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In an effort to better understand temperature and its relationship with drought, NOAA’s Modeling, Analysis, Predictions, and Projections Program Drought Task Force set out to research how temperature factors into the development of drought. This research was just completed and published last week, available on the MAPP website: Temperature and Drought: A science assessment by a subgroup of the Drought Task Force.

NIDIS and NOAA’s Modeling, Analysis, Predictions and Projections program have just launched an interactive presentation that analyzes and explains the historic drought that impacted California from 2011 to 2017. This presentation, called a “Story Map,” takes users through a visual history of the drought, using images and graphs to provide an interactive and engaging experience.

In response to the need for snow drought resources, the NIDIS Drought Early Warning System (DEWS) coordinators for California-Nevada, the Pacific Northwest, and Intermountain West teamed up with the Climatologist from the Desert Research Institute and the Western Regional Climate Center to launch a new snow drought page on drought.gov that features information, resources, and tools for snow drought.

Last week NIDIS was represented coast-to-coast in a series of conferences, symposiums, and stakeholder meetings focused on drought, precipitation, and water. NIDIS staff members were in California, Washington, Oregon, Nebraska, Indiana, Washington, D.C., and Alabama presenting news and updates about NIDIS and drought early warning to a range of stakeholders, including experts in water, resource managers, and the agriculture industry.

The Office of Weather and Air Quality within NOAA Oceanic & Atmospheric Research has announced a funding opportunity for projects that aim to expand and improve the use of snowpack (snow water equivalent) and soil moisture remote sensing data. 

Through a partnership with NIDIS, the National Drought Mitigation Center has introduced two new ways to view the U.S. Drought Monitor map. Users can now view maps specific to the regions of NOAA’s River Forecast Centers and Weather Forecast Offices, making it easier for the National Weather Service to meet the needs of decision makers and better understand the drought status within their entire service area boundaries.

The National Centers for Environmental Information has released the 2017 Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters report, which reveals that 2017 shattered the previous cumulative damage record of $214.8 billion (inflation-adjusted), set in 2005, by nearly another $100 billion. This is even more significant given that 2005 was the historic and unforgettable year that brought Hurricanes Dennis, Katrina, Rita, and Wilma.

Taking to heart the theory that the best time to plan for drought is when there isn’t one, the SC Department of Natural Resources State Climatology Office, Carolinas Integrated Sciences and Assessment, the SC Emergency Management Division, and the SC Water Resources Center together organized the first South Carolina Drought/Water Shortage Tabletop Exercise on September 27.

Over the past decade there have been extraordinary advances towards drought risk reduction with the development of new water-conserving technologies and new tools for planning, vulnerability and impact assessment, mitigation, and policy. Drought and Water Crises: Integrating Science, Management, and Policy, Second Edition comprehensively captures this evolving progress as it discusses drought management in the light of present risks, weather and climate extremes, and policy actions related to water.

As part of an ongoing drive to promote more proactive policies to deal with drought, the World Meteorological Organization and Global Water Partnership have joined with other partners to launch an online HelpDesk for the Integrated Drought Management Programme designed to provide tailored guidance to drought-impacted populations around the world.