By Scout Nelson
Over the weekend ending June 22, Nebraska experienced scorching temperatures and persistent winds, especially in central and eastern regions. This combination led to a sharp decline in soil moisture, as reported by NASA’s SPORTLIS.
The reason for this rapid drop was high potential evapotranspiration (ET). Using the Penman-Monteith method and assuming alfalfa ground cover, nearly every Mesonet site recorded 1.5 to over 2 inches of potential ET over three days. At one site near McCook, ET surpassed 2.5 inches. Even adjusting for lower crop development, fields likely lose over an inch of moisture.
“There’s a reasonably good chance most fields lost an inch-plus of moisture this weekend. We will need the rain that is coming in the coming days to replenish what we lost.”
Weather relief is on the way. A cold front may stall over central and eastern Nebraska between June 23 and June 26, forming a near-stationary boundary. This zone is expected to receive multiple rounds of showers and storms, with some areas forecasted to receive over 6 inches of rain. The location of the heaviest rain depends on the shifting boundary.
Monday night could bring severe weather and heavy rain to parts of eastern Nebraska. The WPC has placed this region in a slight risk category for excessive rainfall. Rainfall zones may shift daily, with potential for north-central rains on Tuesday and southern areas by Wednesday night.
Temperatures will cool mid-week in the west before warming up later. The heaviest rains are expected east of Highway 83, while the CPC outlook shows Nebraska ending June warmer and wetter than average.
Photo Credit:gettyimages-wiyadaa
Categories: Nebraska, Weather