Drought, wildfires, and extreme weather — is this the new normal for Texas?
Has it always been this hot and dry in Texas? Wildfires, drought, and record heat don’t seem to have stopped folks from moving to the state, but you’d have to forgive them if they arrived in August and turned right around. But the historical record offers some context. First, this year has been, without a […]
Texas has seen a week of rains, freezes and even snow. It’s strange to think back to this summer and the record heat and drought when it feels like we’re living in Illinois right now. (In fact, as of Tuesday, Texas had more snow than Chicago so far this winter.) Some new numbers out this […]
What does the Texas drought mean for your dinner table? Well, beef is going to cost more, especially the good stuff.
The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department is asking for millions of dollars to cover money lost during the drought. âA âtriple whammyâ of record heat and drought, devastating wildfires and a corresponding decline in visitation and revenue has created a critical need for Texas State Parks,â said Carter Smith, the department’s executive director, in a statement […]
 (NASAâs Goddard Institute for Space Studies) This map shows rainfall declines during the Mayan civilization as a result of converting forest to farmland.  New research by NASA of early droughts in Central America shows that deforestation can lead to droughts. A climatologist at the agency found that ancient civilizations like the Mayans and Aztecs […]
Rains fell across much of Texas the past few days. The Dallas-Fort Worth area received between three and four inches of rain, Houston got under an inch, and Austin got a good soaking of two inches. So what effect have these rains had on the drought? âItâs really not a big change at all,â says Bob […]
The top five new stories of last week from StateImpact Texas, in case you missed them: The Texas Drought, as Seen from Space (Things Don’t Look Good). During a drought, it feels like all you can do is wait and wait for rain. Well, we may have to wait a little longer. A new NASA map shows that groundwater and soil […]
The sea level rise on the Gulf Coast is a clear and present danger. But researchers worry the word is not getting out, and the State of Texas is diluting it.
While rain is making its way across of much of Texas this weekend, it will likely not be enough to bring the state out of its record one-year drought. Â All of Texas east of Interstate 35, the highway that runs through the middle of the state, needs between eight to twenty more inches of rain […]
A drought is a strange type of disaster. While hurricanes, tornadoes and floods do their damage quickly and dramatically, drought is like a slow death, a drying out of life and land. A house can be rebuilt after a flood recedes, but with a drought all you can do is wait for rain. And wait. […]
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