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In light of recent storms, many are wondering if it's enough to get the west out of the extreme drought.
Unfortunately, it'll take much more than a monsoon to get Las Vegas out of a drought, reported KTNV.
Dr. Noah Diffenbaugh, Stanford University professor and senior fellow, explained the concept in a way that is easy to understand. Dr. Diffenbaugh said:
"Think about it like if you didn’t get paid for three months and then your employer gave you a normal paycheck and said okay now we are back to normal. Well, you’re back to normal for that paycheck but you’re not back to normal for those three months."
With snowpacks below normal and snowmelt being the number one source of filling the reservoirs, it's hard to play catch-up.
National Weather Service meteorologist Barry Pierce said:
"We’re not seeing the typical snowpack in the winter season. This generates most of the run-off which fills the reservoirs. People can assume that if we get a lot of rain that will fill the reservoirs but that’s going to take a lot of rain."
According to the NWS, while all rain is welcome, the amounts of rain that are falling are just enough to replenish soil moisture, not the state's water supply.
Pierce said, "This monsoon may only contribute less than 5 percent of the overall run-off for the reservoirs."