Status of Continental Indicators for NADM

National Climatic Data Center

Status of Continental Indicatorsfor NADM

Richard R. Heim Jr.NOAA/NESDIS/National Climatic Data Center

Asheville, North Carolina

North American Drought Monitor ForumAsheville, NC, USA – 20 April 2010


NADM History November 2001 – “Troika” Meeting (US, CN, MX)

Agree in principle to establish climate extremes monitoring partnership (*)

First, develop monthly continental drought monitoring capabilities

Eventually assess long-term variability and trends in extremes (**)

April 2002 Workshop – Plans for NADM One day devoted to discussion on the new drought monitoring

program for North America

April 2003 – First experimental NADM map released to public

November 2003 – Addition of French and Spanish translations of map

(* NACEM)(** National Climate Preparedness & Potential IPCC Applications)


NADM Participant Responsibilities

Responsibilities & Procedure Each country determines drought depiction & narrative within their

national boundaries NADM lead authorship rotates amongst the participants

US: NOAA (NCDC, CPC), USDA (JAWF), NDMC Canada : AAFC, MSC Mexico: SMN

http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/monitoring/drought/nadm/index.html

NADM lead author integrates national drought assessments from each country, prepares continental monthly map & narrative

Continental indicators used for international boundaries

All participants peer review product


NADM Continental Drought Indicators The NADM drought conditions in US, MX, CN are

determined independently based on different data, indices, & analyses within each country

Drought indices covering entire continent are needed

Same indices, same analysis period, same methodologies

This consistency needed for depiction across international boundaries



NADM Continental Drought Indicators

NADM Drought Indicators data base: Mexico:

Monthly precipitation from 132 highest quality stations Temperature from 65 high quality Observatory stations, plus 67 add’l stations

Canada: Monthly precipitation and temperature from approx. 200-300 daily near-real time stations (DLY02)


U.S. First set:

– 20-24 Alaska ASOS stations & 8 COOP stations along US-MX border

– Climate division data for contiguous U.S.

Second set:– 20-24 Alaska ASOS stations & 900-1000

contiguous U.S. COOP stations

Future: Climate Divisions for all 3 countries


Two Contiguous U.S. Data SetsClimate Divisions Stations



For Percent of Average Precipitation (PCTPCP), Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI), & Palmer Drought Indices (PDI): Period of record varies between countries and between stations within

each country Except p.o.r. is 1895-present for U.S. climate divisions For the stations, p.o.r. generally begins in 1950 or earlier

Standardizing period is 1951-2001



Other indicators from other sources are also used

NOAA/NESDIS Satellite Vegetation Health Index

NOAA/CPC Leaky Bucket Soil Moisture Percentiles



Other indicators that could be used

University College London’s Global Drought Monitor


Living Blended Paleo Drought Project

Station data network across U.S., Canada, & Mexico

0.5 x 0.5 degree latitude/longitude grid, 11,398 gridpoints

Fine spatial resolution for continental monitoring

Will be updated operationally on a monthly basis

This project is intended to expand our historical perspective

Serially and spatially complete

But it will have an operational component that can be used to support the NADM

11,398


LBPD NADM Operational Support

The LBPD gridded data base can support: NADM continental indicators

(SPI, Palmer Indices, PCTPCP) NADM Objective Blends FMDI for North America


Precipitation Climatologies for N. America Percent of annual

precipitation maps

Monthly, 3-Month Seasons, 6-Month Seasons


USDM & NADM Objective Blends Objective blends integrate multiple indicators into a product

update using a percentile ranking method All parameters are first rendered as percentiles with

respect to a standard period using a percent rank method The parameters (drought indicators) are then combined

using a weighting scheme Short- and Long-Term Blends produced Need serially complete data

Operationally produced weekly for USDM using NOAA/CPC’s real-time daily and weekly climate division data and NOAA/NCDC’s monthly archive of indices for 1932-2000 Experimental for NADM; monthly; use gridded temperature, precipitation, & Palmer index fields for North America; 1895-2005


NADM Objective Blends

Similar to USDM Objective Blends, but with different components and possibly different weights

Would need serially complete data, so could not be computed on station data

But could be computed on LBPD Project’s gridded data base

USDM Objective Blends:


USDM Objective Blends


NADM Objective Blends

Long-term blend components: Palmer Hydrological Drought Index (30%)

60-month Palmer Z Index (20%)

60-month precipitation (20%)




NADM percentiles based on 1895-2005 0.5x0.5-degree gridded data base Short-term blend components:

Palmer Z Index (35%)



Palmer Drought Index (10%)


NADM – Web Services NADM web site – transitioning to interactive web site with GIS

web services (within NIDIS Drought Portal environment) NADM indicators – overlay and analysis with NADM map

boundaries using various visualization tools NADM indicator station,

divisional, and gridded (from LBPD) data in relational data base for efficient access & analysis & interoperability between various projects & applications


Thank [email protected]

NCDC Climate Monitoring Branch Reports & Products:http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/monitoring.html

NCDC State of the Climate Reports:http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/

North America Drought Monitor:http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/monitoring/drought/nadm/index.html

U.S. Drought Monitor:http://drought.unl.edu/dm/monitor.html

NIDIS:http://drought.gov/

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Status of Continental Indicators for NADM

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