Amazon_drought_Jul-Sept_GPCCSPI.png

The dry season across the Amazon this year has been especially dry. A standardized precipitation index (left) shows that over the last 3 months, much of the region experienced precipitation that ranked in the bottom half of the historical record. But the region has also been much warmer than average, which worsens conditions by making the atmosphere thirstier for moisture. When the precipitation shortfalls are combined with evaporation and transpiration (right hand map), the moisture balance over the entire region tips into “exceptional drought.” NOAA Climate.gov image, based on GPCC Standardized Precipitation and Standardized Precipitation and Evapotranspiration maps from NOAA’s Global Drought Information System.