SAN ANTONIO – A new NASA image, released just days ago, illustrates groundwater and soil moisture levels in Texas. It is developed using satellite data.
The large swath of maroon across parts of Texas indicates just how significant the drought has been.
NASA scientists are now saying the groundwater levels, indicated here, are the lowest they have been in 60 years.
"This is one of the worst droughts the state has ever experienced," said Dr. Weldon Hammond Jr., a geologist and professor of Hydrogeology at UTSA. "In some aspects its worse than the so-called record drought of the '50s; much more intense, lot more people."
A much higher population with a greater demand of water, said Hammond, has left parts of the state suffering.
"We've got a lot of little towns that are running out of water right now. We got a lot of areas that are running out of water right now. Those people are going to have to be helped one way or another," said Hammond.
While the drought has decimated much of the groundwater across the state of Texas, the Edwards Aquifer has fared slightly better than other groundwater resources.
However, the drought is far from over.
La Nina, the weather pattern that has contributed to the dry weather, is forecasted to continue, meaning the drought will likely persist.