A map of Washington snowpack, showing many of the state's river basins below 50% of normal.

We just declared drought for the fourth year in a row. And this year, it’s statewide.

News | Washington State Climate Office A transition to neutral ENSO conditions is likely this spring, then a transition to El Niño conditions is likely (>75% chance) by fall 2026. ENSO has very little influence on summer conditions in our region.

The April Newsletter is here! Read on for an update on April 1st snowpack conditions (TLDR: it isn't good), an outlook for upcoming spring conditions, and our Climate Matters piece detailing the impacts of last year's drought.

climate.uw.edu/news/categor...

The image is an infographic titled "Water Year 2025 Timeline," featuring a timeline of weather conditions and climate impacts in the Pacific Northwest. At the top left, a purple mountain illustration signifies "Whiplash Winter Conditions," with bullet points describing December's wet conditions boosting snowpack, a dry January hindering snowpack development, and wet February and March causing flooding in Oregon. The timeline is divided into three sections: October-March, April-June, and July-September. On the top right, the October-March section details April 1 snowpack levels as a percentage of normal for Washington (90%), Oregon (136%), and Idaho (108%). Below, the April-June section marks the period as the 4th driest and 10th warmest on record, with a raindrop and thermometer icon. Bullet points describe dry spring conditions leading to accelerated snowmelt and reduced streamflows. The July-September section reports regional drought expansion, with a colored map indicating drought declarations in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. The bottom notes continued drought with historically low streamflows.

Learn more about how seasonal conditions evolved into drought last summer:

Reminder: This assessments details last year's drought conditions and does not necessarily reflect this year's conditions.

@occri.bsky.social @larryoneill.bsky.social @nwcasc.bsky.social @cig-uw.bsky.social #PNWClimate #Drought2025 #drought #WAwx #ORwx #IDwx #Oregon #Idaho #Washington

A photograph of pivot irrigation on dry, drown field near Wyatt, ID.

‼️The 2025 PNW Water Year Impacts Assessment is here

Last year, a warm and dry spring led to rapid snowmelt and low summer streamflows prompting drought emergencies in ID, OR, and WA. Explore regional impacts on water resources, agriculture, forests, and more.

🔗
www.drought.gov/documents/pa...

Read more about upcoming Spring conditions in our latest Climate Outlook. 🔗 climate.uw.edu/2026/03/20/l...

Graph of statewide SWE over the last water year showing large gains in snowpack over the last few weeks along with and early season melt event. Snowpack remains well below normal despite these late season gains. Source: https://nwcc-apps.sc.egov.usda.gov/awdb/basin-plots/POR/WTEQ/assocHUCwa3/state_of_washington.html

Beneficial mountain snow last week brought some of the largest gains in mountain snowpack of the season, but snowpack still remains well below normal.

An ongoing widespread rain-on-snow melting event is now cutting into those gains. As of today, statewide SWE is 59% of normal.

Source: NRCS

Read our latest newsletter for an update on climate conditions as of Wednesday, March 11: climate.uw.edu/news/categor...

Since March 11, recent storms have brought beneficial mountain snowfall, but we still remain well below our normal snowpack for the season.

🌿 In honor of World Seagrass Day, @uwnews.uw.edu s.uw.edu recently chatted with UW biology professor & Maria's NW CASC faculty advisor, Jennifer Ruesink, about what makes the seagrasses in WA unique ✨ Check out this great interview! bit.ly/3MBwMsQ

Image preview of the WASCO email newsletter featuring the January 2026 Climate summary and a photo of Mount Rainier.

Did you know we have a monthly newsletter that summarizes recent and upcoming weather and climate conditions across the state?

‼️ Sign-up to receive this newsletter in your inbox: climate.uw.edu/news/newslet...

Read the February newsletter: climate.uw.edu/news/categor...

#wawx #WAClimate

6-10 Day outlook showing warmer than normal conditions in the beginning of March.

La Niña likely ends in the next few weeks. 🗞️

A warm start to March is likely with wetter than normal conditions expected throughout the month. There are no clear signals for temperature or precipitation for the spring period (Mar-May).

Read more: climate.uw.edu/2026/02/24/l...

#wawx #WAClimate

The 2015 snow drought was truly historic with much more widespread and severe deficits in most places than we are currently experiencing. Here is the April 1, 2015 SWE % of median map (left) and the current February 17, 2026 SWE % of normal map (right). [Note the color shading is a bit different].

Graph of SWE for the PNW showing 2026 SWE is near SWE levels during the 2015 snow drought.

This graph shows 2026 SWE (solid black line) and 2015 SWE (solid turquoise line) for WA+OR+ID.

In the Pacific Northwest as a whole we are near 2015 levels, although we will likely continue to see some improvement in current SWE relative to 2015 over the next week or two.

Image announcing the 2026 Summer Internship Program. The photo reads "Apply your passion and skills towards finding equitable environmental solutions"

The EarthLab Summer Internship Program is back!

WASCO is looking for an intern to help us highlight successful climate adaptation case studies across Washington. 9 weeks of paid, hands-on work, mentorship + a community of peers across disciplines.

📅 Apply by 2/17!
👉 bit.ly/ELIntern26

Roughly 44% of our median April 1 SWE comes after January 20. This number drops to only 34% by February 1.

Given our dry forecast in the short-term, opportunities to makeup our snowpack deficit are shrinking quickly. We need an abnormally snowy end to winter to end up with normal snowpack.

Our snowiest months are typically December and January.

Here's the average change in SWE by month, statewide:

October: +0.3"
Nov: +4.0"
❄️Dec: +7.5"
❄️Jan: +7.5"
Feb: +5.6"
Mar: +4.4"

Source: nwcc-apps.sc.egov.usda.gov/awdb/basin-p...

Current SWE across Washington sub-basins. Snowpack is largely near or below 50% of normal for this point in the winter.

Most basins have below 50% of normal snowpack. We need a steady train of storms every few days to just keep our snowpack near normal in January, and recent dry weather has not been kind to our snowpack.

Q: Can we make up this snowpack gap by spring?

It is possible, but increasingly unlikely....

Map of above normal temperatures in December 2025. Source: Climate Toolbox https://climatetoolbox.org/tool/Climate-Mapper

Map of wetter than normal conditions in December 2025. Source: Climate Toolbox https://climatetoolbox.org/tool/Climate-Mapper

Our January Newsletter is here!🗞️

In this month's newsletter we discuss record warm December temperatures 🌡️, a recap of the December floods 💧 and wet conditions, and an update on low snowpack conditions across much of the state ❄️

🔗 climate.uw.edu/news/categor...

Photo collage of NW CASC research fellows in the field.

🔥 🌲 ⛰️ ❄️ 🦫 🌊 🦀 🐝 It's that time of year again! Grad students & postdocs doing #ClimateChange research @ BSU, OSU, PSU, UM, UW, WSU and WWU — You can now APPLY for NW CASC's 2026-27 Research Fellowship Program, supporting research+training in actionable sci! Deadline Mar 9 bit.ly/45RnoHC
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Snow Water Equivalent (SWE) by basin as of midnight on the night of December 8. SWE is well below normal in the central and southern Cascades and the Olympics.

Atmospheric rivers tend to be fairly warm, meaning precipitation tends to fall as rain, even in our mountains.

As round two moves in today, we aren't likely to see much improvement in our mountain snowpack as unseasonably warm temperatures continue.

Map from:
🔗 www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/da...

The change in SWE at SNOTEL stations from midnight on December 7th to midnight on December 8th. Green and yellow values denote little change or even slight losses in SWE.

It was quite the rainy day across western Washington yesterday, but this event is not shaping up to be a big snow producer in the mountains.

SWE at mountain stations from midnight on the 7th to midnight on the 8th (last night) shows little change.

Data from 🔗 www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/da...

The deadline to fill out the PNW Water Year 2025 survey was extended to Friday, December 12th! ☀️🌧️

If you experienced impacts from abnormally dry or wet conditions anytime from 10/1/2024 – 9/30/2025, we'd love to hear from you!

🔗 Take the survey: uwashington.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...

https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/divisional/mapping

Map of September 2025 Temperature rankings by WA Climate Division. Record warm temperatures occurred across eastern Washington and Puget Sound.

Graph of statewide September average temperatures 1895-2025. There is a general warming trend over the time period of around 0.3ºF per decade and September 2025 was the warmest September on record by a decent margin. Source: NCEI https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/statewide/time-series

Now that NCEI data is flowing again, it is time to take a look at just how warm September 2025 was statewide:

September was the warmest September in WA back to at least 1895! Temperatures were +5.2ºF above normal statewide for the month.

Source: NCEI Climate at a Glance

Photograph of pivot irrigation underway over a dry field with virga overhead. Virga is rainfall that evaporates before it reached the surface, leaving visible streaks or rain shafts in the air.

The November Newsletter is here!

Read on for a statewide recap of the 2025 Water Year, weather and climate conditions in October, and a look at the seasonal outlook for the next 3 months.

climate.uw.edu/news/categor...

The longest streak at SeaTac is 586 days (1976-01-15 through 1977-08-22), and the 2nd longest is 582 days (1993-03-23 through 1994-10-25).

Table of the longest streaks in SeaTac history.

SeaTac Airport reported 1.04" of rainfall on Friday, October 24th ending SeaTac's impressive 546-day streak of daily total rainfall below 1.00".

This was the third longest streak on record (records began at SeaTac in 1945).

We completed #Mesonet site #59 last week in Poulsbo, WA! This is our sole location in Kitsap County. #wawx

Scatter plot of September 2025 temperature and precipitation relative to all Septembers back to 1979. Source: https://climatetoolbox.org/tool/historical-climate-scatter

Our October 2025 Newsletter is now live! September was likely the warmest September on record, and statewide drought continues. La Niña conditions are now in effect, and wetter than normal conditions are expected Oct.-Dec.

Read about recent and upcoming conditions:
climate.uw.edu/news/categor...

A flooded road with “road closed” sign at point where water is crossing the street.

Happy October & Flood Awareness Month! Join us with @emd.wa.gov @oicwa.bsky.social & @wadnr.bsky.social this month to learn what flood tricks to look out for and some treats to help you be prepared. Check out our blog about flooding in WA & how to get flood risk maps: ecology.wa.gov/blog/october...