Droughts, as a research topic, encompass the characterization, drivers, impacts, and prediction of prolonged periods of abnormally low water availability in the atmosphere, soil, and hydrological systems. Scientific study distinguishes meteorological, agricultural, hydrological, and socio-economic droughts, often quantified using indices such as the Standardized Precipitation Index or Palmer Drought Severity Index. Research investigates land–atmosphere feedbacks, large-scale circulation anomalies, soil moisture deficits, vegetation stress, and groundwater depletion, as well as the modulation of drought frequency, duration, and intensity by climate variability and anthropogenic climate change, with implications for water resources management, ecosystem functioning, and risk assessment.
More extreme weather and shifting growing seasons are putting pressure on school meal programs, which serve nearly half a billion children worldwide. Jennifer Burney, a professor of Earth system science and of environmental ...
Environment
Feb 24, 2026
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How do plants adapt to drought and heat? New studies on plants of the Canary Islands show that adaptation is not determined by a single character but by the interaction of entire sets of characters. Even closely related plants ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 24, 2026
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Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN), in collaboration with international partners, have shown that ocean temperature patterns help limit the global spread of droughts. Published in Communications ...
Environment
Feb 23, 2026
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Over the past decade, southern Australia has suffered numerous extreme weather and climate events, such as record-breaking heat waves, bushfires, two major droughts and even flash flooding.
Environment
Feb 22, 2026
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Researchers at the Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) have used long-term data from the Spree River to discover that aquatic plants can compensate for declining water levels in a drier climate. ...
Environment
Feb 22, 2026
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Recurrent droughts, conflict, and changing land use have placed significant strain on pastoral populations in the dryland regions of Africa, resulting in numerous crises that require humanitarian intervention. Pastoralism ...
Environment
Feb 20, 2026
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On World Wetlands Day, the recent report released by the Mediterranean Wetlands Observatory (MWO) warns that despite their vital importance for populations and biodiversity, Mediterranean wetlands remain fragile ecosystems, ...
Environment
Feb 19, 2026
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Western Australia's jarrah forests were unevenly impacted by the record-breaking 2023–2024 heat wave and subsequent drought, with some areas experiencing more severe tree die-off than others, according to a new study.
Earth Sciences
Feb 19, 2026
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After weeks of relentless rain and flooding, and even more forecast, 2025's droughts and hosepipe bans feel like ancient history. But they shouldn't.
Environment
Feb 18, 2026
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New research shows that short periods of extreme heat and drought during flowering could become one of the biggest threats to global wheat production in the coming decades. As the climate changes, farmers around the world ...
Ecology
Feb 17, 2026
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