Flash Drought
In a new study, India has been included in the list of countries with the incidence of global flash drought that occurred between 1980 and 2015.
Unlike the traditional drought that develops over months, a Flash drought refers to a severe drought type situation, which develops very rapidly.
These are caused by unusually high temperatures, high transpiration rates due to winds and high solar radiation and a 15-20 day delay of rainfall.
This can be caused by a lack of rainfall (sudden drought due to lack of rain) or by abnormally high temperatures (sudden drought due to heat wave).
It can also be classified as an agricultural drought because of its direct relationship with soil moisture and crop pressure.
Source – The Hindu
