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Drought with a Side of Leaf Peeping

northeast pdpt map

Precipitation amounts so far this September have ranged from less than 25% of normal to near normal for much of the Northeast. The oranges and reds show the driest areas.

Along with above-normal temperatures, much of the region has also seen below-normal precipitation during the first 23 days of September. In fact, many areas have been dry since July. With declining soil moisture and low streamflows, abnormally dry and moderate drought conditions expanded in the latest U.S. Drought Monitor.

sep 24 us drought monitor map

The U.S. Drought Monitor from September 24 shows just over half of the Northeast is abnormally dry, up from last week’s 44%. Moderate drought increased from 4% to 6%.

For those who haven’t heard the term, leaf peeping is basically traveling to view fall foliage. The oranges and reds on the temperature and precipitation maps could indicate how many oranges and reds we see on the trees this fall. For instance, leaves have been a little slower to change color in New England due to the recent warm temperatures. Current fall foliage conditions can be found via Yankee Magazine’s foliage map and The Foliage Network’s Northeast report, which covers Maine to Pennsylvania, and Southeast report, which covers the Mid-Atlantic.