Warmth in the Updated June Climate Prediction Center Forecast

[Summer thunderstorms crossing Grand Canyon National Park. National Park Service photo by Michael Quinn.] On Thursday, the Climate Prediction Center (CPC) updated their forecast for June, with little change in the temperature forecast from the previous outlook issued two weeks ago. Warmer than average weather is still expected over most of the nation, with even higher probabilities in the Southwest and southern Plains. Only the Northeast and Southeast are expected to see near normal temperatures. In the precipitation forecast, wetter than average weather is still expected in the Southeast with drier than normal conditions in the Northwest. An area of below average rainfall was added to the Great Lakes, Northeast, and southern Plains. Two small pockets of wetter than normal conditions were added: in the Upper Midwest and the Southwest. https://twitter.com/NWSCPC/status/1002266053848846336 The CPC states that the forecast was based on model guidance, short range forecasts, current soil moisture conditions, and potential influences from modes of tropical variability. La Nina is no longer an influence, as water temperatures in the Pacific Ocean have returned to near average. For WeatherNation: Meteorologist Mace Michaels