Half the country is facing an apocalyptic summer

Stephanie Pappas

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© Provided by Space This image created with satellite data shows extreme heat in the Southwest on June 15, 2021. The region has been facing heat waves and drought going into the summer.

Deep drought and early heat waves are setting the western half of the United States up for a dry, fiery summer.

About 91% of the West was in drought as of June 22, with 55% experiencing extreme or exceptional drought, while two back-to-back heat waves exacerbated the drying of soils and vegetation, increasing the potential for wildfires. Meanwhile, water supplies are dwindling: Lake Mead, the reservoir formed by the Hoover Dam, is the lowest it has been since the 1930s when it was first filled, and California’s reservoirs are 50% lower than usual for this time of year, according to the Associated Press.

The current conditions are part of a 22-year-long drought in the western U.S., the likes of which have not been seen for more than 400 years prior to 2000. But this summer is likely to eclipse the drought of the last two decades, said Benjamin Cook, a climate scientist at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies.

“Even in the context of those last 20 years of drought this year really stands out,” Cook told Live Science. “For the Southwest, it’s very likely to be the worst single year of drought since 2002.”…….More Here

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