BOSTON – Most of Massachusetts is abnormally dry, according to new data released Thursday. According to the current weather forecast, there will be no rain and the drought could be a sign that there may be significantly less snow this winter.
Drought in Massachusetts
For the month of October, Boston is more than two inches below the year-to-date average. The last measurable rainfall fell ten days ago.
That pales in comparison to the 29-day streak that ended last month. (August 21 to September 19)
To date, this meteorological fall (which began on September 1) is the third driest on record in Worcester and the fifth driest on record in Boston.
It has only rained eight times in the Boston area in the last 64 days!
Granted, this is good news for most of us who enjoy being outdoors in the fall here in New England, especially after a year like 2023 when it seemed to rain virtually every weekend.
Should we be concerned? How impactful is a drought at this time of year?
The best way to gauge our current drought status is with the U.S. Drought Monitor, which comes out every Thursday morning.
CBS Boston
As expected, the area of “moderate drought” nearly doubled in Massachusetts last week, from about 17% last week to more than 35% this week.
When will it rain again?
Even more worrying is that no immediate pattern change is expected. There is a slight chance of some sprinkles on Saturday, but our next chance for any rain likely won’t come until early November.
Fortunately, our current drought is considered “short term.” In fact, Boston still has a slight surplus this year thanks to the very wet January and March.
The bottom line is that the overall level of care is quite low at the moment. The growing season is over, so the impact on farmers will be minimal for now. Water shortages are also not a top priority at this time of year as most people have stopped using irrigation.
If you have planted grass seed in the past few weeks, be sure to water these areas for the time being. Also be sure to keep the soil around newly planted shrubs moist to ensure good root growth and protection.
Dry autumn leads to dry winter?
Does a dry autumn season mean anything for the following winter season? Yes.
In fact, the data shows that in almost all cases the pattern continues into winter.
If we take the ten driest fall seasons on record in Boston, eight of them had below-average snowfall that winter. In many cases it was well below average.
CBS Boston
Boston averages about 49 inches of snow in a winter season. The average for those ten winters was about 28 inches of snow.
It’s worth noting that most of the data is old, from the early and mid-twentieth century, and the state of our planet and atmosphere is clearly very different now than it was then.
And if November were to be a wet month, that could also reverse winter. Stay informed!
