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Flash Droughts

  • 17 Apr 2023

Recently, a new study has found that climate change is causing droughts to become faster and more intense, particularly a type of fast-developing drought known as a "flash drought”.

  • According to the study, flash droughts suck water out of soil and plants
  • The phenomenon occurs during the growing season, primarily in summer, and is triggered by extreme heat and dryness.
  • Flash droughts can be especially devastating for agriculture.
  • Last year, most of China's Yangtze River basin was struck by a flash drought that developed within a month.
  • The study found that flash droughts are happening more often in nearly three-quarters of climate regions across the world.
  • The frequency of flash droughts will continue to increase as the planet warms.