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The Standardized Precipitation and Evapotranspiration Index, or SPEI (Figure 1), is a helpful index we use to combine both temperature and precipitation into one number, giving us a quick overview of conditions. Latent heat is limiting how warm the air temperature can get and increasing the likelihood for more precipitation. A dry ground will release more sensible heat energy, which acts to further warm the air right above it and limits the generation of precipitation. [Extracted from the article]