NOAA: “Since late 2010, much of the southernmost United States has been suffering through drought. When conditions reached their peak last summer, the resulting impacts were devastating, shrinking water supplies for cattle and crops, and contributing to huge agricultural losses. This spring, drought continues to plague large portions of the South. The U.S. Drought Monitor estimates that 59.4 percent of the contiguous United States was abnormally dry and 37.07 was in drought as of April 24, an increase from 27.4 percent in drought a year ago. The color-coded, drought classification map above shows severe to exceptional drought conditions in southern and western Texas, the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles, parts of Arizona, and a large swath of New Mexico.”