File:Lac_de_l'Entonnoir_-_img_49473.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

EntityQ43059· pop 121· linked from 3,351 articles

drought

Also known as drouth, droughts

A drought is a period of drier-than-normal conditions. A drought can last for days, months or years. Drought often has large impacts on the ecosystems and agriculture of affected regions, and causes harm to the local economy. Annual dry seasons in the tropics significantly increase the chances of a drought developing, with subsequent increased wildfire risks. Heat waves can significantly worsen drought conditions by increasing evapotranspiration. This dries out forests and other vegetation, and increases the amount of fuel for wildfires.

AI overview

A drought is an extended period of drier-than-normal conditions that can last anywhere from days to years. Droughts matter because they can cause significant damage to ecosystems and agriculture, harm local economies, and increase the risk of wildfires—especially when combined with heat waves that dry out vegetation.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Research

46,745 papers

Microbial drought resistance may destabilize soil carbon.ReviewTrends in microbiology · 2023Allison SDDOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2023.03.002
Global drought trends and future projections.ReviewPhilosophical transactions. Series A, Mathematical, physical, and engineering sciences · 2022Vicente-Serrano SM, Peña-Angulo D, Beguería S et al.DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2021.0285
Drought and global hunger: biotechnological interventions in sustainability and management.ReviewPlanta · 2022Mansoor S, Khan T, Farooq I et al.DOI: 10.1007/s00425-022-04006-x
Down-to-earth drought resistance.Nature plants · 2024DOI: 10.1038/s41477-024-01686-z
How do plants remember drought?ReviewPlanta · 2022Sadhukhan A, Prasad SS, Mitra J et al.DOI: 10.1007/s00425-022-03924-0
Drought legacies and ecosystem responses to subsequent drought.ReviewGlobal change biology · 2022Müller LM, Bahn MDOI: 10.1111/gcb.16270
Drought-related cholera outbreaks in Africa and the implications for climate change: a narrative review.ReviewPathogens and global health · 2022Charnley GEC, Kelman I, Murray KADOI: 10.1080/20477724.2021.1981716
Drought's physiological footprint: implications for crop improvement in rice.ReviewMolecular biology reports · 2025Sagar S, Ramamoorthy P, Ramalingam S et al.DOI: 10.1007/s11033-025-10405-6

via PubMed

Wikidata facts

Image: Drought.jpg

Show 2 more facts

Commons category: Drought
exact match: purl.obolibrary.org/obo/ENVO_1000745

Sources (8)

via Wikidata · CC0

~33 min read

Article

26 sections

Contents

Definition
Categories
Indices and monitoring
Causes
General precipitation deficiency
Dry season
El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO)
Climate change{{anchor|Climatic_changes}}
Vegetation changes, erosion and human activities
Impacts
Environmental and economic impacts
Agricultural impacts
Social and health impacts
Loss of fertile soils
Regions particularly affected
Amazon basin
Australia
East Africa
Himalayan river basins
North America
By country or region
Protection, mitigation and relief
History
See also
References
External links

Drought is a recurring feature of the climate in most parts of the world, becoming more extreme and less predictable due to climate change, which dendrochronological studies date back to 1900. There are three kinds of drought effects, environmental, economic and social. Environmental effects include the drying of wetlands, more and larger wildfires, loss of biodiversity.