articleJournal of HydrometeorologyDec 1, 2004BRONZE OA

A Global Dataset of Palmer Drought Severity Index for 1870–2002: Relationship with Soil Moisture and Effects of Surface Warming

ADAiguo DaiKEKevin E. TrenberthTQTaotao Qian

NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research

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Abstract

Abstract A monthly dataset of Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI) from 1870 to 2002 is derived using historical precipitation and temperature data for global land areas on a 2.5° grid. Over Illinois, Mongolia, and parts of China and the former Soviet Union, where soil moisture data are available, the PDSI is significantly correlated (r = 0.5 to 0.7) with observed soil moisture content within the top 1-m depth during warm-season months. The strongest correlation is in late summer and autumn, and the weakest correlation is in spring, when snowmelt plays an important role. Basin-averaged annual PDSI covary closely (r = 0.6 to 0.8) with streamflow for seven of world's largest rivers and several smaller rivers…

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Topics & keywords

Topics
Keywords
  • Climatology
  • Environmental science
  • Precipitation
  • Streamflow
  • Water content
  • Snowmelt
  • Empirical orthogonal functions
  • Global warming
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