According to hydrologists, climatologists, and those who study weather patterns, the Western United States is in a decades-long pattern of drought that can compare to the megadroughts of the 13th century. Drastically dry conditions like this haven’t been seen for more than 1,200 years.
Wyoming is no exception, and over the past 20 years, drought in Wyoming has created all sorts of problems on the open range, in forests, and in our parks.
Flickr / notnyt
Year after year, for more than two decades, Wyoming has been in a state of drought. In the worst years, most of the state has been affected!
University of Wyoming / WRDS
A few years ago, the drought was so bad that even the Mammoth Hot Springs in Yellowstone National Park were effected.
Flickr / K. Kendall
Even in years where there is average or above average snowfall, issues with how quickly it’s melting in a warming world causes drier conditions and can contribute to drought in Wyoming.
Flickr / Carfull…from Wyoming
Earlier snowmelt caused by a warming climate also means slower snow melt, which leaves our rivers and streams drier. When snow takes longer to melt and starts earlier in the season, it doesn’t flow as easily to our waterways.
University of Wyoming / WRDS
The result is that rivers, usually filled to the banks by a steady snowpack, run dry. The vegetation along the banks can’t stay alive without lots of water.
Flickr / Jay White
When you combine the early snowmelt with below-average precipitation, a huge problem can arise when the heat of the summer and thunderstorms come rolling in.
University of Wyoming / WRDS
Of course, one of the biggest dangers of drought in Wyoming is the threat of wildfire.
Flickr / NASA Marshall Space Flight
More and more small fires are damaging our forests, threatening homes, and ruining farmland and open range.
Flickr / US Department of Agriculture
The Great Yellowstone Fires were the worst in our state’s history, and they left a lasting impact that’s still felt to this day.
Wikimedia Commons
This serious drought in Wyoming is certain to change life in the Cowboy State as we know it.
Flickr / Tim Lumley
You can read more about how this megadrought compares to others in history here.
Flickr / notnyt
University of Wyoming / WRDS
Flickr / K. Kendall
Flickr / Carfull…from Wyoming
Flickr / Jay White
Flickr / NASA Marshall Space Flight
Flickr / US Department of Agriculture
Wikimedia Commons
Flickr / Tim Lumley
If you want to see first hand how devastating dry conditions can be, read about The Devastating Natural Disaster That Changed Wyoming Forever.
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