scholarly journals Influence of the Ocean and Greenhouse Gases on Severe Drought Likelihood in the Central United States in 2012

2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 1789-1806 ◽  
Author(s):  
David E. Rupp ◽  
Sihan Li ◽  
Philip W. Mote ◽  
Neil Massey ◽  
Sarah N. Sparrow ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Greenhouse Gases ◽  
Extreme Drought ◽  
Exceedance Probability ◽  
Soil Moisture Deficit ◽  
Anthropogenic Forcing ◽  
Moisture Deficit ◽  
Central United States ◽  
Sst Anomalies

Abstract The impacts of sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies and anthropogenic greenhouse gases on the likelihood of extreme drought occurring in the central United States in the year 2012 were investigated using large-ensemble simulations from a global atmospheric climate model. Two sets of experiments were conducted. In the first, the simulated hydroclimate of 2012 was compared to a baseline period (1986–2014) to investigate the impact of SSTs. In the second, the hydroclimate in a world with 2012-level anthropogenic forcing was compared to five “counterfactual” versions of a 2012 world under preindustrial forcing. SST anomalies in 2012 increased the simulated likelihood of an extreme summer precipitation deficit (e.g., the deficit with a 2% exceedance probability) by a factor of 5. The likelihood of an extreme summer soil moisture deficit increased by a similar amount, due in great part to a large spring soil moisture deficit carrying over into summer. An anthropogenic impact on precipitation was detectable in the simulations, doubling the likelihood of what would have been a rainfall deficit with a 2% exceedance probability under preindustrial-level forcings. Despite this reduction in rainfall, summer soil moisture during extreme drought was essentially unaffected by anthropogenic forcing because of 1) evapotranspiration declining roughly one-to-one with a decrease in precipitation due to severe water supply constraint and despite higher evaporative demand and 2) a decrease in stomatal conductance, and therefore a decrease in potential transpiration, with higher atmospheric CO2 concentrations.

scholarly journals Changes of Streamflow Caused by Early Start of Growing Season in Nevada, United States

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 1067
Author(s):  
Hong Fang ◽  
Jianting Zhu ◽  
Muattar Saydi ◽  
Xiaohua Chen
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
The United States ◽  
Insect Infestation ◽  
Aquifer Recharge ◽  
Soil Moisture Deficit ◽  
Moisture Deficit ◽  
Ecological Simulation ◽  
The Relationship

The fluctuation of streamflow in snowmelt-dominated watersheds may be an indicator of climate change. However, the relationship between the start of growing season (SOS) and the streamflow in snowmelt-dominated watersheds is not clear. In this study, we update the Coupled Hydro-Ecological Simulation System (CHESS) model by incorporating the Growing Season Index (GSI) module to estimate the start of the growing season. The updated CHESS model is then used to calculate the streamflow in the Cleve Creek, Incline Creek and Twin River watersheds located in Nevada in the United States from 1981 to 2017. This updated CHESS can be applied in any regions that are suitable for deciduous vegetation. The streamflow in the static and dynamic scheme in the three watersheds have been simulated between 1981 and 2017 with the NS of 0.52 and 0.80 in the Cleve Creek, 0.46 and 0.75 in the Incline Creek, and 0.42 and 0.70 in the Twin River watersheds, respectively. The results illustrate that the SOS have come around 3–5 weeks earlier during the last 37 years. The results illustrate a high correlation between the temperature and the timing of the SOS. Early SOS leads to a substantial increase in total annual transpiration. An increase in annual transpiration can reduce aquifer recharge and increase cumulative growing season soil moisture deficit. Comparing to the streamflow without vegetation, the streamflow with vegetation is smaller due to transpiration. As the SOS comes earlier, the peaks of the streamflow with vegetation also come earlier. If the shifts in SOS continue, the effects on annual rates of transpiration can be significant, which may reduce the risk of flooding during snowmelt. On the other hand, earlier SOS may cause soil moisture to decline during summer, which would increase the drought stress in trees and the risk of wildfires and insect infestation.

Ozone and Soil Moisture Deficit Effects on Nitrogen Metabolism of Soybean 1

Crop Science ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 27 (6) ◽  
pp. 1177-1184 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. B. Flagler ◽  
R. P. Patterson ◽  
A. S. Heagle ◽  
W. W. Heck
Keyword(s):  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Nitrogen Metabolism ◽  
Soil Moisture Deficit ◽  
Moisture Deficit

scholarly journals Using Plant Temperature to Evaluate the Response of Stomatal Conductance to Soil Moisture Deficit

Forests ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (12) ◽  
pp. 3748-3762 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ming-Han Yu ◽  
Guo-Dong Ding ◽  
Guang-Lei Gao ◽  
Yuan-Yuan Zhao ◽  
Lei Yan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Stomatal Conductance ◽  
Soil Moisture Deficit ◽  
Moisture Deficit

Abrupt shift to hotter and drier climate over inner East Asia beyond the tipping point

Science ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 370 (6520) ◽  
pp. 1095-1099 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peng Zhang ◽  
Jee-Hoon Jeong ◽  
Jin-Ho Yoon ◽  
Hyungjun Kim ◽  
S.-Y. Simon Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Moisture ◽  
East Asia ◽  
Tipping Point ◽  
Soil Drying ◽  
Soil Moisture Deficit ◽  
Surface Warming ◽  
The Past ◽  
Abrupt Shift ◽  
Moisture Deficit ◽  
East Asian Climate

Unprecedented heatwave-drought concurrences in the past two decades have been reported over inner East Asia. Tree-ring–based reconstructions of heatwaves and soil moisture for the past 260 years reveal an abrupt shift to hotter and drier climate over this region. Enhanced land-atmosphere coupling, associated with persistent soil moisture deficit, appears to intensify surface warming and anticyclonic circulation anomalies, fueling heatwaves that exacerbate soil drying. Our analysis demonstrates that the magnitude of the warm and dry anomalies compounding in the recent two decades is unprecedented over the quarter of a millennium, and this trend clearly exceeds the natural variability range. The “hockey stick”–like change warns that the warming and drying concurrence is potentially irreversible beyond a tipping point in the East Asian climate system.

scholarly journals Assessing the Evolution of Soil Moisture and Vegetation Conditions during a Flash Drought–Flash Recovery Sequence over the South-Central United States

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 549-562 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason A. Otkin ◽  
Yafang Zhong ◽  
Eric D. Hunt ◽  
Jeff Basara ◽  
Mark Svoboda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Heavy Rainfall ◽  
Recovery Period ◽  
The South ◽  
Recovery Sequence ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
South Central ◽  
Central United States

Abstract This study examines the evolution of soil moisture, evapotranspiration, vegetation, and atmospheric conditions during an unusual flash drought–flash recovery sequence that occurred across the south-central United States during 2015. This event was characterized by a period of rapid drought intensification (flash drought) during late summer that was terminated by heavy rainfall at the end of October that eliminated the extreme drought conditions over a 2-week period (flash recovery). A detailed analysis was performed using time series of environmental variables derived from meteorological, remote sensing, and land surface modeling datasets. Though the analysis revealed a similar progression of cascading effects in each region, characteristics of the flash drought such as its onset time, rate of intensification, and vegetation impacts differed between regions due to variations in the antecedent conditions and the atmospheric anomalies during its growth. Overall, flash drought signals initially appeared in the near-surface soil moisture, followed closely by reductions in evapotranspiration. Total column soil moisture deficits took longer to develop, especially in the western part of the region where heavy rainfall during the spring and early summer led to large moisture surpluses. Large differences were noted in how land surface models in the North American Land Data Assimilation System depicted soil moisture evolution during the flash drought; however, the models were more similar in their assessment of conditions during the flash recovery period. This study illustrates the need to use multiple datasets to track the evolution and impacts of rapidly evolving flash drought and flash recovery events.

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