
For droughts to end we need a large event or series of events that wet the soil profile enough to alleviate the drought. Hence the larger the soil moisture deficit the larger the event that is needed. The return period for such an event can be calculated and hence the likelihood of such a drought ending event estimated. Note that there is some trade-off between total precipitation in an event and the duration of the event – the rainfall must be more than what is lost to evaporation.
The project aims to quantify the probability of drought ending rainfall given a drought's intensity (soil moisture deficit) and the past record of rainfall.
The student will learn how to:
Supervisor: Professor Jason P. Evans
To learn more about this project, contact Professor Jason P. Evans