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Journal article
Subregionalization of Low-Frequency Summer Drought Variability in the Southeastern United States
The Professional geographer, Vol.66(2), pp.323-332
04/03/2014
Web of Science ID: WOS:000333880200015
Abstract
Freshwater resources are particularly limited in the Southeastern United States. In recent years, severe summer droughts have placed substantial strain on municipal and industrial water resources, emphasizing the need for further research on the causes of long-term moisture deficits. Previous research has identified a Southeast drought region and specific low-frequency ocean-atmosphere influences on drought. In this article, we identify three distinct subregions of low-frequency summer drought variability in the Southeastern United States using principal components analysis. Multidecadal drought variability is most pronounced in the Southeastern Atlantic Coastal States (SEACS) subregion. The SEACS drought variability is significantly associated with ocean-atmosphere variability in the Atlantic and Pacific basins. The significance of ocean-atmosphere influences on drought in the Southeast is spatially confined within only the SEACS subregion. The Eastern Gulf States (EGS) subregion exhibits a long-term increase in summer moisture that is significantly associated with Northern Hemisphere surface temperature increases during the last century. The peninsular Florida subregion is characterized by high-frequency drought variability that is not associated with any of the climate indexes included in this study.
Los recursos de agua dulce son particularmente limitados en los Estados Unidos del sudeste. Sequias muy severas han hecho sentir sus efectos deletereos sobre los recursos hidricos municipales e industriales en anos recientes, presionando la necesidad de mas investigacion sobre las causas del deficit de humedad a largo plazo. La investigacion precedente ya habia identificado una region de sequia en el sudeste, lo mismo que las influencias especificas de baja frecuencia que tiene la atmosfera oceanica sobre la sequia. En este articulo identificamos en el sudeste de los Estados Unidos tres bien diferenciadas subregiones con variabilidad de sequia veraniega de baja frecuencia, mediante el uso de analisis de componentes principales. La variabilidad multidecadal de la sequia es mas pronunciada en la subregion de los Estados Costeros Atlanticos del Sudeste (ECAS). En el caso de los ECAS, la variabilidad de la sequia esta asociada significativamente con la variabilidad de la atmosfera oceanica en las cuencas del Atlantico y el Pacifico. La significancia de las influencias de la atmosfera oceanica sobre la sequia en el sudeste esta confinada espacialmente solo dentro de la subregion ECAS. La subregion de los Estados Orientales del Golfo (EOG) exhibe un incremento de largo plazo en humedad veraniega, que esta significativamente asociada con los incrementos de la temperatura de superficie experimentados durante el siglo pasado en el Hemisferio Norte. La subregion peninsular de la Florida se caracteriza por una variabilidad de alta frecuencia de la sequia, que no esta asociada con cualquiera de los indices climaticos considerados en este estudio.
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Details
- Title
- Subregionalization of Low-Frequency Summer Drought Variability in the Southeastern United States
- Publication Details
- The Professional geographer, Vol.66(2), pp.323-332
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis
- Number of pages
- 10
- Copyright
- © Copyright 2014 by Association of American Geographers.
- Identifiers
- WOS:000333880200015; 99380504161006600
- Academic Unit
- Hal Marcus College of Science and Engineering ; Earth and Environmental Sciences
- Language
- English