Journal
GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS
Volume 41, Issue 24, Pages 8847-8852Publisher
AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION
DOI: 10.1002/2014GL062308
Keywords
drought
Categories
Funding
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) [NNX15AC27G]
- NOAA Modeling, Analysis, Prediction, and Projections (MAPP) program [NA14OAR4310222]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Global warming and the associated rise in extreme temperatures substantially increase the chance of concurrent droughts and heat waves. The 2014 California drought is an archetype of an event characterized by not only low precipitation but also extreme high temperatures. From the raging wildfires, to record low storage levels and snowpack conditions, the impacts of this event can be felt throughout California. Wintertime water shortages worry decision-makers the most because it is the season to build up water supplies for the rest of the year. Here we show that the traditional univariate risk assessment methods based on precipitation condition may substantially underestimate the risk of extreme events such as the 2014 California drought because of ignoring the effects of temperature. We argue that a multivariate viewpoint is necessary for assessing risk of extreme events, especially in a warming climate. This study discusses a methodology for assessing the risk of concurrent extremes such as droughts and extreme temperatures.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available