Worst “Megadroughts” in a Millennium

http://www.newsweek.com/coming-us-megadroughts-will-be-worse-any-drought-seen-past-1000-years-306585

Our future is looking pretty dry.

Analysis released last week from scientists at NASA, Cornell University, and Columbia University predicts that climate change will cause droughts in the Southwest and Great Plains of the U.S. that exceed any experienced in the last 1,000 years. These “megadroughts” are likely to begin between 2050 and 2099, and could each last between 10 years and several decades.Droughts of this severity would undeniably make human life harder. More severeand longer-lasting drought means less water to grow food. Perhaps most challenging would be the allocation of drinking water in the Great Plains and Southwest of the U.S., where drought will be worst, according to the researchers. Already, towns are running out of water during the current drought in the Western U.S.

Warming temperatures and reduced rainfall due to climate change mean greater evaporation of surface water. Drought-depleted reservoirs also threaten to spark a feedback loop of scarcity: Less water in reservoirs will make subsequent droughts worse. “Combined with the likelihood of a much drier future and increased demand, the loss of groundwater and higher temperatures will likely exacerbate the impacts of future droughts, presenting a major adaptation challenge for managing ecological and anthropogenic water needs in the region.”