Nevada Natural Heritage Program
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
901 South Stewart Street, Suite 5002 • Carson City, Nevada 89701-5245
tel: (775) 684-2900 • fax: (775) 684-2909

GREAT BASIN PRECIPITATION WATCH

Summary (8 April 2008 - see links below for more current information): average to excellent winter precipitation in many areas of the Great Basin were followed by a very dry March, with no significant relief in sight at this point. Annual germination has been good except in spotty dry areas, and below-average temperatures in the northern half of the region have kept soils from drying out too quickly so far. But this will change quickly once warmer conditions arrive, unless accompanied by renewed moisture. Most of the Great Basin is in average to above-average condition, with exceptionally wet areas including the Lahontan corridor from Churchill County to Esmeralda County, Nevada, and northern Inyo County, California; and most of Elko and Lincoln counties, Nevada, and adjacent areas. Exceptionally dry areas include northern Clark, southern Nye, and north-central Nye counties in Nevada.

The Great Basin Precipitation Watch provides access to recent precipitation and other weather maps and outlooks, summaries, and data (see below) covering Nevada and the Great Basin. Data for the most recent week, month(s), water year (October 1 - September 30), and some past years are available. These tools are intended to assist those trying to determine current and near-term field conditions anywhere in the area covered.

All of the data linked to this page are derived, directly or indirectly, from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Climate Prediction Center (NCPC), National Climatic Data Center (NCDC), the affiliated Western Regional Climate Center (WRCC), the Desert Research Institute (DRI) of the University of Nevada at Reno (UNR), the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and cooperating agencies and weather observers.

PLEASE NOTE WMO Resolution-40 NOAA Policy (emphases added): "The following data and products may have conditions placed on their international commercial use. They can be used within the U.S. or for non-commercial international activities without restriction. Re-distribution of these data by others must provide this same notification. A log of IP addresses accessing these data and products will be maintained and may be made available to data providers. For details, please consult: http://www.wmo.ch/web/ddbs/jen/AdditionalData&Products/index.html"

Radar-based Cumulative Precipitation Maps (or current radar):
loop for last 2 hours
cumulative last 24 hours
cumulative last 7 days

Precipitation Anomaly Maps and Forecasts (percent of 1971-2000 averages):
 
Time Period U.S. / North America Western U.S. Nevada
90-day outlook CPC probability
CPC drought outlook		    
30-day outlook CPC probability    
8-14-day outlook CPC probability    
6-10-day outlook CPC probability    
past 7 days   ACIS data
WRCC/CPC Airport data		 ACIS data
past 14 days   ACIS data
WRCC/CPC Airport data		 ACIS data
past 30 days CPC realtime monitor ACIS data
WRCC/CPC Airport data		 ACIS data
past 60 days   ACIS data ACIS data
past 90 days CPC realtime monitor ACIS data ACIS data
past 6 months CPC realtime monitor ACIS data ACIS data
past 12 months CPC realtime monitor ACIS data ACIS data
water year (since Oct. 1)   ACIS data
WRCC SNOTEL data		 ACIS data

CPC = National Climate Prediction Center; WRCC = Western Regional Climate Center; ACIS = Applied Climate Information System 

U.S. Drought Monitor

Standardized Precipitation Index (explanation) for U.S. climate regions for the past:
1 2 3 4 5 6 or 9 months, or
1 2 3 4 5 or 6 years

Graph and download recent daily data for precipitation, temperature, etc., for specific weather stations across the Great Basin.  Stations with reliable precipitation data include Bishop CA, Boise ID, Burns OR, Caliente NV, Ely NV, Las Vegas NV, Mercury NV, Pocatello ID, Reno NV, Salt Lake City UT, and Winnemucca NV.

Snowpack and Precipitation Anomaly Update Tables from mountain SNOTEL sites
Great Basin
Western U.S.

Temperature Anomaly Maps and Forecasts (°F from 1971-2000 averages):
 
Time Period U.S. / North America Western U.S. Nevada
90-day outlook CPC probability    
30-day outlook CPC probability    
8-14-day outlook CPC probability    
6-10-day outlook CPC probability    
past 7 days CPC realtime monitor ACIS data
WRCC/CPC Airport data		 ACIS data
past 14 days   ACIS data
WRCC/CPC Airport data		 ACIS data
past 30 days CPC realtime monitor ACIS data
WRCC/CPC Airport data		 ACIS data
past 60 days   ACIS data ACIS data
past 90 days CPC realtime monitor ACIS data ACIS data
past 6 months   ACIS data ACIS data
past 12 months   ACIS data ACIS data
water year (since Oct. 1)   ACIS data ACIS data

CPC = National Climate Prediction Center; WRCC = Western Regional Climate Center; ACIS = Applied Climate Information System 

Sources for Additional Recent Climatic Data:
Current observations, forecasts, and monitoring data from the Western Regional Climate Center
Climatic data plots (1994-present) for any station world-wide
Climate, Ecosystems and Fire Applications (CEFA) from the Desert Research Institute
Drought Monitor map and summaries for the U.S.
Monitoring Data from the National Climate Prediction Center

last updated 08 April 2008
Nevada Natural Heritage Program home page