Was the 2022 drought in the Yangtze River Basin, China more severe than other typical drought events by considering the natural characteristics and the actual impacts?

Abstract

Abstract The Yangtze River Basin (YRB), China, experienced record-breaking multiple season droughts in 2022, but also other severe drought events in recent history. This study examined the spatiotemporal characteristics of the 2022 drought in the YRB and compared this event with other extreme drought events in 1951 to 2022 from multiple perspectives, including spatial distribution, temporal evolution, return period, and drought losses. Six other extreme drought events were selected by the severity of water deficiency. The results showed that a “whole-basin” drought, which covered nearly the entire region, was evident in the summer and autumn of 2022 compared with other drought years. The return period was more than 1000 years (considering both temperature and precipitation), also severer than the six other drought years. Although the 2022 drought was much more extreme than other drought years from a natural perspective, the actual crop impacted area ratio was less than those in other drought years. This indicates the importance of drought relief measures. As for the drought attribution in the YRB, the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) played a key role in explaining its occurrence, significant at different lag times. These results may help policymakers to comprehensively understand the typical extreme droughts in the YRB and rationally allocate funds for drought relief.