Sheffield vs. Dai on Drought Changes Posted on 23 November 2012
by dana1981 A new paper in Nature by Sheffield et al. (2012) has
been making waves, because it argues that there has been little
change in global drought over the past 60 years, and that the
Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI), used for example by Dai
(2010), overestimates future drought. Climate Progress has an
interesting response, including comments by Trenberth and Dai.
Paleoclimatologist Kevin Anchukaitis also has a very informative
post on the subject at Strange Weather, as does John Nielsen-
Gammon. Below is a repost of another very good post on the
subject, by Carbon Brief. Major droughts in the United States
and Russia this summer highlighted the risks climate extremes
pose to everyday life, and prompted discussion about links
between drought and climate change. Past research supports a
link between climate change and drought - suggesting that
globally, the area affected by drought has increased in recent
decades as global temperatures h