Megadrought
A megadrought is an extended drought. It lasts two decades or more. Megadroughts in the past were linked with La Niña conditions lasting for many years.[1]
The term megadrought generally refers to the length of a drought, not its intensity. Multiyear droughts lasting one decade or less, like the Dust Bowl drought of the 1930s, are not a megadrought though they lasted a long time.
Megadroughts have caused people to move away from the drought-affected areas. One example is Ancestral Puebloans in the Southwestern United States.
Megadrought Media
A typical dry lakebed is seen in California, which experienced its worst megadrought in 1,200 years in 2022. The drought was precipitated by climate change. California rationed water in response.
Montezuma Bald Cypress tree, 900 years old
References
- ↑ "The Characteristics and Likely Causes of the Medieval Megadroughts". The Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
