The Great Basin and Columbia Plateau (the Intermontane Plateaus) are arid or semiarid regions that lie in the rain shadow of the Cascades and Sierra Nevada. Precipitation averages less than 15 inches (38 cm). The Southwest is a hot desert, with temperatures exceeding 100 °F (37.8 °C) for several weeks at a time in summer. The Southwest and the Great Basin are also affected by the monsoon from the Gulf of California from July to September, which brings localized but often severe thunderstorms to the region.
Which areas have arid regions? What is the precipitation average in the Intermontane plateaus? In the southwest, how high do temperatures get? During which months are portions of the US affected by the monsoon from the Gulf of California? What type of weather do monsoons bring?