One climate perspective for regions of the world is provided by maps showing a combination of the recently observed precipitation and the precipitation predicted at short lead-time. View them here. Among regions having a forecast for an enhanced probability for below normal rainfall, for example, greater concern would be warranted for the subset of those regions that have already been experiencing deficient rainfall. Shaded areas on the maps indicate regions where the observed seasonal precipitation was in the below-normal (or above-normal) category, and the shortest lead seasonal forecast indicates an enhanced likelihood for the next season's precipitation to be either a continuation of the same category as that recently observed, or a reversal to the opposite category. Two sets of maps are shown. One set shows areas where the forecasts indicate an enhanced likelihood for recently observed conditions to persist (labeled "Same"), and the other set of maps indicates an enhanced likelihood that the observed conditions will reverse (labeled "Reversed"). The forecasts are always for the next 3-month period (season). The observations are for either the past 3 month period or past 12-month period to provide both a shorter-term and a longer-term context for the forecasts. These maps are updated every month.