Some areas in the Missouri River counties and the northwest corner of the state remain in severe drought, despite heavy rain over the past week or so. The U.S. Drought Monitor, released early Thursday morning, does not include rain that fell after 6 a.m. Tuesday.
The reported noted that northeastern Iowa received 4 to 6 inches of rain and was one of the wettest areas during a week that saw more precipitation than any other since July 2010.
Most of the Midwest, including Iowa, was improved by one category on the five-level ratings in the drought ratings after a thaw allowed the rain to improve soil moisture.
Northeastern Iowa improved by two categories, moving from moderate drought to normal.
The forecast for the next week calls for another few inches of rain in the upper Midwest, with cool temperatures, then a week of drier than normal weather. Temperatures have a good chance of staying lower than normal through the next two weeks.
The National Weather Service on Thursday said the next month is a coin flip in Iowa for both temperature and precipitation. For the next three months, there’s a slight chance of higher than normal temperatures, but no clear indication of whether precipitation will be above normal, below, or average.
And here's the Drought Monitor homepage. The six week animation isn't working on our blog so click through if interested.