Soil moisture levels slightly above normal in mid-May

[May 16, 2013]  CHAMPAIGN -- Soil moisture levels are slightly above normal in Illinois for the middle of May, according to Jennie Atkins, manager of the Water and Atmospheric Resources Monitoring program, known as WARM, at the Prairie Research Institute, Illinois State Water Survey, University of Illinois.

Soil moisture levels at 2 inches averaged 0.33 water fraction by volume across the state on May 13, or 13 percent above normal. Moisture levels were highest in the south, with an average of 0.41 water fraction by volume, or 22 percent above normal.

Higher moisture levels were also measured at deeper depths, averaging 0.40 to 0.44 water fraction by volume at depths from 19 to 59 inches.

Soil temperatures for May 13 were slightly below normal at depths of 4 inches below bare soil, averaging 60 degrees F, or 4 degrees below normal. The highest temperatures were measured in southern Illinois, where temperatures averaged 60.7 degrees. Temperatures averaged 60.3 and 58.3 degrees in central and southern Illinois, respectively.

The Illinois State Water Survey's WARM program collects hourly and daily weather and soil information at 19 stations across the state. Daily and monthly summaries are available at the WARM website, http://www.isws.illinois.edu/warm/, and in the Illinois Water and Climate Summary, http://www.isws.illinois.edu/warm/climate.asp.

Maps of soil temperatures and moisture levels can also be found at the WARM website, http://www.isws.illinois.edu/warm/soiltemp.asp.

The Illinois State Water Survey at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, a division of the Prairie Research Institute, is the primary agency in Illinois concerned with water and atmospheric resources.

[Text from file received from the Illinois State Water Survey]