NOAA Drought Task Force 2016: Research to Advance National Drought Monitoring and Prediction Capabilities

In partnership with the National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) and in coordination with other agency programs, the NOAA Climate Program Office’s Modeling, Analysis, Predictions, and Projections program (MAPP) works with the drought research and operational community, and NOAA Climate Test Bed to support research that advances capabilities undergirding the creation of a more drought-resilient nation.

This report documents how research has been improving operational capabilities to monitor the current state of drought, predict its onset and evolution from weeks to seasons, and better understand why drought occurs. Operational improvements have been accomplished by fostering a healthy pathway for the transition of research to capabilities. The work reported here has involved a focused collaboration among NOAA Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research laboratories, Cooperative Institutes, and National Weather Service operational centers; other federal agencies and their laboratories; and critical involvement by the academic community. We believe such research collaborations, as a central part of NIDIS, have significantly supported the nation’s capacity, preparedness and resilience in the face of drought.