulation to below the average of the last few years [...]

Summary: A moderately warm August, but low heat stress compared to recent years. The month was dry south and slightly wet north, but concerns for drought conditions in the PNW and fire risk across the west continue. Heat accumulation continues to lag the warmest of the last few years but remains largely above average in [...]

Summary: A relatively mild month of July with low heat stress compared to July 2018. The month was moderate to extremely dry, increasing concerns for ongoing dry conditions in the PNW and the fire risk across the west. Growing degree-day accumulations slowed some during July, but continue 50-250 GDD above average in all but portions [...]

Summary: June brought conditions that seesawed as May did with a very warm first half of the month, even record-breaking in many locations, followed by near normal to cool second half of the month. However, overall June ended up warmer than average over most of the western US. The month also brought moderate to extremely [...]

Summary: May brought a first half that was quite warm over the entire western US, followed by cool and wet conditions in the south and warm and dry conditions in the PNW during the second half of the month. A stuck pattern in the jet stream created a trough over the western US allowing systems [...]

Summary: April brought a warm up to the west, with largely above average to near average temperatures across the region. Most of the northern portions of the west experienced a wet month, but it was quite dry south. The western US snowpack ended the season with above average depths and water equivalents in California, the [...]

Summary: The cold February extended into March for much of the country, resulting in an overall colder than average month in the US. Conditions in the western US were closer to normal, except in the inland PNW and northern Rockies where temperatures were up to 10 degrees below average for the month. April snow packs [...]

Summary: Dramatic flip from a mild winter to a top five coldest February on record in many locations in the western US! Split flow over the west, supported by moisture from the tropics, set in place strong atmospheric river flows bringing significant precipitation to many areas. With cold air in place over the west, precipitation [...]

Summary: January was mild over much of the west, adding to a relatively warm winter so far. Split flow over the west has brought some welcomed precipitation to California while the PNW has remained mostly dry. Current transition to colder temperatures for February likely, mixed bag for precipitation. Regardless of the colder temperatures forecast for [...]

Summary: December was mild and dry over much of the west, while the east was much warmer than average. The winter rain deficits are adding up for the majority of the western US contributing to ongoing drought concerns, especially in the PNW. The seasonal forecast for January through March continues to reflect the influences of [...]

Summary: A mild November was experienced over much of the west, while the east shivered in substantially colder than average temperatures for the month. The rainy season continued its slow start for the majority of the western US. While portions of central California, the northern Cascades, and the Olympics saw average to above average rainfall [...]

Summary: Overall a very nice October was had by the majority of the western US. A dominant ridge of high pressure brought a nearly three week stretch of moderately warm and dry conditions that allowed for a relaxed end to the vintage. Growing degree-day accumulations ended up normal to up to 6% below average for [...]

Summary: Much of Washington, Oregon, coastal California and the Bay Area and delta region had a cooler than average September. This was largely the result of the blocking ridge over Alaska that keeps much of these areas with relatively cool air flow. Points to the south and east were flipped with much warmer than average [...]

Summary: Compared to July, August temperatures moderated some ending up 1-2°F above average across many wine regions in the west (a smoke effect? see below). Areas in and around the Bay Area and the Northern California to Oregon coast continued to see average to slightly cooler than average conditions from strong coastal upwelling and cooler [...]

Summary: July 2018 will likely go down as one of the top five warmest Julys on record for many locations across the west. The only exception was the average to slightly cooler than average conditions in and around the Bay Area where continued strong coastal upwelling and cooler SSTs have predominated. Dry conditions persisted in [...]

Summary: Near normal temperatures were experienced over much of the western US wine producing regions in June, although Central to Southern California was cooler than average due to continued strong coastal upwelling that has kept coastal zones in California cooler than average. Dry conditions continued in the western US in June adding to the growing [...]

Summary: May was much warmer than normal over much of the western US, although Central to Southern California was near average to cooler than average due to prominent marine layer intrusions. The month ended up being one of the driest May’s on record for much of the coastal regions to interior valleys in the west. [...]

Summary: Near normal temperatures were seen over the majority of the west in April, except Southern California and the desert southwest, which continue to run warmer than average. April also brought above average precipitation from Northern California into the PNW. Current conditions continue to show a similar pattern to this time last year, however the [...]

Summary: A near ‘Miracle March’ played out bringing cooler and wetter conditions to the majority of the western US. A complete shift from the dominant ridge pattern in the first half of the winter to troughs over the eastern Pacific allowed for a more typical storm track. Decent snowpack development lowered drought conditions temporarily but [...]

Summary: The ridge pattern that brought drier and warmer conditions from December through most of February to the western US has shifted west and south allowing for a return of winter. Welcomed rain and snow has helped lower drought conditions but not enough to make up the dry winter so far. Cooler conditions have also [...]

Summary: For the majority of the month of January the persistent ridge of high pressure over the eastern Pacific continued bringing warm and dry conditions throughout the western US. As a result, many regions across California, Nevada, Arizona and Oregon have less than 40% of their normal snowpack. While the ridge has shifted slightly from [...]

Summary: A persistent ridge of high pressure over the west in December produced strong inversions and stagnant air resulting in cooler conditions in the valleys and warmer conditions in the mountains. Another result of the ridge is that the month will go down as one of the driest Decembers on record in many locations in [...]

Summary: November was relatively cool and wet from central California throughout most of the PNW, while warm and very dry from southern California across into the Great Basin and Rockies. A persistent ridge over the eastern Pacific and western US will keep things clear, dry and seasonal to warmer than average in the west for [...]

Summary: October was relatively cool and wet north, while warm and very dry south. Dry conditions and high winds fanned devastating fires across California. Growing season heat accumulation ended up near average in eastern Washington/Oregon, while 5-20% up elsewhere. Degree-day totals for 2017 ended up similar to 2013, 2014, and 2016 for most locations. Current [...]

Summary: Typical variability in September temperatures with the onset of fall conditions evident throughout the western US. Mixed rainfall amounts, with most of it welcomed at the end of a dry run of 45-90 days in the west. Current conditions favor cool to seasonal temperatures and drier than average conditions in October throughout the western US. Rains [...]

Summary: Dominant high-pressure ridge produced record heat events and seasonally dry conditions in August in the majority of the western US. Current conditions favor continued warmer than average and drier than average conditions in September throughout the western US. Extended forecast calls for much of the same, no indication at this point for anything other than [...]

July largely held true to forecast, although it ended with the start of one of the most extreme heat waves in decades in the PNW. Overall July ended up generally warmer than the 1981-2010 average for the majority of the western US (Figure 1). Areas in the northern Rockies saw the warmest conditions of 4-5°F [...]

The heat was on in June … partially. After a very cool period around the 10th of the month, conditions changed rapidly with a warm up that saw the first major heat spike of the year between June 16-19. The majority of the western US ended up warmer than normal during the month of June [...]

The month of May brought warmer conditions, but more importantly no major frost impacts. Northern California and the Sierra Nevada’s, northward and west of the Cascades in Oregon and Washington were warmer than normal for the month (1-3°F) (Figure 1). Areas from central to southern California and eastern Washington and Oregon were close to normal [...]

Cool and relatively wet conditions continued throughout the western US in April. The general pattern in temperatures in April was cooler than normal from central California eastward to Utah and northward into nearly all of Oregon, Washington and Idaho (Figure 1). Temperatures in this area were 0.5-3.5°F below normal while southern California across the desert [...]

Instead of roaring like a lion, March provided generally warm conditions and variable precipitation amounts for much of the west. The question is whether the rhyme will hold and April will behave like a lamb? The general pattern in temperatures for the western US in March was largely warmer than normal except right along the [...]

A complete weather and climate forecast compiled by Greg Jones for Spring 2017

A complete weather and climate forecast compiled by Greg Jones for Winter 2016-2017.

A complete weather and climate forecast compiled by Greg Jones for Winter 2016-2017.

A complete weather and climate forecast compiled by Greg Jones of Southern Oregon University for Winter 2016-2017.

A weather and climate summary and forecast compiled by Southern Oregon University's Greg Jones for the Fall/ Winter 2016 season.

A weather and climate summary and forecast compiled by Southern Oregon University's Greg Jones for the Harvest 2016 season.

A weather and climate summary and forecast compiled by Greg Jones of Southern Oregon University for Summer Season through Harvest 2016.

A complete weather and climate forecast archive for March 8, 2014 through August 5, 2016.