So Far, 2013 Driest Calendar Year On Record For California - SF Chronicle
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The tinder-dry table was set over the first five months of the year, when the bulk of the rain normally falls. Only 3.32 inches of rain fell in the city between January and May - a record set for the lowest amount of rainfall for that stretch of time. There has been very little precipitation since then, but that is to be expected since the summer months are always dry, said Jan Null, a meteorologist for Golden Gate Weather Services and an adjunct professor of meteorology at San Francisco State University.
"We've never had any year dryer through October," said Null, adding that there is no reason to get panicky with two months left in the year. Making predictions based on rainfall through October is, he said, "like giving the final score of the Giants game after eight innings." Looking up at the perpetually blaring sun is nevertheless giving water managers reason to be downcast. The state's reservoirs are all well below their normal carrying capacity, according to Arthur Hinojosa, the chief of hydrology and flood operations for the California Department of Water Resources.
"Generally speaking, it has been dry across the state, and it has been remarkably dry where the population centers are and where the bulk of the water storage is," Hinojosa said. "Most operators plan on multiyear dry years, but nobody plans on as dry as we've seen."
The dry weather is also extending the fire season. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection has responded to 6,439 fires this year, almost 2,000 more fires than during an average year, said Battalion Chief Julie Hutchinson. That doesn't include fires on federal land like the Rim Fire, which burned 400 square miles in and around the Stanislaus National Forest and Yosemite National Park.
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http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/California-on-course-for-driest-year-on-record-4971192.php
