Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID IN_2023_Wang

A novel approach to evaluate the occurrence and mechanisms of flash drought and its impacts on crop yield over Indiana

Institute: Indiana
Year Established: 2023 Start Date: 2023-09-01 End Date: 2024-08-31
Total Federal Funds: $24,988 Total Non-Federal Funds: $45,823

Principal Investigators: Lixin Wang

Project Summary: Flash droughts (FDs) are characterized by the quick onset and rapid intensification of drought conditions, unlike traditional droughts which develop more gradually. In recent years, FDs have attracted widespread attention due to their significant negative impacts on water resources, ecosystems, agriculture, and the environment. These features of FDs pose unique challenges for their forecast, monitoring, and mitigation. The impact of FDs on society can vary depending on several factors, such as the frequency of their occurrence, rate of intensification, and mean severity, which are less understood and remain unclear specifically over Indiana, USA. This study will develop a novel approach to define FDs and examine their spatiotemporal coverage, trends and triggers in Indiana in the last 30 years. This project will also examine the impact of FDs on crop yield. This study will help to provide a much-needed framework to reduce FD-related risks.