We 1 (12-04) Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released December 14, 2004, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin call Brian T. Young at (202) 720-7621, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. National Weather Summary Volume 91, No. 50 December 5 - 11, 2004 For additional information, call (202) 720-2397. Highlights: A late-week weather pattern change brought a warming trend to the West and colder, favorably drier weather to the South and East. Prior to the change, however, two more rounds of heavy rain soaked the South, further delaying final winter wheat planting and other late-season fieldwork. Weekly rainfall totaled 4 inches or more from the lower Mississippi Valley to the southern Appalachians. Significant rain, generally 1 inch or more, also fell in the southern and eastern Corn Belt, maintaining abundant soil moisture reserves for winter grains. Mild, mostly dry weather continued, however, across the upper Midwest, where corn harvesting neared completion. Weekly temperatures averaged as much as 15 degrees F above normal in the upper Mississippi Valley. Mild weather also prevailed on the Plains, where temperatures generally averaged 5 to 10 degrees F above normal. The warmth promoted some additional winter wheat development on the central and southern Plains, but further reduced soil moisture reserves on the northern High Plains. Warm, dry conditions were especially beneficial on the previously soaked southern High Plains, easing stress on livestock and allowing cotton, sorghum, and peanut harvesting to advance. Farther west, heavy precipitation (4 inches or more) fell through midweek along the Pacific Coast as far south as northern California. Inland, rain and snow boosted soil moisture for Northwestern winter grains and improved high-elevation snow packs in the northern Rockies. Meanwhile, warmer, drier weather overspread the Southwest, following a 7-week spell of drought-easing storminess beginning in mid-October. Early in the week, heavy rain fell across the South and East. Daily-record totals topped 3 inches in locations such as Tupelo, MS (3.99 inches on December 6), Chattanooga, TN (3.22 inches on December 6), and Pensacola, FL (3.03 inches on December 5). Unusual for December, most of the early-week precipitation fell as rain, although Houghton Lake, MI, received a daily-record snowfall of 3.0 inches on December 6. On December 9, another round of heavy rain resulted in more daily-record totals, including 2.61 inches in Crossville, TN, and 2.44 inches in Huntsville, AL. The Tennessee River at Florence, AL, crested at 25.98 feet (8.98 feet above flood stage) on December 10, surpassing levels achieved during the floods of February 2004 and May 2003 by 5.54 and 0.45 feet, respectively. Farther north, large snowfall accumulations were confined to northern New England, where Caribou, ME, measured 6.1 and 4.6 inches on December 7-8 and 11-12, respectively. At week's end, however, snow showers intensified downwind of the Great Lakes in the wake of a strong cold front's passage. On December 11, a wind gust was clocked to 76 m.p.h. in Stark County, ND, near Richardton. A day later, peak wind gusts to 58 m.p.h. were recorded in Mankato, MN, Sisseton, SD, and Rochester, MN. In northern California, Mt. Shasta netted 5.73 inches (285 percent of normal) during the first 12 days of the month, including a daily-record total of 1.54 inches on December 7. Daily-record totals on December 8 included 1.85 inches in Montague, CA, and 1.55 inches in Medford, OR. From December 6-8, storm-total rainfall topped 10 inches at several locations in California's Shasta and Plumas Counties. Elsewhere in northern California, Redding clocked peak wind gusts to 56 m.p.h. on December 6 and 54 m.p.h. on December 8. Farther east, December 7-9 snowfall topped 4 feet in parts of Utah's Wasatch Range. Heavy precipitation continued in the northern Rockies through December 10, when Mullan Pass, ID, collected a daily-record sum (1.18 inches). Meanwhile, warmth overspread the West Coast States, resulting in more than three dozen daily-record highs on December 10-11. Pendleton, OR (66 and 62 degrees F), and Chatsworth, CA (83 and 85 degrees F), were among the stations noting daily-record highs on both days. On December 11, temperatures topped 90 degrees F in parts of southern California, including Riverside (91 degrees F). Record highs were also set on December 11 in High Plains locations such as Billings, MT (67 degrees F), and Pueblo, CO (79 degrees F). Farther east, scattered daily-record highs were set across the South and East until the late-week arrival of colder weather. In West Virginia, Parkersburg (73 degrees F) posted a record high on December 7. Two days later, record highs across the South included 87 degrees F in Corpus Christi, TX, and 84 degrees F in Jacksonville, FL. Meanwhile, the southern tip of Florida remained the sole Eastern area with both short- and long-term dryness. Fort Lauderdale, FL, continued to await it first drop of December rain, leaving its year-to-date total at 39.96 inches (64 percent of normal). Long-term precipitation deficits also persisted in parts of Montana, where year-to-date precipitation totals through December 12 included 7.63 inches (62 percent of normal) in Cut Bank and 11.67 inches (68 percent) in Lewistown. Cool, dry weather overspread Hawaii, following several days of widespread showers associated with a storm system centered north and east of the islands. On the Big Island, Hilo netted 3.88 inches of rain in a 48-hour period on December 6-7. Elsewhere on the Big Island, 24-hour totals on December 9-10 included 4.16 inches in Honokaa and 3.73 inches in Laupahoehoe. However, unusually dry weather persisted in some locations, including Kahului, Maui. Measurable precipitation last fell on September 16 in Kahului, where rainfall from September 1 - December 12 totaled 0.02 inch (4.67 inches below normal). Kahului also collected a daily-record low, noting 56 degrees F on December 11. Meanwhile, mostly dry weather prevailed across the Alaskan mainland, accompanied by cold conditions. Cold weather was most pronounced in east-central Alaska (at least 8 degrees F below normal), while mild conditions continued across southern and western parts of the State. Significant precipitation was confined to southern Alaska, where Juneau netted a daily-record total of 0.86 inch on December 11. Elsewhere, Cold Bay, AK, netted 3.79 inches (207 percent of normal) during the first 12 days of the month, aided by daily-record totals of 1.19 and 1.22 inches on December 5 and 10, respectively. National Agricultural Summary December 6 - 12, 2004 Highlights: Above-normal temperatures prevailed across the entire Nation. Temperatures averaged 6 degrees Fahrenheit above normal across most crop-producing regions, including the Pacific Northwest, Great Plains, Corn Belt, Delta, and Southeast, with some areas of the northern Great Plains and western Corn Belt exceeding their normal temperatures by over 12 degrees Fahrenheit. Conditions were mostly dry across the Great Plains, including the southern part of the region, where recent heavy rainfall had severely hampered drydown and harvest. Moderate to heavy rain continued to delay fieldwork in the Delta and adjacent areas of the Southeast, while mostly dry conditions across the southern Atlantic Coast were favorable for cotton harvest. Precipitation was moderate across the eastern and central Corn Belt but light in westerly areas of the region. In the Pacific Northwest, heavy precipitation fell in coastal areas, with moderate but beneficial precipitation in the inland crop-producing areas. The Southwest was mostly dry, with scattered light precipitation. In Hawaii, banana and papaya orchards were in fair to good condition. California's cotton harvest was mostly complete, while muddy conditions slowed activities in many vegetable fields. Citrus and vegetable harvesting was active in Arizona. In Texas, warm, windy, mostly dry conditions were favorable for drydown and harvest of summer crops, but many areas needed further drying from recent heavy rainfall. Precipitation in Arkansas continued to hamper cotton, soybean, and pecan harvesting. In Georgia, wet conditions delayed fieldwork in many areas, with some vegetable growers reporting diseases. 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