Utah
Climate data: How does Utah’s current drought compare with the 20-year average?
A boater enjoys the water at Jordanelle State Park on July 16, 2021. The water ranges are low resulting from drought. A latest research breaks down drought knowledge from the previous 20 years. (Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret Information)
Estimated learn time: 5-6 minutes
SALT LAKE CITY — It is already nicely established that the West is experiencing its worst drought in 1,200 years. That determine is predicated on total soil moisture content material through the previous 20 years, matched to tree ring proof from about 800 A.D.
However what has that seemed like by way of weekly drought situations?
The Nationwide Facilities for Environmental Info revealed a brand new interactive map Wednesday showcasing dry situations throughout the U.S. over the previous 20 years, based mostly on a research revealed final month within the Worldwide Journal of Climatology. The research analyzed historic knowledge collected by the U.S. Drought Monitor, which was solely created in 1999.
“Utilizing the (drought monitor) to characterize previous drought … paints a extra full image of its nature and impacts,” Nationwide Facilities for Environmental Info officers wrote Wednesday.
Utah’s fewer however longer droughts
The information introduced on the map is from 2000 to 2019, so which means the present drought Utah is dealing with, which started about this time two years in the past, is not represented within the knowledge. That mentioned, the data exhibits what one could suspect simply from expertise throughout the ongoing megadrought.
Utah hasn’t had as many drought occasions as states within the Southwest and even components of the East; nonetheless, the common size of a drought occasion is considerably longer within the Beehive State and throughout the West.
Take the Salt Lake Metropolis space, for instance. It has had 10 drought occasions over the previous 20 years, which is 16 fewer drought occasions than the San Antonio space in Texas. Nonetheless, the common size of Salt Lake Metropolis’s droughts is 53.6 weeks, or a little bit greater than a 12 months, whereas the San Antonio droughts common 19.35 weeks, which is lower than a half-year in size, on common.
Salt Lake Metropolis is not even the worst spot for droughts in Utah. The common lengths of droughts improve elsewhere within the state, exceeding 80 weeks in components of north-central Utah. That is a median of over a 12 months and a half. In reality, all of Utah’s grids on the map had fewer than a dozen drought occasions previously 20 years, however every one averages between 40 and 85 weeks in period.
That places the present drought above common, even megadrought, phrases. The continued drought occasion started after an abysmal spring, precipitation-wise, in 2020. That climate sample carried into summer time and fall, leading to Utah’s driest 12 months on file. Though it grew to become much less extreme at instances within the fall and winter final 12 months, the drought is now choosing again up in depth and is extreme sufficient that Gov. Spencer Cox final month ordered an emergency drought declaration for the second-straight 12 months.
Western Nevada, nonetheless, takes the cake within the drought size class. The western portion of the Nice Basin east of the Sierra Nevada vary has the longest droughts within the nation. For instance, the Fallon, Nevada, space has had solely 4 drought occasions, however these common 184.5 weeks in size, which breaks all the way down to about 3.5 years per occasion.
What about drought severity?
Given the West’s 20-year plight and the size of each drought occasion, it could additionally not shock anybody that the West dubiously leads the nation in weeks spent in excessive drought, or worse, standing. Each drought the area faces usually leads to excessive or distinctive standing, which is why most of Utah — and the West — has spent at the very least a 12 months’s time within the worst drought classes over the previous 20 years.
There are chunks of Utah which have spent over 96 weeks in a drought, as nicely.
“Parts of the U.S. which have spent as much as two years in (excessive) or higher drought prolong from components of California over the Rockies and into New Mexico, Texas, and the Oklahoma panhandle,” the authors of the Worldwide Journal of Climatology research wrote. “This diminishes to lower than a 12 months for a lot of the japanese U.S., with an exception of Georgia and parts of Alabama and the Carolinas.”
Once more, that is earlier than the present drought. The U.S. Drought Monitor lists over half of the state in excessive drought standing, after practically 60% of the state reached distinctive drought standing by mid-Could final 12 months — exhibiting that the present drought is above-average, even within the age of the megadrought.
When droughts begin and finish
What complicates Utah’s droughts is they are not as simple to foretell as in different components of the nation.
Whereas most U.S. droughts begin in the summertime, Utah’s droughts have a tendency to begin within the winter, spring and summer time, relying on the place you are at within the state. Northern Utah is a mixture of spring and summer time, whereas droughts in southern and japanese Utah largely start within the winter and spring.
They have an inclination to finish both within the winter or spring as an alternative of the autumn, as is within the case for areas east of the Rockies. It means the present drought in Utah may finish at any season but it surely’ll most probably linger into at the very least this winter.
Nonetheless, that continues to be to be seen. After all, it would not be the tip of the megadrought, both.
That is actually the case for each a part of the nation, although, as what’s identified about droughts is altering on account of local weather change, Nationwide Facilities for Environmental Info officers add. Some areas are receiving “extra extreme, frequent or widespread, or a mixture of those (droughts),” such because the West through the 20-year megadrought.
Federal local weather consultants contend the historic info of the previous 20 years remains to be beneficial in exhibiting what to anticipate as this occurs.
“Although drought will not be preventable, characterizing and understanding previous drought permits federal, state and native entities to raised put together, reply and reduce drought impacts when it does develop. Sustainable water administration planning is an instance,” they wrote. “This research additionally gives a foundation and framework for continued research of drought within the 50 states and Puerto Rico, its evolution and techniques for resilience.”
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Former Utah quarterback Brandon Rose has transferred to UMass, marking a fresh chapter in his collegiate career. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound signal-caller was among a handful of Utah quarterbacks to leave the program during the latest transfer cycle, seeking new opportunities to showcase his talents.
Rose’s time at Utah was marked by development and perseverance, highlighted by moments of promise before injury setbacks. In the 2024 season, Rose saw action in three games, starting one. In his first collegiate start against BYU, he displayed his dual-threat abilities, throwing for 112 yards and two touchdowns while adding 55 rushing yards. Unfortunately, a season-ending injury in that game cut short his promising campaign. Earlier in the season, Rose made his collegiate debut in Utah’s season-opening win over Southern Utah and later completed seven passes for 45 yards in a second-half appearance at Houston. After redshirting in 2022 and not seeing the field in 2023, Rose’s eventual move to UMass offers a chance for a new beginning.
Rose entered college with a strong resume from Murrieta Valley High School in California. Rated as a three-star pro-style quarterback, he amassed 7,521 career passing yards and 74 touchdowns. As a senior, he led his team to a Southwestern League championship, earning league MVP honors. That year, he recorded 3,002 passing yards, 33 touchdowns, and 236 rushing yards. Despite a shortened junior season, he threw for 1,415 yards and 11 touchdowns while completing 70% of his passes. His sophomore year was equally impressive, with 3,087 passing yards, 30 touchdowns, and 395 rushing yards.
UMass provides Rose with a platform to compete and potentially secure the starting quarterback role. Known for his accuracy and mobility, he brings valuable experience and a hunger to prove himself at the collegiate level. With a history of overcoming challenges, Rose’s transfer to UMass signals a promising opportunity for both him and the Minutemen.
SALT LAKE CITY — After taking the official oath of office on Wednesday, Derek Brown has become Utah’s newest attorney general.
Now that he’s in office, what’s next? He joined Inside Sources to talk more about his priorities for office.
Below is a partial transcript of this interview as well as the full podcast.
KSL NewsRadio modified this interview for brevity and clarity.
HOST TAYLOR MORGAN: What are your priorities as you take office?
GUEST DEREK BROWN: I think the key to that is transparency. When I served in the House of Representatives, I learned that people appreciate when you are open and you make it clear to them what you’re doing. And as people understand what we’re doing in the Attorney General’s Office, we’ll see successes, there will be an increase in trust … That’s just the natural outgrowth of transparency, and I’m going to be doing a number of things proactively so that we build that feeling of not just transparency but [also] trust.
MORGAN: My understanding is that you and your family have put your assets into a blind trust … and you have officially stepped down from any non-profit boards. Is that correct?
BROWN: That’s correct… I just feel like it makes sense, in light of this position, to just eliminate any potential conflicts of interest in advance. I’m a little sad to do it because these are great people. I love being there, making a difference. But at the same time, I feel like we’ve got those organizations onto a good footing.
People make Utah great, not government, says Gov. Cox at inauguration
MORGAN: [How] would you explain your role to listeners? What does the Utah attorney general do primarily?
BROWN: We have 280 attorneys, and they provide legal counsel for all the boards, commissions, and agencies of the state. Everything from the University of Utah to UDOT to DMV… So there’s literally 280 attorneys that do every conceivable area of the law… It is the largest law firm in the state of Utah, so my job is to make sure it’s also the best, most efficient, most well-funded, and well-respected law firm in the state of Utah.
Listen to the podcast below for the entire interview.
“Sometimes they go in, and sometimes not,” Boqvist said. “I feel like our line played pretty well. We’re working hard and winning a lot of pucks down low, trying to play with speed. When we have time and space to do stuff, we will.”
From there, penalties proved costly for the Panthers.
After coming up short on their first two trips to the power play in the period, the third time was the charm for Utah as Logan Cooley lit the lamp to cut Florida’s lead to 2-1 at 13:41.
Stomping out any would-be comeback for Utah, Boqvist regained the two-goal cushion for the Panthers when he cashed in on the empty net from deep in his own zone to make it 3-1 at 17:59.
At 19:38, Eetu Luostarinen tacked on another empty-netter to make it 4-1.
Finishing strong, the Panthers led 12-3 in scoring chances at 5-on-5 in the third period.
“I liked the bench,” Maurice said. “I liked the mood of it. They’re pulling for each other, supporting each other, battling and grinding. Understanding we come into this building, these teams come wired for us and are ready. Get out of the first period even. We’re good on the road like that. Then I thought we built. Halfway through the first period we got our game going.”
THEY SAID IT
“He’s earned it. We’ve used him at left and right wing, and he’s played center for us. He’s played with different people. He’s a really competitive guy.” – Paul Maurice on Jesper Boqvist
“Speed, skill, hard work. He works really hard, but he also has that ability to take over games with his speed and skill. He has a great shot. We’ve seen that all year in practices and games. He’s fun to watch. He’s one of those players where it’s just a matter of time until he breaks out, and he’s breaking out right now. It’s been fun to watch.” – Aleksander Barkov on Jesper Boqvist
“He’s so good, right? It’s so fun to watch. Playing against him for a couple years, it’s not easy.” – Jesper Boqvist on Sergei Bobrovsky
CATS STATS
– Carter Verhaeghe extended his point streak to three games.
– The Panthers are 7-for-8 on the penalty kill over their last two games.
– The Panthers have four players with at least 30 points this season.
– Sergei Bobrovsky is the third goaltender to earn a win against 33 NHL franchises.
– Sam Bennett won a team-high nine faceoffs.
– Matthew Tkachuk and Jesper Boqvist each recorded five hits.
– The Panthers held Utah to just eight shot attempts at 5-on-5 in the third period.
WHAT’S NEXT?
Grab your popcorn.
Meeting for the third time this season, the Panthers will try to improve to 3-0-0 against the Boston Bruins when the two rivals clash at Amerant Bank Arena on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET.
For tickets, click HERE.
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