ohio drought

CLEVELAND (WJW) — It’s been sunny, mild and dry lately, but it comes at a price. The water table is slightly dry.

FOX 8 meteorologist Dontae Jones said these drought conditions were only mild to moderate across the state, but a small amount it will rain on saturday No dents.

He notes that when meteorologists examine the water content of soil, they measure rainfall and how much it penetrates into the soil, as well as runoff, the excess soil that just sits and evaporates.

This measurement is called a “drought monitor”. saw here.

Essentially, they take the average amount of rain that should fall in a given period of time and compare it to the amount that actually fell to determine if there is excess moisture (threat of flooding due to a certain amount of excess rain). To do. Not enough moisture (threat of drought).

However, there are also levels of drought. Not all droughts are the same.

The five categories of extreme drought, moderate drought, extreme drought, extreme drought, and extreme drought are based on how long the water deficit has persisted and the impact on ecosystems based on the water deficit.

Northern and northeastern Ohio are getting rain, but not as much as they used to.

Northwest Ohio usually gets more rain, but it hasn’t had enough rain to hit the average for quite some time, so it’s in a “moderate drought.”

Northeast Ohio also doesn’t get enough rain on average, but it receives more rainfall than Northwest Ohio, resulting in the weakest level of “abnormally dry” conditions.

Of course more rain/snow will mitigate this. Abnormally dry is not a category that meteorologists are less interested in. If it continues for many weeks, it can turn into a “moderate drought” and start paying attention, but don’t worry too much.

Overall, Ohio is short on moisture, but meteorologists aren’t too concerned. Snow forecast this winter.