10 Wettest counties in Missouri, according to Stacker
(STACKER) — Rain, sleet, snow, hail, wintry mix. Precipitation takes on many forms, and the degree to which climate change affects precipitation levels comes down to something almost everyone learns about in school—Earth’s water cycle. A system in endless motion, the water cycle traces the process through which water exists in its three primary phases—liquid, solid, and gas—as it moves perpetually between the Earth and its atmosphere.
Increases in precipitation frequency and intensity are markers of climate change. When temperatures rise and oceans grow warmer, the amount of water that evaporates into the atmosphere—and the speed at which it does so—also increases. As atmospheric circulation carries the moisture-rich air over land or pushes it into a storm system, heavy rain or snow is often the result.
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The continental U.S. on average received about 30 inches of precipitation between March 2022 and February 2023. Traditionally “wet” regions—such as Washington state and Alaska in the northwest and Georgia and Mississippi in the southeast—continue to have some of the rainiest counties in the United States. Other areas such as Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska, as well as pockets of the South and of California, experience the opposite extreme: drought, also largely a product of climate change.
Stacker cited data from the National Centers for Environmental Information to identify the counties in Missouri that receive the most precipitation through rain, sleet, or snow. Counties are ranked by five-year precipitation averages in inches as of February 2023 with rainfall over the past year serving as a tiebreaker. Supplementary data on how last year’s precipitation compares to the 100-year average for the area is also included.
Top 10 (out of 50)
#10. Taney County
– Five-year precipitation average: 53.56 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 49.17 inches (#105 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 6.57 inches above norm
#9. Stoddard County
– Five-year precipitation average: 53.84 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 45.48 inches (#56 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -1.16 inches below norm
#8. Madison County
– Five-year precipitation average: 53.86 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 45.99 inches (#71 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.08 inches above norm
#7. Bollinger County
– Five-year precipitation average: 53.86 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 45.16 inches (#62 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -0.01 inches below norm
#6. Mississippi County
– Five-year precipitation average: 53.94 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 44.53 inches (#53 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -2.03 inches below norm
#5. New Madrid County
– Five-year precipitation average: 54.08 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 45.93 inches (#55 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -1.58 inches below norm
#4. Ozark County
– Five-year precipitation average: 54.53 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 50.81 inches (#104 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 7.79 inches above norm
#3. Ripley County
– Five-year precipitation average: 54.66 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 51.24 inches (#85 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 4.35 inches above norm
#2. Dunklin County
– Five-year precipitation average: 55.67 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 49.53 inches (#77 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.55 inches above norm
#1. Butler County
– Five-year precipitation average: 56.09 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 50.33 inches (#81 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 3.08 inches above norm
Local County Rankings
#50. Jasper County
– Five-year precipitation average: 45.50 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 40.67 inches (#49 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -1.65 inches below norm
#49. Vernon County
– Five-year precipitation average: 45.55 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 36.55 inches (#45 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: -3.82 inches below norm
#37. Newton County
– Five-year precipitation average: 47.93 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 44.38 inches (#74 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 1.08 inches above norm
#30. Lawrence County
– Five-year precipitation average: 49.43 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 46.98 inches (#94 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 3.98 inches above norm
#18. McDonald County
– Five-year precipitation average: 51.57 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 47.99 inches (#90 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 4.17 inches above norm
#17. Barry County
– Five-year precipitation average: 51.98 inches
– Precipitation over the past year: 50.21 inches (#98 rainiest year since 1895)
– Precipitation compared to 1901-2000 average: 5.78 inches above norm
