Weather

January-like weather covers much of the Heartland

On the Plains, snow showers accompany a new surge of bitterly cold air into Montana. Across roughly the northwestern half of the region, a substantial snow cover continues to insulate winter wheat. Meanwhile, warmth temporarily prevails on the southern High Plains, further reducing topsoil moisture. During the first 2 months of 2019, precipitation in Lubbock, Texas, totaled 0.04 inch (3 percent of normal).

Across the Corn Belt, cold air remains in place. Across the upper Midwest, many February and all-time monthly snowfall records were broken. In Wisconsin, for example, the snowiest month on record occurred in locations such as Eau Claire (53.7 inches) and Wausau (54.3 inches). Currently, a new round of light snow is overspreading the far upper Midwest.

In the South, widespread showers are maintaining soggy field conditions. Enough cold air is in place to result in wet snow in portions of the southern Mid-Atlantic region. Elsewhere, lowland flooding continues in the lower Mississippi Valley and environs, as water drains from creeks and streams into larger rivers.

In the West, mostly tranquil weather prevails between storms. However, cold weather persists in the northern half of the region, accompanied by a few snow showers. In contrast, warmth has returned across the Southwest. Following a spate of February storms, most Western basins feature near- or above-average snowpack.