MONSOON 2022: A look at the season so far

TUCSON, Ariz. (KOLD News 13) - Season-to-date rainfall totals are falling behind in most reporting spots in southern Arizona for Monsoon 2022. The major exception has been Ajo, which saw a very strong start to the season and remains about an inch above normal. Sierra Vista is running about half an inch above normal and Nogales is close to where it should be for season-to-date totals.

Season-to-date totals through July 19th(KOLD)

Tucson’s drier start to the year has continued, with season-to-date totals running over an inch behind our 30-year climate normal. Our year-to-date rainfall is now more than 3 inches behind.

It is important to note – the Tucson International Airport is not representative of the entire Metro area. It is, however, where the city’s official weather reports are taken and measured for consistency. Many spots in Tucson have experienced several good downpours since monsoon began. The calendar below shows several days of “Trace” amounts of rain at the airport, meaning there was rain in the area but not enough to measure in the gauge.

Tucson's July rainfall totals per day(KOLD)

LOOKING AHEAD

The best chance for storms through the rest of the workweek will remain to the south and east of Tucson, first over higher elevations and then into the lower deserts. Stronger storms and heavy rainfall remain possible especially near the international border.

This weekend, the upper-level high that has been centered around the Four Corners region will start to retreat eastward and weaken a bit. This will allow for a more southerly/southeasterly flow, increasing our moisture and storm coverage moving into next week. As a result, high temperatures will also cool back into the 90s beginning Sunday.

Pattern trending wetter-than-average into next week(KOLD)

Below is a look at the 7-day potential rainfall forecast from the Weather Prediction Center. Much of the state could pick up 0.5″ to 2.5″ of rain over the next week!

As always, keep an eye on the sky and the radar this time of year! Stay tuned to the KOLD First Alert Weather Team for the latest updates through Monsoon.

More Monsoon information from the National Weather Service can be found here: https://www.weather.gov/twc/Monsoon