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Drought is the leading hazard in economic losses each year in the United States. In the summer of 1999, a monitoring tool known as the Drought Monitor was developed to help assess U.S. drought conditions. The Drought Monitor is a collaborative effort between Federal and academic partners, including the University of Nebraska-Lincoln National Drought Mitigation Center, the USDA/OCE/WAOB/Joint Agricultural Weather Facility, the NOAA/NWS/NCEP/CPC, and the NOAA/NESDIS/National Climatic Data Center. Produced on a weekly basis, the Drought Monitor is a synthesis of multiple indices, outlooks, and impacts depicted on a map and in narrative form. The Drought Monitor is released each Thursday at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.
In the spring of 2002, drought experts from the U.S., Canada, and Mexico met to discuss the development of a North American Drought Monitor. Issued month since March 2003, the North American Drought Monitor is based on the end-of-month U.S. Drought Monitor and input from scientists in Canada and Mexico. Major participants in the North American drought-monitoring effort include Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, the Meteorological Service of Canada, the National Meteorological Service of Mexico, and the entities involved with the production of the U.S. Drought Monitor. |
