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Highlight: Evaporative Drought Demand Index identifies Midwest U.S. as a potential intensifying drought problem.
Fig. 1-2: The EDDI daily analysis and recent trend.
Discussion: Evaporative Drought Demand Index (EDDI) considers both short and long-term precipitation patterns and the attendant influence on soil moisture to identify where drought is most likely to evolve or if already present most likely to intensify. Currently, EDDI analysis reveals harsh ED4 conditions centered on the Northern U.S. Corn Belt (Fig. 1). Other areas of concern include the Tennessee Valley and southward to the Gulf of Mexico Coast and the Texas Panhandle into Northern Mexico. A large contributor to the ED4 category in the Midwest U.S. is the sharp 2020-23 rainfall deficit running near 10 in. across Iowa. The strengthening EDDI values in February (Fig. 2) are due to a much warmer and drier than normal climate throughout the identified drought concern zone.