Hence, as Oklahoma's population increased over the years, human observations of rare events became more prevalent. Some weather events cannot be measured easily by automated methods (e.g., tornadoes) and must be documented by human observers. Our knowledge of climate is based on the variables that we measure, typically with surface observing stations, weather radar, satellites, weather balloons, and other instrumentation. Periods of extreme cold are infrequent, and those lasting more than a few days are rare. Winters are shorter and less severe than those of the more northern Plains states. Warm, moist air moving northward from the Gulf of Mexico often exerts much influence, particularly over the southern and eastern portions of the state, where humidity, cloudiness and precipitation are resultantly greater than in western and northern sections. The Washita and Kiamichi are the Red's principal tributaries in Oklahoma, and the Little River flows into the Red after it crosses into Arkansas.įigure 1: Elevation (in feet) above mean sea level across Oklahoma.Īccording to the Koppen climate classification, Oklahoma's climate ranges from humid subtropical in the east to semi-arid in the west. Principal tributaries of the Arkansas are the Verdigris, Grand (Neosho), Illinois, Cimarron, Canadian and North Canadian. The two main rivers in the state are the Arkansas River, draining the northern two-thirds of the state, and the Red River, which drains the southern third and is the state's southern border. Oklahoma lies entirely within the drainage basin of the Mississippi River. The western tip of the panhandle is part of the fractured terrain of the Black Mesa complex. Extreme northeastern counties are part of the Ozark Plateau, marked by steep, rocky river valleys between large areas of hills and rolling plains. Extreme east-central Oklahoma features the mountains of the Arkansas River Valley, rising several hundred feet above the plains. The Ouachita Mountains dominate southeast Oklahoma, with peaks rising as much as 2,000 feet above their base.
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