North Dakota has experienced its driest nine-month period in recorded history, and it continues with 85% of the state rated as being in “extreme” drought according to the weekly U.S. Drought Monitor. Conditions are unchanged from a week ago. The latest Drought Monitor was issued Thursday.

Much of the western United States is experiencing dry or drought conditions. In California the state’s two largest reservoirs offer a snapshot of how dry it is. Lake Shasta and Lake Oroville are at 48% and 41% of average respectively. Similar, or worse, situations exist elsewhere.

In the Southwest, Lake Powell is only 35% full and Lake Mead 38% full. New Mexico’s largest reservoir on the Rio Grande is currently 12% full. Streamflow across much of western Colorado, southwestern Wyoming, and in North Dakota is less than 10% of average.

Long Creek at Noonan has had no flow for several weeks. The Souris River gauge near Sherwood shows a mere 4.32 cubic feet per second of flow as compared to a long-term average of 455 cfs. No water is being released from Lake Darling, which is more than two feet below its summer operating level, hence the flow in the Souris at Baker Bridge is zero.

Further downstream the Des Lacs River, which joins the Souris at Burlington, has a flow barely measurable at 1.10 cfs. That compares to an average for the date of 84 cfs. The Souris River at Westhope, where the average flow is 1,100 cfs, had a reading of just 6.37 cfs Thursday.

Relief from extremely dry conditions doesn’t appear imminent and, according to season outlooks, drier and hotter weather can be expected for the region through the remainder of the summer. While some hint of rain is indicated in area forecasts for the next few days, amounts of rain, if any, are expected to be very minimal.

The 14-day outlook reaching to May 26 has a probability of below-normal precipitation for western North Dakota and near-normal precipitation possibilities for the eastern half of the state.

Minot’s rainfall total for the month of May through Thursday morning was 0.10 inches. Average rainfall for May is 2.50 inches.