Global Soil Moisture Report: One of the wettest seasonal change analysis on record.

One of the wettest seasonal change analysis on record

Attributed to very warm global SSTA

Fig. 1: The NOAA/CPC soil moisture ranking percentile valid March 2020 with Climate Impact Company annotated 3-month trend.

Observation discussion: One of the wettest 3-month regional soil moisture analysis on record…only South America observed widening dry risk during the last three months including Peru, northwest South America, West-central and southeast Brazil while each other continent observed widespread wet soil moisture changes (Fig. 1). The widespread wetter soil moisture changes are attributed to in-part by global anomalous warm ocean regions (Fig. 2). The wettest change in North America is across the southeastern quarter of the U.S. and northern Mexico and attributed to a warm SSTA plume from south of Hawaii to Mexico and across the Gulf of Mexico to the western North Atlantic. Wetter changes were also observed in Central America. While Northwest Africa turned drier large regions of wetter soil moisture change were observed during quarter 1 of 2020 across Western Europe, Northern Russia, South-central Asia to China, Western Indonesia, Australia and South Africa plus tropical West Africa. The wetter changes in Australia are attributed to warm SSTA on either side of the continent while a warm tropical Indian ocean and warm SSTA off the East Coast of Asia contributed to wetter soil moisture changes from northern India to China. The open water northwest of Russia contributed to wetter changes in northern sections. Drought continues in Southeast Asia and the Black Sea region plus much of Canada. A drier trend was indicated in California and Florida during March and the fierce long-term Chilean drought continues.

Fig. 2: The IRI/LDEO global SSTA analysis for March 2020 and Climate Impact Company trend analysis.