In the April 2019 edition of the CLIMAS Southwest Climate Podcast, Mike Crimmins and Zack Guido discuss the winter that (really) was for most of the Southwest, as well as more recent conditions that have favored Arizona over New Mexico. They also connect late fall and winter precipitation events to current and ongoing issues in the Southwest, including drought and reservoir storage and the status of lakes Mead and Powell, pollen and allergies this spring, and wildfire risk heading into the summer. They wrap up with a discussion of current and projected El Niño conditions, as well as what impact these conditions might have on tropical storm activity and the timing of the monsoon.
Regarding the bet: Zack won the Jan-Feb-Mar precip bet with a guess of 2.9 inches (compared to Mike's 2.8) but both were admittedly pretty far off from the actual total of 3.74 (climatology was 2.53). The next bet is for the number of 100 degree days in May and June. Tune in to hear their guesses and send us your own.