The long dry stretch continues with only 0.05” of precipitation received over the last 24 days, after the wet start we had in May. The above average temperatures over the last week, coupled with low daytime humidity and dew point values, have really zapped what little moisture was still it the topsoil. Dust and sand are easily kicked up during strong wind events, which have been frequent over the last week, due to fronts pushing through Tijeras Canyon from the east. One of these overnight wind events caused some small branch damage to two or our ash trees as the branches were twisted off the trees by strong wind gusts. These dry conditions have heightened fire danger throughout the area and several wildfires started across the state last week. For the week, this station received only a trace of precipitation on Sunday morning. For May, we received 1.13” against the NOAA average of 0.65”, which is 174% of normal. Most of this precipitation fell within the first week of May. For the 2025 WYTD, this station is at 3.99” against the NOAA normal of 7.37”, which is just 54% of normal. For the 2025 calendar year to date, we are only at 53% of normal. Overall, temperatures averaged 3.0 degrees above average for the last week. Temperatures were as much as 2.3 degrees below normal on Tuesday and 7.2 degrees above normal by Saturday. A strong afternoon thunderstorm brought some heavy rain to this part of the ABQ metro today. In fact, over half of the NOAA average for June was received at this station. Forecasts call for the wet conditions to continue through Wednesday night, as tropical moisture continues to enter the state from a couple of Pacific systems. A warming trend will begin starting Thursday and continuing through the weekend, with the next chance for showers on Monday. Short-term and long-term we are now in the moderately dry category, as the prolonged dry conditions have shifted us into this category, at least temporarily. Long-term drought conditions are still evident in the surrounding environment. Energy usage was up significantly last week as compared to the the previous week, as the warmer temperatures caused A/C usage to increase. Air quality was in the good to moderate range last week. The primary pollutant over the past week has been coarse particulate matter and ozone being the main pollutant on Tuesday. Pine, mulberry, and oak tree and pollens, along with grass and ragweed pollens were the main irritants over the last week, mostly at low levels. A health alert was issued for dust and smoke on Saturday into Sunday morning, due to dust kicked up from strong overnight winds and wildfire smoke being blown in from Canada and other western states. Fire danger is still at the high level for all Ranger Districts of the Cibola National Forest. Albuquerque open space areas currently are still open and are under stage 2 fire restrictions in the bosque areas. East Mountain Open Space areas are open and are also under stage 2 fire restrictions as well. Most plants and trees continue to do well with supplemental watering but there are signs of heat and drought stress throughout the neighborhood and city. Bird activity has still been about average over the last week. Hummingbirds and other pollinators have still been active over the last week. Squirrels have been actively raiding my neighbor’s bird feeder over the last week. Rio Grande river flow at the Alameda bridge is at 747 cf/s this evening, which is below normal for this day of the year. The flow has been steadily increasing throughout the week. Turbidity is at 89.7 FNU today. Turbidity has been very sporadic over the last two days, due to storm runoff. SNOTEL values across the northern basins that feed the Albuquerque metro area have dropped off significantly over the last two weeks due to the warmer temperatures. All basins, except for the San Juan River Basin are below 1% of median, with the San Juan at 6% and the analysis may not be valid measurements of conditions. Updated aquifer monitoring data from the last two weeks for the Middle Rio Grande Basin shows a decrease in the aquifer level as the warmer and dry conditions have increased water use and pumping from the aquifer. Voluntary weekly watering restrictions began on March 1st and continue through November. Outdoor spray irrigation is prohibited in the City of Albuquerque between the hours of 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. April 1st through October 31st.