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Rapid intensification of the emerging southwestern North American megadrought in 2020–2021

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  • A. Park Williams

    (University of California, Los Angeles
    Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University)

  • Benjamin I. Cook

    (Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University
    NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies)

  • Jason E. Smerdon

    (Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University)

Abstract

A previous reconstruction back to 800 ce indicated that the 2000–2018 soil moisture deficit in southwestern North America was exceeded during one megadrought in the late-1500s. Here, we show that after exceptional drought severity in 2021, ~19% of which is attributable to anthropogenic climate trends, 2000–2021 was the driest 22-yr period since at least 800. This drought will very likely persist through 2022, matching the duration of the late-1500s megadrought.

Suggested Citation

  • A. Park Williams & Benjamin I. Cook & Jason E. Smerdon, 2022. "Rapid intensification of the emerging southwestern North American megadrought in 2020–2021," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 12(3), pages 232-234, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcli:v:12:y:2022:i:3:d:10.1038_s41558-022-01290-z
    DOI: 10.1038/s41558-022-01290-z
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    Cited by:

    1. Margiana Petersen-Rockney, 2022. "Farmers adapt to climate change irrespective of stated belief in climate change: a California case study," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 173(3), pages 1-23, August.
    2. Knipper, Kyle & Yang, Yun & Anderson, Martha & Bambach, Nicolas & Kustas, William & McElrone, Andrew & Gao, Feng & Alsina, Maria Mar, 2023. "Decreased latency in landsat-derived land surface temperature products: A case for near-real-time evapotranspiration estimation in California," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 283(C).
    3. Brianda Hernandez Rosales & Alexandra Lutz, 2023. "Assessing the Feasibility of Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting for Food Production in Northwestern Arizona on the Hualapai Indian Reservation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-16, February.
    4. Douglas J. Kennett & Marilyn Masson & Carlos Peraza Lope & Stanley Serafin & Richard J. George & Tom C. Spencer & Julie A. Hoggarth & Brendan J. Culleton & Thomas K. Harper & Keith M. Prufer & Susan M, 2022. "Drought-Induced Civil Conflict Among the Ancient Maya," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-10, December.
    5. Fernandez-Bou, Angel Santiago & Rodriguez-Flores, Jose M. & Ortiz-Partida, J. Pablo & Fencl, Amanda & Classen-Rodriguez, Leticia & Yang, Vivian & Williams, Emily & Schull, Val Zayden & Dobbin, Kristin, 2024. "Cropland repurposing as a tool for water sustainability and a just socioenvironmental transition in California: Review and Best Practices," OSF Preprints bvfsm, Center for Open Science.
    6. Renee Obringer & Dave D. White, 2023. "Leveraging Unsupervised Learning to Develop a Typology of Residential Water Users’ Attitudes Towards Conservation," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 37(1), pages 37-53, January.
    7. Sarah E. Null & Harrison Zeff & Jeffrey Mount & Brian Gray & Anna M. Sturrock & Gokce Sencan & Kristen Dybala & Barton Thompson, 2024. "Storing and managing water for the environment is more efficient than mimicking natural flows," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-13, December.
    8. Elizabeth C. Hirschman, 2022. "Climate Change Migration and the Economic Rebirth of Central Appalachia," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-18, October.
    9. Wang, Yuhan & Lewis, David J., 2024. "Wildfires and climate change have lowered the economic value of western U.S. forests by altering risk expectations," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    10. Zhichao Shen & Yan Yang & Xiaojing Fu & Kyra H. Adams & Ettore Biondi & Zhongwen Zhan, 2024. "Fiber-optic seismic sensing of vadose zone soil moisture dynamics," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-10, December.

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