With May now winding to a close, it appears this month will come in well below average for most of the state. May is an important month to the yearly contribution of precipitation as shown by the featured chart. The chart shows the frequency of having a month with the same direction of departure as the year long total. For example, having this May be below average precipitation along with having the year of 2012 be below average precipitation. Interestingly, May has the largest frequencies in both directions. Precipitation in May can help "set the table" for the rest of the summer, as a wet May leads to wetter soils and more precipitation chances for the summer. A dry May can have the opposite effect. Most concerning is that this chart would indicate a 75% chance of having below average precipitation for 2012.

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Tags:   may   climate   precip