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Climate & Weather
NOAA’s Drought Information Center

MesoWest is a great source for current weather conditions around the Intermountain West.

The Pacific Northwest Cooperative Agricultural Weather Network is part of the Bureau of Reclamation’s AgriMet weather station network.

A La Niña Summit hosted by NCAR/UNEP provides a comprehensive review of the causes and consequences of cold events.

NOAA’s Extreme Weather and Climate Events page links to all sites within NOAA that are related to climatic extremes, weather events, climate change, El Niño/La Niña, natural disasters, and U.S. climatologies.

UM Weather is a comprehensive starting point for weather information.

The National Fire Weather Page from the National Weather Service offers many worthwhile products and links.

NOAA/NWS Government Weather Information Services is another useful link to various weather services.

The National Center for Atmospheric Research’s (NCAR) Weather section has satellite images and links to many weather and climate resources on the WWW. Another good website is that of The Institute for the Study of Society and Environment (ISSE), a division of NCAR.

The International Research Institute’s (IRI) experimental climate forecasts provide an alternative look into the future.

NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center (CPC), formerly the Climate Analysis Center, monitors regional and global climate anomalies, which can be indicators of potential target areas for drought. They also provide many other products, including climate variation predictions, long-lead forecasts, the monthly Climate Diagnostics Bulletin, Palmer Drought Index maps, and El Niño advisories. This site is a great overall source for forecasts and is a must-see.

NOAA’s Climate Diagnostic Center (CDC) is an excellent archive of historical studies on climatic variability, El Niño/SO (Southern Oscillation), La Niña, and earth–atmosphere energy balances and relationships. The CDC Map Room has a lot of good global climate and weather information from the National Meteorological Center.

NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) CLIMVIS program graphs historic drought data for any U.S. climate division, 1895–present, using the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI). The NCDC also has an area dedicated to climate change analysis called the Global Climate Perspectives System (GCPS). The monthly Climate Variations Bulletin is located here, too.

The National Weather Service’s (NWS) Interactive Weather Information Network (IWIN) has raw data from a variety of sources. “National Products” has national and international crop summaries.

U.S. Global Change Research Information Office (GCRIO)

Institute of Global Environment and Society/Center for Ocean Land Atmospheric Studies (IGES/COLA) Proceed to “Experimental Long-Lead Forecast Bulletin” (ELLFB), where you’ll find long-lead predictions independent from the NWS forecasts.

Regional Climate Centers (RCCs) An index to the six regional climate centers in the United States, some of which give you regional climate and drought products by climatic division. The Southeast RCC has a page dedicated to drought, and the West and Northeast RCCs also refer to drought-related issues and data. Contact persons are listed for all of the climate centers; they can advise you on what’s available in their region or at their center.

The Western Regional Climate Center (WRCC) has a great mapping tool for the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) and other climatic parameters for the United States over the last 6 years. This is updated each month.

U.S. Climate at a Glance, prepared by the National Climatic Data Center, provides national, regional, state, and/or local temperature and precipitation maps and data.

Hurricane & Storm Tracking for the Atlantic & Pacific Oceans

Graphical Climatic Precipitation comes from NOAA’s National Weather Service.

Quantitative Precipitation Forecasts: a prediction of precipitation amounts over an area.

The Climate of 2005 (US and Global Climate Perspectives), by NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center, offers monthly summary reports, climate events and extremes, and links to previous years’ climate and weather reports.

The North American Drought Monitor (NA-DM) is a cooperative effort between drought experts in Canada, Mexico and the United States to monitor drought across the continent on an ongoing basis.

Federal Government
The Interim National Drought Council was formed in September 2000 to establish a more comprehensive, integrated, and coordinated approach to reducing the impacts of drought through better preparedness, monitoring and prediction, risk management, and response to drought emergencies in the United States.

The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), formerly the Soil Conservation Service, is home to the National Water and Climate Center, where they monitor water supplies in the West.

The Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) services/programs area has information about conservation, commodity programs, crop insurance, and farm loans, along with state and county contacts.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has excellent materials on preparedness and mitigation philosophy for an array of disasters.

The National Agriculture Statistics Service (NASS) has NASS publications and Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletins as well as crop progress/production reports and national and state forecasts. Go to “Publications” for useful situation and outlook reports from NASS, ERS (Economic Research Service), and WAOB (World Agricultural Outlook Board).

World Agricultural Outlook Board (WAOB) This site contains outlook reports of agricultural developments, world agricultural supply and demand estimates, and more.

Joint Agricultural Weather Facility (JAWF) The Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin, Major World Crop Calendars, and PDSI and CMI maps can be found here.

United States Geological Survey (USGS) Visit the nation’s largest earth-science research and information agency. Go to USGS News Releases to see the latest advisories, warnings, and events. Water Resources of the United States contains more links.

The USGS Drought Watch site provides real-time streamflow information for locations in the United States.

State Government
The American Association of State Climatologists (AASC) site is a good place to start your search for climate and/or drought data products for states.

The Alabama Drought Emergency Relief Effort provides updates on drought in the state.

Alaska State Climate Center

Alaska Climate Research Center

California Drought Preparedness Home Page, from the Department of Water Resources

Drought Information from the Colorado Water Conservation Board.

The Colorado Climate Center, from Colorado State University, is monitoring climate in time scales of weeks to years.

Florida Climate Center is a public service unit of the Institute of Science and Public Affairs at the Florida State University.

Drought in Georgia provides the latest information on drought in the Peach State.

University of Hawaii Department of Meteorology

The National Weather Service Pacific Region Headquarters monitors conditions in Hawaii and other islands in the basin.

Kansas Drought Report

Kentucky and National Drought Information

Maryland Drought Information

Minnesota Drought Information Resources

Missouri Water Resources Program, Drought Information, from Geological Survey and Resource Assessment of the Department of Natural Resources

Montana Drought Monitoring

The Nebraska Climate Assessment and Response Committee (CARC) is responsible for drought-related activities in the state.

Drought Information and Resources for Nebraskans, from the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, located at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln

New Jersey Drought Information, from the Department of Environmental Protection

New Jersey Hydrologic Conditions

The New Mexico Governor’s Drought Task Force recommends strategies for dealing with the drought.

North Carolina Drought Monitoring has information about drought monitoring activities in North Carolina.

North Carolina State University has a nice set of drought information leaflets on managing drought.

North Dakota State University Extension Service’s Coping with Drought

The Oklahoma Water Resources Board monitors the state’s droughts, or emerging droughts, and water resources.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s Drought Information Center has all of the state’s drought-related activities.

South Carolina Drought Information Center

Texas Drought Preparedness Council

Texas Drought was developed by the Texas Agricultural Extension Service and Experimental Station to provide information and alternatives that might reduce further losses to the agricultural industry in Texas.

The Texas Water Development Board’s Drought page contains current climatic, drought index, and water supply conditions.

Search the Texas Water Resources Institute for the latest headlines and stories on drought in Texas.

The Washington Department of Ecology, Water Resources site has drought updates and information.

The Western Governors’ Association (WGA) was formed to provide leadership for many vital issues in the West. The Association identifies and addresses key policy and governance issues in natural resources, the environment, human services, economic development, international relations, and public management.

The Western Drought Coordination Council (WDCC) was founded by the WGA to work toward improving drought preparation, mitigation, and response in the West.

International
Global Water News Watch covers water news from 188 countries. The website is produced by Sustainability of Semi-Arid Hydrology and Riparian Areas (SAHRA), a National Science Foundation Science and Technology Center at the University of Arizona.

The European Drought Centre (EDC) is a virtual center of European drought research and drought management organizations to promote collaboration and capacity building between scientists and the user community.

Mexico’s Centro de Investigaciones Sobre la Sequía (National Drought Research Center) is housed at the Institute of Ecology in Chihuahua, Mexico.

Drought Floods & Prayer is an information resource for those concerned with the effects of drought and floods on people and the environment.

Embrapa researches and spreads knowledge in the areas of remote sensing and digital cartography for agriculture and the environment of Brazil.

FUNCEME helps to monitor the climate and environment in northern Brazil.

The International Boundary and Water Commission provides environmentally sensitive and timely boundary and water services along the border of the United States and Mexico.

Bureau of Rural Sciences (Canberra, Australia) Take a look at their work in the areas of drought and climate change.

The Long Paddock is rich in graphics and information on drought, ENSO, and climate in eastern Australia. You’ll want to visit this worthwhile site from Queensland and the land down under.

Canada’s EPIX (Emergency Preparedness Information eXchange) provides information about prevention of, preparation for, recovery from, and mitigation of risk associated with natural hazards.

The Emergency Management Australia (EMA) emphasizes development of measures to reduce the risk and manage the consequences of natural disasters.

Bureau of Meteorology Australia

Land & Water Australia provides information and documents on climate variability and drought research in relation to Australian agriculture.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations has a search form to query FAO’s databases. Go to the WAICENT Information Finder (World Agriculture Information Centre) for access to FAO’s vast library of information on global agriculture, fisheries, forestry, nutrition, and rural development. You will want to look at the Global Watch section for Weather and Crop Situation reports for both the Sahel and sub-Saharan regions of Africa. The Global Information and Early Warning System (GIEWS) is also a strong starting point.

WMO (World Meteorological Organization of the United Nations)

The Foreign Agriculture Service (FAS) is a source of news on international agricultural production and trade.

Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre (ADPC)

South African Weather Service has information on climate, forecasts, and projects in South Africa.

Zambia Department of Meteorology has forecasts and analysis for Zambia.

The Inter-American Water Resources Network (IWRN) is building an impressive directory of water resources organizations.

Monitoring and Early Warning, from Environmental Analysis and Remote Sensing Ltd. (EARS), has up-to-date maps of the crop growth situation in Africa and Europe.

Drought Watch on the Prairies provides an overview on the risk of drought in western Canada.

Canadian Climate Impacts and Adaptation Research Network is a national network that facilitates the generation of new climate change knowledge.

Global Fire Monitoring Section of the International Strategy of Disaster Reduction (ISDR)

Disaster
ReliefWeb is a great source for materials and timely dissemination of reliable information on prevention, preparedness, and disaster response. Use their search engine for current drought news around the world.

The Disaster Information Server, from the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) Disaster Management Support Group, provides great information on a variety of hazards.

The Natural Hazards Center publishes a monthly newsletter, Disaster Research. This is a good place to find contacts, and it is also loaded with disaster information covering all sorts of organizations and areas of interest, including drought.

Hazard Reduction and Recovery Center research focuses on hazard analysis, emergency preparedness and response, disaster recovery, and hazard mitigation.

American Red Cross (ARC) has news about the ARC’s relief activities. Here you can find the latest on disasters, warnings, and relief efforts in the states.

Natural Disaster Reference Database is a bibliographic database from NASA on research, programs, and findings on disaster mitigation using remote sensing technology.

The International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) succeeded the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction, which came to an end in December 1999.

Volunteers in Technical Assistance (VITA) has information on current and past disasters of all types.

Sustainability
Drylands Development Centre comes from the Office to Combat Desertification and Drought (UNSO).

The Smart Communities Network is housed in the Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network.

The Boulder Area Sustainability Information Network (BASIN) is a great example of sustainability (water and environment) issues on a local level.

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is a super source for sustainable agriculture and development issues. The Earth Negotiations Bulletin is another useful source.

The Earth Council was created to facilitate the implementation of the Earth Summit Agreements.

Bright Edges of the World brings you information on drylands, desertification, drought, and sustainability as well as threats and/or risks to the people around the world who are “living on the edge” of producible regions.

International Arid Lands Consortium (IALC) has information on sustainable practices and research on arid or semiarid lands.

Agronomic Links Around The Globe has state, national, international, and commercial links that offer information about crops, soils, climate, sustainable practices, and environmental issues. Definitely worth your time.

Greenpeace International’s Climate Time Bomb has information on various natural disasters.

Climate Ark (Climate Change & Renewable Energy Portal) is dedicated to promoting public policy that addresses global climate change.

Eco Earth contains links to environmental sustainability sources.

Remote Sensing
The Vegetation and Temperature Condition Index (VT) Home Pages from NOAA’s NESDIS group monitor conditions around the globe via satellite.

NOAA’s Operational Significant Event Imagery home page provides daily reports and links (to satellite imagery) on the most recent natural hazards occurring worldwide.

The USDA Forest Service’s Wildland Fire Assessment System has a large suite of products and maps covering current national conditions on fire danger, drought, satellite-derived vegetative greenness, and current fire weather observations and forecasts.

The EROS (Earth Resources Observation System) Data Center contains the world’s largest collection of space and aircraft remotely sensed imagery. Their data holdings are impressive and can be ordered and/or downloaded via the Internet and FTP.

The Earth Observing System (EOS) is a super source of information on NOAA/NASA’s Pathfinder satellite program. NASA also has a comprehensive list of servers with satellite and remote sensing materials.

Canada Centre for Remote Sensing (CCRS) is the source for Canadian remote sensing data and products.

The Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT) has an exhaustive list of international remote sensing servers—scroll down to the “Virtual Library”. A recommended starting point.

CALMIT (Center for Advanced Land Management Information Technologies) is located at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. CALMIT serves as Nebraska’s source for digital data, research, and instructional activities in remote sensing, GIS (geographic information systems), automated cartography, and image processing.

Hydrology
The Delaware River Basin Commission maintains an excellent Drought Information section.

The Susquehanna River Basin Commission also keeps up with the latest drought information and declarations for the basin.

The International Office for Water contains an inventory of web sites concerning water and environment on an international scale.

The Institute for Water Resources from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers provides technical analysis and research, as well as many online reports.

WaterWiser is a good source of water efficiency and water conservation information.

Living Wise/Learning to be Water Wise Try this fun site to educate yourself and others on water and energy conservation measures.

U.S. Water News carries the latest news on water issues around the country, including coverage of water supply/quality, policy and legislation, litigation and water rights, conservation, climate, and international news.

USGS (United States Geological Survey) Water Resources of the United States This is the place for current hydrologic information and status reports on our nation’s water resources. Go to Local Offices for Water Resources to find resources and home pages for many states and. If you want the best place to start—this is it.

The National Weather Service Hydrologic Information Center provides water supply outlooks.

National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center offers many services and products related to hydrometeorology. Snow cover (pack) and extent, river conditions (flow and levels), and forecasts are a few examples.

Texas Water Resources Institute The source for information on Texas and its water resources.

Hydrology Web is a good spot for diving into current discussion and research.

The USGS Ground Water Climate Response Network provides access to realtime groundwater level data at sites considered reflective of climatic conditions.

USGS Water Resources of Nebraska is a great reference for water resources information and current conditions in Nebraska.
For other states and/or regions, follow links from the USGS Water Resources Information homepage listed above.