MONUMENT VALLEY, Ariz. (AP) — It’s as if the sky opened up and dropped everything it had in a matter of minutes. Giant raindrops combined with hail to transform an otherwise toasty summer day into a white wintry scene, at least for a few minutes.
Then it all turned to red mud. That’s how the monsoon rolls in the southwestern United States, with thunderstorms and rain clouds hopscotching around as they bring much-needed moisture to a region where every drop counts. It’s the time of year when Arizona and New Mexico receive about half of their annual precipitation, from mid-June through September.
Northern Mexico logs even more. From church altars and farm houses to city halls, prayers, songs and even festivals are held in hopes of having a bountiful monsoon, enough to water crops and provide drinking water but not too much to turn roads into rivers and wash away homes where wildfires have reduced mountainsides to ash. It can be a fine line.
Here are some things to know about the North American monsoon: Seasonal shift The recipe relies on the buildup of summer heat and shifting wind direction, which helps funnel moisture from the Pacific Ocean, the Gulf of California and sometimes the Gulf of Mexico to areas where it’s typically not found. This means more showers and thunderstorms for the arid Southwest. Lightning, dust storms and strong winds also can be part of the mix.
The monsoon has ramped up a bit early this year, said Todd Shoemake, lead meteorologist with the N.