Soil moisture continued to decline across Illinois with levels at two inches, 27 percent lower on August 15 than those from July 15, according to Jennie Atkins, Water and Atmospheric Resources Monitoring (WARM) Program Manager at the Prairie Research Institute, Illinois State Water Survey, University of Illinois.

Soil moisture in the state averaged 0.17 water fraction by volume (wfv) at depths of two inches on August 15, which is significantly lower than the historical average of 0.25 wfv. Levels dropped throughout the state with central Illinois having the lowest numbers, averaging 0.14 wfv or just at the wilting point for most soils measured.     Login or Subscribe to read the rest of this story.