The graph shows that the risk of flash droughts is increasing in every region of the world. The black line shows historical data, and the three colored lines show three different possible future scenarios of greenhouse gas emissions. The shaded regions indicate the variability among the averages between all six models for each scenario.
As you can see, the risk of flash droughts is projected to increase significantly under all three scenarios. Under the low emissions scenario (SSP126), the percent of cropland affected by flash drought is projected to increase by about 20% by the end of the century. Under the medium emissions scenario (SSP245), the percent of cropland affected by flash drought is projected to increase by about 40% by the end of the century. And under the high emissions scenario (SSP585), the percent of cropland affected by flash drought is projected to increase by about 60% by the end of the century.
These are just projections, but they are a clear warning that we need to take action to address the threat of flash droughts. We need to improve early warning systems, invest in drought-tolerant crops and practices, and protect water resources. We also need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to slow the pace of climate change.
The good news is that there are things we can do to mitigate the impact of flash droughts. We can act now to build a more resilient future. hashtag#SOEs hashtag#FlashDrought hashtag#climatechange Green Climate Fund
My previous post on flash drought https://lnkd.in/ddmrFzwa
Figure source: J. I. Christian et al., 2023
Bapon (SHM) Fakhruddin, PhD 