Drought conditions across northern and central New Mexico continued to worsen during the month of December 2020. December once again saw below normal precipitation across the entire area with extreme to exceptional drought worsening to about 82 percent of the state.
Every event with a place to put it; 41 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS ABQ wrote it up.
Drought conditions across northern and central New Mexico continued to worsen during the month of December 2020. December once again saw below normal precipitation across the entire area with extreme to exceptional drought worsening to about 82 percent of the state. While the overall pattern remained active with a few storm systems impacting the state, a lack of deep moisture generally resulted in only light precipitation. The exception was across the northern high terrain which benefited from favorable storm tracks and a couple heavy snow events. Most of the state generally saw precipitation totals around a quarter to a half an inch. The northern high terrain continued to fare the best with liquid equivalent amounts of one to two inches.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Albuquerque, NM wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 30, 10:06 PM MST, 1 hour 54 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion...UPDATED National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 1006 PM MST Mon Nov 30 2020 .AVIATION... 06Z TAF CYCLE A few high cirrus clouds will continue streaming into western and eventually central to eastern New Mexico tonight into early Tuesday morning. Breezy conditions will continue overnight along and just east of the ridges of the central mountain chain where occasional gusts of 25 to 35 kt will be possible. Stronger wind speeds will expand and increase during the day Tuesday as a cold front arrives, but mostly clear skies and VFR conditions will prevail until Tuesday evening. Then, low clouds and light snow will break out in the far northeastern corner of the state behind the cold front. Areas of MVFR to IFR conditions could impact KRTN and KCAO before 02/0600UTC. 52 && .PREV DISCUSSION...322 PM MST Mon Nov 30 2020... .SYNOPSIS... A potent cold front will arrive into the Land of Enchantment Tuesday with strong northerly winds and colder temperatures. Breezy to locally windy conditions are expected across the Sandia and Manzano mountains in the wake of this front Tuesday. A chance of light snow is possible across the Sangre de Cristo Mountains Tuesday through Thursday. The bitterly cold airmass will take residence across New Mexico Wednesday and Thursday, bringing well below normal daytime highs and overnight temperatures areawide. Temperatures will rebound over the weekend before another potential storm system begins to evolve early next week. && .DISCUSSION... SHORT TERM...(TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT)... In general, a quiet night is expected across the Land of Enchantment with lows within a few degrees of normal. A strong storm system is expected to slide southward across the Rockies on Tuesday with both regular and back door fronts impacting the state. Temperatures will turn colder, winds will ramp up and a little snow is also possible Tuesday afternoon and overnight. As the system nears, 700 mb wind speeds will increase overnight within northwest flow aloft while the surface pressure gradient increases along the east slopes of the Central Mountain Chain. Expect breezy to windy conditions by the morning hours across the Sandia and Manzano Mountains eastward across the highlands. These mid level winds will only increase through Tuesday afternoon and decent mixing will result in windy conditions for the normally windy corridor in northwest flow aloft (Farmington to Clines Corners to Roswell). Meanwhile, the surface pressure gradient will tighten along the east slopes of the Central Mountain Chain as the surface low slides southward over the NM/TX border. Therefore, the strongest winds are expected across the Sandia and Manzano Mountains and Central Highlands where gusts of 45 to 50 mph are likely. A Wind Advisory has been issued for these areas. Strong winds are also expected behind the back door segment of the front and the Wind Advisory may need to be expanded to portions of northeast NM for Tuesday aftn and eve. Given the timing of the cold fronts, the high temperature for the day may occur by the noon hour, especially for some northern NM locales. Though the system seems moisture starved, there is potential for light snow mainly from the Sangre de Cristo Mountains eastward from late Tuesday afternoon through the overnight hours. Though generally only an inch or two of snow is expected, strong upslope flow on Johnson and Bartlett Mesas may result in locally higher amounts. Given the cold temperatures, if there are any periods of heavier snow, slick roads would be possible. Will issue a SPS to highlight the potential. 34 LONG TERM...(WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY)... A complex scenario continues to unfold in the extended, as a highly amplified upper level trough dives down the northern Rockies. The evolution of these synoptic features varies depending on your model of choice, but what remains consistent is that a bitterly cold, moisture-starved airmass will continue to invade NM in the mid-week. By 12Z Wednesday, a strong 115 kt 300mb jet maxima will drape itself over NM, bringing with it some of the coldest temperatures of the season so far. A 553 dam low will bring light snow accumulations to the northern central mts, but widespread/heavy precip continues to be unlikely given the lack of moisture. As the 300mb trough digs south, the H5 low will eject into the TX panhandle early Wednesday, as another H5 low begins to drop south through the Intermountain West. Continued cold air advection will keep temperatures well below normal moving into Wednesday night and Thursday. Models have had some run-to-run consistency with these two lows falling into a Fujiwhara type dance through Thursday afternoon, at which point the models diverge. The ECMWF retrogrades the second low into southwest AZ Thursday night - a trajectory that the 18Z GFS looks to be latching onto - while others suggest it will weaken or remain significantly north. Either way, temperatures will begin to warm up quickly on Saturday and Sunday across the Land of Enchantment. The potential exists for subtropical moisture to re-enter the domain early next week, with the advance of another winter storm into the Desert Southwest next week. Confidence is currently low regarding the evolution and timing of this next system, but eagerly await further resolution of these features by future model runs. 12 && .FIRE WEATHER... A strong storm system will slide down the Rockies on Tuesday. Strong north to northwest winds are expected behind the associated front. Gusts between 40 and 50 mph will be common. These stronger wind speeds will improve ventilation rates across the area. Light snow, with only an inch or two of accumulation, will also be possible from the Sangre de Cristo Mountains eastward Tuesday afternoon and overnight. Temperatures will turn colder, and by Wednesday, high temperatures will be between 5 and 20 degrees below normal area wide. There is considerably uncertainty in the upper level pattern Thursday through next weekend. Though right now it looks mainly dry, that could change depending on a track of a secondary storm system. It does look like the cold weather will continue Thursday and Friday before warming a bit over the weekend. Light snow chances may return for early next week. 34 && .ABQ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Wind Advisory from 8 AM to 5 PM MST Tuesday for the following zones... NMZ221-223. &&
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Albuquerque NM 259 AM MST Mon Nov 30 2020 NMZ201>241-011100- Northwest Plateau-Chuska Mountains-Far Northwest Highlands- Northwest Highlands-West Central Plateau-West Central Mountains- West Central Highlands-Southwest Mountains- San Francisco River Valley-Tusas Mountains Including Chama- Jemez Mountains-Glorieta Mesa Including Glorieta Pass- Northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains- Southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains- East Slopes Sangre de Cristo Mountains-Upper Rio Grande Valley- Espanola Valley-Santa Fe Metro Area- Middle Rio Grande Valley/Albuquerque Metro Area- Lower Rio Grande Valley-Sandia/Manzano Mountains Including Edgewood- Estancia Valley-Central Highlands-South Central Highlands- Upper Tularosa Valley-South Central Mountains- Johnson and Bartlett Mesas Including Raton Pass- Far Northeast Highlands-Northeast Highlands-Union County- Harding County-Eastern San Miguel County-Guadalupe County- Quay County-Curry County-Roosevelt County-De Baca County- Chaves County Plains-Eastern Lincoln County-Southwest Chaves County- San Agustin Plains and Adjacent Lowlands- 259 AM MST Mon Nov 30 2020 This hazardous weather outlook is for portions of north and central New Mexico. .DAY ONE...Today and Tonight No hazardous weather is expected. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Tuesday through Sunday A powerful cold front will blast southward into New Mexico Tuesday. Northerly winds of 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 40 mph are likely over much of the area. Light snow is expected to develop along the Colorado border from near Red River to Raton and Clayton Tuesday evening. Light snow may spread south along the central mountain chain through Wednesday and perhaps even Thursday. Snowfall accumulations are expected to be very light however some local travel impacts are possible as temperatures will be bitterly cold Wednesday and Thursday. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not anticipated. Guyer
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
41 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Severe to extreme drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Severe to extreme drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Severe to extreme drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Severe to extreme drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 worsened in December with exceptional drought conditions developing across the entire area.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Extreme to exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Exceptional drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Severe drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Severe drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Severe drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
Severe drought conditions from November 2020 continued in December.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in New Mexico in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in New Mexico, December 2020
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 927965, 927966, 927967, 927968, 927969, 927970, 927971, 927972, 927973, 927974, 927975, 927976, 927977, 927978, 927979, 927980, 927981, 927982, 927983, 927984, 927986, 927987, 927988, 927989, 927990, 927991, 927992, 927993, 927994, 927995, 927996, 927997, 927998, 928000, 928001, 928002, 928003, 928004, 928005, 928006, and more.