Map released: July 17, 2025

Data valid: July 15, 2025

United States and Puerto Rico Author(s):
Brian Fuchs, National Drought Mitigation Center
Pacific Islands and Virgin Islands Author(s):
Daniel Whitesel, National Drought Mitigation Center
The data cutoff for Drought Monitor maps is each Tuesday at 8 a.m. EDT. The maps, which are based on analysis of the data, are released each Thursday at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.

Intensity and Impacts

  • None
  • D0 (Abnormally Dry)
  • D1 (Moderate Drought)
  • D2 (Severe Drought)
  • D3 (Extreme Drought)
  • D4 (Exceptional Drought)
  • No Data

Drought Impacts - Delineates dominant impacts

S - Short-term impacts, typically less than 6 months (agriculture, grasslands)

L - Long-term impacts, typically greater than 6 months (hydrology, ecology)

SL - Short- and long-term impacts

For local details and impacts, please contact your State Climatologist or Regional Climate Center.

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United States and Puerto Rico (Page 1)
U.S. Affiliated Pacific Islands and Virgin Islands (Page 2)

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This Week's Drought Summary

The last seven days was highlighted by dryness over much of the West, a continued active pattern bringing substantial rains to the southern Plains, and a wet week over much of the Mid-Atlantic and portions of the Midwest. Texas again stood out with several rain events that brought with them localized flooding. The long-term drought signal is still holding on in portions of southern Texas as recharge to depleted water systems has been slow, even with the rain in the region. Above-normal precipitation was recorded from eastern Nebraska through Illinois, bringing some much-needed rain to parts of northern Illinois. With the active rain pattern, temperatures over the southern Plains were 2-4 degrees below normal from Texas to Kansas and Nebraska while much of the West was 4-6 degrees above normal, with the greatest departures in Arizona and the Pacific Northwest. Warmer-than-normal temperatures dominated much of the eastern portions of the Midwest and the Northeast, where temperatures were 6-8 degrees above normal.

Northeast

Precipitation was abundant over much of the region for the week, with the coastal areas from Virginia into Massachusetts all recording at least 200% of normal rain for the week. Areas of Maine and along the Great Lakes were dry with most areas at 50% or less of normal precipitation. The warmest temperatures in the region were in New York, New Hampshire and Vermont, where departures were 6-8 degrees above normal and most of the region at or above normal for the week. The rains that were received in portions of southern New York and eastern Massachusetts allowed for abnormally dry conditions to be improved this week. In New Jersey, Maryland, and southeastern Pennsylvania the recent wetter pattern allowed for the reduction and removal of abnormally dry conditions this week. One lingering impact has been the low groundwater levels. As these indicators are slowly starting to recover, it allowed for the improvements made.

Southeast

Temperatures for the week were at or above normal over most of the region, with only cooler-than-normal temperatures along the coastal areas of east Florida and into the Carolinas. The greatest rains occurred over southern Florida, eastern Georgia, western South Carolina and throughout much of Virginia and North Carolina. Outside of Florida, the region remains drought-free with only pockets of abnormally dry conditions being depicted. Abnormally dry conditions were expanded in the areas that remained dry this week in portions of southern Alabama and into the Florida panhandle. Abnormally dry conditions were introduced into eastern and northern Georgia as well as southern Virgina and expanded over eastern Tennessee. Abnormally dry conditions were shifted west in central Florida while along the east coast, a full category of improvement was made to the D0-D2 drought intensities, leaving only a small area of moderate drought behind. Severe drought expanded over southern Florida, and the extreme drought area was improved over Palm Beach County, but a new extreme drought area was introduced over the everglades in Miami-Dade County.

South

The wettest areas of the region were over central and eastern Texas as well as into portions of eastern Oklahoma and western Arkansas. Dry conditions were mostly over west and southern Texas and along the Oklahoma border in northern Texas. With the rain, temperatures were cooler than normal over much of Texas, with some areas of central Texas 3-5 degrees below normal for the week. Only eastern Arkansas and south Texas were at or above normal for the week. Abnormally dry conditions were improved over southwest Arkansas while much of central Texas had the drought intensities reduced due to the ongoing rains. Some areas of Texas recorded enough rain where a multiple category improvement was made.

Midwest

The wettest areas of the region were from Iowa and into Illinois and Missouri where greater than 200% of normal rain fell this week. The driest areas were in northern Indiana into Ohio and portions of western Missouri, where less than 10% of normal rainfall occurred. Temperatures were at or above normal over most all the region with the eastern extent being the warmest with departures of 2-4 degrees above normal, while parts of western Iowa and southern Missouri were 2-4 degrees below normal. The areas that received the best rains also had improvements this week. In northern Illinois, abnormally dry to severe drought conditions were improved, while abnormally dry and moderate drought over much of eastern Iowa and portions of northwest Iowa also improved. In Minnesota, abnormally dry conditions were improved over the southwest and northern portion of the state with some improvements to moderate and severe drought in the far north. Abnormally dry conditions expanded over northern Indiana and into southwest Michigan, while moderate and severe drought were improved in the eastern areas of lower Michigan. Abnormal dryness and moderate drought improved over northeast Missouri and southern Wisconsin this week.

High Plains

Temperatures were mixed over the region with the northern and western areas 2-4 degrees above normal while the southern and eastern areas were 2-4 degrees below normal for the week. The wettest areas this week were in southwest Kansas, northeast Nebraska and portions of northeast Colorado, where over 200% of normal rain was recorded. Dryness continued in eastern Wyoming and in areas of the Dakotas as well as in northeastern Kansas. The wetter pattern over Nebraska over the past several weeks has allowed continued improvement to drought in the state. A full category improvement was made over most of central and northeast Nebraska and into portions of southern South Dakota. Moderate drought and abnormally dry conditions were improved over northeast Colorado while abnormally dry conditions expanded over northeast Kansas.

West

Temperatures for the week were warmer than normal over the region with departures of 4-6 degrees above normal. The only areas that were at or below normal were coastal areas of California and eastern New Mexico. Much of the area remained dry and there was only some spotty monsoonal moisture over the Southwest. Some areas of Montana did receive some needed rain, but conditions have been dry overall in that region. Degradation dominated the region for changes this week with no areas seeing improvements on the map. Severe and extreme drought were expanded over western Colorado while moderate drought and abnormally dry conditions were expanded over much of central Wyoming. In northern Utah, severe drought expanded while a new area of extreme drought was introduced. Much of the panhandle of Idaho and into central portions of the state had a full category degradation while severe and extreme drought expanded over western portions of Montana. Moderate and severe drought expanded over much of Washington and Oregon and severe drought expanded over northeast Nevada.

Caribbean

No changes were made in Puerto Rico this week.

Short-term abnormal dryness persists for all the U.S. Virgin Islands. St. Croix Island received anywhere from 0.15” to 0.53” of rain this week. Well water levels are currently at 16.3 ft for Adventure 28 Well. CoCoRaHS stations situated across St. John Island received 0.38” to 0.71” of rain this week. Additionally, the Windswept Beach station received only 0.12” of rain. Water depth at the Susannaberg DPW 3 Well is currently at 11.86 ft. St. Thomas Island’s CoCoRaHS stations received 0.46”-0.49” of rain this week. Unlike the Adventure 28 Well and the Susannaberg DPW 3 which experienced a decline in water depth, the Grade School 3 Well continued to receive increases in water levels and is currently at 8.94 ft. Despite this, St. Thomas Island will remain in abnormal dryness.

Pacific

In Alaska, abnormally dry conditions expanded over the northern, western and middle portions of the state while moderate drought was improved slightly in the east.

In Hawaii, moderate and severe drought improved on the northwest portion of the Big Island.

Beneficial rain has continued to fall on the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). Wotje received significant rainfall, with 3.31” of rain last week and 1.78” of rain this week. Utirik received 2.03” of rain last week, marking the first week in a while where the island saw adequate precipitation. Both Wotje and Utirik will remain in short-term extreme drought, however. Mili received the most rain this week at 3.63”. Kwajalein and Jaluit received 1.58” and 1.9” of rain, respectively, but will remain in short-term severe drought. Majuro received 1.85” of rain this week. Ailingalapalap has missing precipitation data this week but will remain in short-term severe drought due to a lack of adequate precipitation in the past few weeks.

Heavy rainfall has affected several islands in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). Kosrae, Pohnpei and Woleai received 8.1”, 8.64” and 6.8” of rain this week, respectively. Nukuoro received 3.85” of rain this week, while Kapingamarangi received 3.44” of rain. Yap received 2.87” of rain this week, and Chuuk Lagoon received 2.02” of rain. Pingelap continues to receive beneficial rain with a weekly total of 2.29”. Though the island will remain in long-term moderate drought, a 1-category improvement can be considered. Heavy rainfall also affected the Republic of Palau. The Koror station received 5.33” of rain this week. At the WSO in Palau, 8.27” of rain fell. Flooding is always a concern in the places where heavy rain fell this week. Unlike the FSM and Palau, American Samoa had a drier week. The Pago Pago International Airport received only 0.37” of rain. The Siufaga and Toa Ridges received only 0.58” and 0.48” of rain, respectively. American Samoa stays free of drought and dryness due to sufficient rainfall in the past week.

A monsoon pattern has started to affect the Marianas Islands. Guam received 3.73” of rain this week, while Rota received 4.16” of rain. Because of this, 1-category improvements were given to Guam and Rota. Therefore, both Guam and Rota are now free of drought and dryness. Saipan and Tinian also received 1-category improvements to long-term abnormal dryness. Tinian received 2.99” of rain this week. While the Saipan International Airport received 4.24” of rain this week, the AMME NPS Saipan received 1.7” of rain.

Looking Ahead

Over the next five to seven days, it is anticipated that the southern Plains and the West will be dry with only a burst in monsoonal moisture over the Four Corners region. The greatest amount of precipitation is projected over the Midwest and into the Mid-Atlantic as well as the central and northern Plains. A tropical disturbance forming over the Gulf is likely to come ashore in and around Louisiana, bringing significant moisture to the coastal and inland areas. Temperatures are anticipated to be below normal over the coastal areas of the West and into the northern Rocky Mountains with departures of 3-5 degrees. Temperatures will be warmest over the central Plains and into the Midwest with anticipated departures of 6-8 degrees above normal.

The 6-10 day outlooks show the greatest likelihood of above-normal temperatures is over the Midwest and into the Ozark Plateau. Outside of the coastal areas of the West, most of the rest of the country is projected to have the best chances of above-normal temperatures. The greatest chances of below-normal precipitation is over the Great Basin as well as in the southern Plains. It is anticipated that the best chances for above-normal precipitation will be along the Gulf Coast into Florida and along the northern tier of the country from Washington to the Great Lakes.


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Drought Classification

The Drought Monitor summary map identifies general areas of drought and labels them by intensity. D1 is the least intense level and D4 the most intense. Drought is defined as a moisture deficit bad enough to have social, environmental or economic effects.

D0 areas are not in drought, but are experiencing abnormally dry conditions that could turn into drought or are recovering from drought but are not yet back to normal.

We generally include a description on the map of what the primary physical effects are for short- and long-term drought.

  • S = Short-term, typically less than 6 months (agriculture, grasslands)
  • L = Long-term, typically more than 6 months (hydrology, ecology)
  • SL = Area contains both short- and long-term impacts

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