Mapping the Spread of Drought Across the U.S.

Climate Change Intensifies California Drought.
Direct link to original source: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2015GL064924/full

Drought-stricken California only has one year of water left, Nasa scientist warns

As backup supply dwindles, [scientist] says state has about one year of water left and calls for a more ‘forward-looking process’ to deal with crisis
Folsom Lake in California

From the Washington Post: Today’s drought in the West is nothing compared to what may be coming.

The long and severe drought in the U.S. Southwest pales in comparison with what’s coming: a “megadrought” that will grip that region and the central plains later this century and probably stay there for decades, a new study says.

Thirty-five years from now, if the current pace of climate change continues unabated, those areas of the country will experience a weather shift that will linger for as long as three decades, according to the study, released Thursday.

Article from ProPublica titled The Best Reporting on California’s Drought:

This year may be the driest in California in half a millennium. These reports explore how the drought is affecting agriculture, business and living conditions in the nation’s most populous state.

CA Water Crisis Pending

And this one on the rise of land as it dries out.

Another take on the topic from the LA Times.

From the National Geographic: Storms Get Headlines, but Drought Is a Sneaky, Devastating Game-Changer. As California and the American West dry up, a way of life is threatened.

A friend and I were recently discussing how difficult drought is.  He  asked how do you do mitigation for a drought. And I asked what does recovery from a drought entail? We welcome some input to this discussion.

Update: Be sure to read the thoughtful comments from readers too.

From the LA Times: 80% of CA now in extreme drought. Some details from the article:

The NWS’ Drought Monitor Update for July 15 shows 81% of California in the category of extreme drought or worse, up from 78%. Three months ago, it was 68%. *** drought conditions worsened in parts of Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego counties. The new data comes as officials are getting tough on water wasters.

Here is the direct link for the National Weather Service’s Drought Monitor site. The map is very helpful in understanding the extent of the problem.

Some months ago, I posted an information source for drought information for CA.  Recently I ran across this national source of drought information, sponsored by the federal government. Here is the link: http://www.drought.gov