Some interesting visualizations are popping up in an effort to convey the extent of the drought in the USA, perhaps the worst drought in over half a century! This from the Washington Post… More than a fifth of the contiguous United States rates as being in an “extreme” or “exceptional” drought, according to official statistics released Thursday. Farmers and ranchers are paying the price and obviously, the US consumer will be paying a hefty price at the till in the future.

A map of the drought shows sun-baked land stretching across the lower half of the country like a surgical mask. The northern tier of the country is fine, but the productive heartland of the Midwest, including corn states Indiana and Illinois, has seen its row crops shrivel. Among the places hit hardest and getting even drier are Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Arkansas.

Over the 60% of the contiguous US is under moderate drought conditions!

Taking the visualization a little further, I was told recently about a map on ArcGIS online (thanks @adamcarnowEsri) that displays the same data shown below although in a real-time mapping environment pulling data from the USDA (and other sources). The map paints an interesting picture and you can mashup the data with several layers including current radar map, soils, and drought conditions… nice.

See the USDA drought conditions map online HERE