Question: Why has this monsoon been so wet?
Answer: We have seen a persistent high-pressure system over the central and southern United States. That same system is responsible for the heat waves seen back east. And it has continued with little interruption, sending tropical moisture northward into the Southwest. Our big event, the overnight storms that resulted in record flows in the Rillito, was a strange case. An upper-level low-pressure storm moved south from Canada and got stuck in Colorado. That low-pressure storm sent wave after wave of rain from the Mogollon Rim of northern Arizona southward into southeast Arizona.
Send your weather questions to: chiefchuck@kold.com.