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Monthly Precipitation and Temperature: January precipitation ranged from average to much below average in most of Arizona, while New Mexico was mostly average, but included areas that ranged from below average to above average (Fig. 1a). January temperatures were above average across nearly all of Arizona and New Mexico (Fig. 1b). The daily average temperature anomalies for Jan 1 – Feb 17 (Fig. 1b) highlight the fluctuations at select stations around the region. Particularly notable was the cold snap in early February.

Positive sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies persisted in the equatorial Pacific, particularly in the western regions (Figs. 1-2). Despite these lingering warm waters, SSTs are expected to remain within the range of ENSO-neutral at longer timescales.

Monthly Precipitation and Temperature: December precipitation was average to above average in most of Arizona, while New Mexico ranged from below average to above average (Fig. 1a). December temperatures were average to above average in Arizona and above average to much above average in New Mexico (Fig. 1b). Daily average temperature anomalies for Dec 1 – Jan 15 (Fig. 2) highlight the fluctuations at select stations around the region. Positive anomalies reflect above average daily temperatures, while negative anomalies reflect below average daily temperatures. The histograms show the frequency of the anomalies for each location.

Warm waters continue to linger in the equatorial Pacific (Figs. 1-2), and while sea surface temperatures (SSTs) are expected to fall back within the range of ENSO-neutral, some forecasters made note of these warm conditions as something to keep an eye on in 2020.

Monthly Precipitation and Temperature: November precipitation was much above average in much of Arizona save for a small pocket of below average in the four corners region, while New Mexico was mostly above average or much above average (Fig. 1a). November temperatures were above average or much above average in most of Arizona and ranged from average to much above average in most of New Mexico (Fig. 1b). The daily average temperature anomalies for Oct 1 – Nov 19 (Fig. 2) highlight the fluctuations at select stations around the region. (Read More)

Warm waters continue to linger in western regions of the equatorial Pacific (Figs. 1-2), but are expected to fall within the range of ENSO-neutral for winter 2019-2020 and into spring 2020. (Read More)

Energetic middle schoolers fill the classroom air with excitement.  Three UA graduate students are standing in the way between their final hours of summer school and unlimited summer fun.  We better make this engaging! I think to myself. Today, we are there to talk about environmental science, and how the quality of our environment- the air that we breathe, the water that we drink, the soil that we run on- affects our every day lives, including our health (read more) ... 

Today, water shortages affect 1 out of 9 people. To put this in perspective, imagine a room with 9 people in it, 8 of those people may grab a cup full of water from a pitcher in the room but 1 person must walk thirty minutes for the same cup of water. Water shortages are not limited to dry environments, like Tucson, places with a stable water supply can, unfortunately, lack the infrastructure to provide access to safe drinking water. Imagine you were that unlucky person who had to walk for a drink of water. However, there are places where you do not have to walk thirty minutes because there is abundant groundwater but the infrastructure to supply is yet to be constructed. You may be thinking, drilling wells, pumping the groundwater, treating it to safe drinking standards and designing the delivery system will be rather costly. It is. But are there economical alternatives that can provide safe drinking water to rural communities around the globe?  Luckily for us, there are, and one we have been practicing for over 4,000 years: rainwater harvesting. (read more)