https://phys.org/news/2024-11-climate-contributing-drought-american-west.html
Even if precipitation looks normal, we can still have drought because moisture demand has increased so much and there simply isn’t enough water to keep up with that increased demand,” Fu said. “This is not something you could build bigger reservoirs or something to prevent because when the atmosphere warms, it will just suck up more moisture everywhere.
Different streams of data are suggesting drought is in store for the southwest for more than one reason.
The Eastern Plains saw the largest snow totals during last week’s snowstorm and skated within a few inches of previous records set in 1946 during another early November snowstorm.
Elbert, Lincoln and southern Washington counties measured between 30 and 42 inches of snow, averaging 3 feet overall, said David Barjenbruch, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Boulder office. Those communities usually see less snow than Denver, making this “quite a rare” event.
Meanwhile unusual snowfalls have beset wildlife in a month ago.