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Related Data & Maps
Representative map from the Coastal Salinity Index, showing stations' salinity conditions

Coastal Salinity Index (CSI)

The CSI is a drought index tool that uses salinity data to characterize saline (drought) and freshwater (wet) conditions in coastal surface waters.

Period of Record
Current conditions
File Format
images
csv
json
Example 1-month LERI map of the contiguous U.S.

Landscape Evaporative Response Index (LERI)

The Landscape Evaporative Response Index (LERI) is an experimental drought monitoring and early warning guidance tool that measures the anomaly in the actual evapotranspiration (ETa) from the

Period of Record
2000 - present
File Format
images
netcdf-4
Example map generated with the NGWMN Data Portal, showing groundwater sites and aquifer systems in the Southeast U.S.

National Groundwater Monitoring Network

The National Groundwater Monitoring Network (NGWMN) is a compilation of selected groundwater monitoring wells from federal, state, and local groundwater monitoring networks across the nation. 

File Format
csv
USGS National Water Dashboard showing real-time streamflow levels alongside the U.S. Drought Monitor

National Water Dashboard

The National Water Dashboard is an interactive map viewer that shows provisional real-time water data from more than 13,000 USGS observation stations in context with weather-related data

Period of Record
Current Conditions
Map of National Soil Moisture Network stations

NationalSoilMoisture.com

The research-based website NationalSoilMoisture.com provides high-resolution gridded soil moisture products derived from in situ soil moisture measurements, Natural Resources Conserva

Period of Record
January 2018 - present
File Format
csv
geotiff
QuickDRI map of the contiguous U.S.

Quick Drought Response Index (QuickDRI)

Quick Drought Response Index (QuickDRI): a geospatial tool that characterizes the intensification of short-term drought condition patterns on a weekly basis across the continental United States (CO

Period of Record
2000 - Present
File Format
images
pdf
Image of sample R code

Source Code: An R-Based Streamflow Model to Detect Low Flows at USGS Gages

An R workspace with functions comprising a non-linear baseflow separation model, and a complete set of files to run the model in a compressed file including a script that will demonstrate how to ru

Water Data for the Nation home page.

USGS Water Data for the Nation

USGS provides access to over 135 years of high-quality and discoverable water data collected at more than 1 million monitoring locations across the United States and territories.

Period of Record
Current Conditions, Historical data (period of record varies)
File Format
images
text (ascii)
xml
other
USGS WaterWatch map of real-time streamflow in the U.S.

USGS WaterWatch Streamflow Data

WaterWatch is a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) World Wide Web site that displays maps, graphs, and tables describing real-time, recent, and past streamflow conditions for the United States.

Period of Record
2004 - Present
File Format
images
csv
shapefile
xml
kml
VegDRI map of the contiguous U.S.

Vegetation Drought Response Index (VegDRI)

VegDRI: a weekly depiction of vegetation stress across the contiguous United States.

Period of Record
2009 - Present
File Format
images
pdf
Interactive map viewer from the WaterSMART Visualization Tool

WaterSMART Data Visualization Tool

The WaterSMART Data Visualization Tool is an interactive map that allows users to explore Bureau of Reclamation WaterSMART projects funded since 2010.

Period of Record
2010 – present
File Format
text (ascii)
Related Events
Related Webinar Recaps
Related Drought Status Updates
Related News
A grassland in an area formerly dominated by boreal forest.
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News & Events

21st-Century Droughts Are Transforming Ecosystems

Alaska’s boreal forests are declining, as increasing drought stress and fire kill off the next generation of conifer trees. Where boreal forest has disappeared, new plant communities—like grasslands and aspen forests—have begun to take its place. Elsewhere, in the southeastern United States, droughts have decimated saltmarsh vegetation, turning saltmarshes into mudflats or open
Low water on the Mississippi River. Photo credit: Justin Wilkens, Shutterstock.
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News & Events

New Study Examines Louisiana's 2023 Water Crisis

This article was originally published by Louisiana State University.In the summer and fall of 2023, South Louisiana faced two simultaneous crises. First, a historic drought trapped residents in crippling heat and caused up to $290 million in agricultural losses.Second, water levels of the Mississippi dropped so low saltwater began to travel up the river, threatening the water supply in New
Panoramic view of Mirror Lake in times of complete drought, in Yosemite National Park. Photo credit: Marquicio Pagola, Shutterstock.
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News & Events

New Research Shows Impacts of Drought on National Park Visitation

National parks serve  as conservation areas for ecosystems and as a haven for outdoor enthusiasts in the United States. Park visitation varies seasonally with  favorable climate conditions for use and environmental features of parks, which vary from wildflowers to waterfalls. For example, visitors to high-elevation parks interested in wildflower viewing will favor the summer season when
Dry, cracked earth representing drought.
Site Section
News & Events

NIDIS Awards Over $6.2 Million for Projects on Ecological Drought and Tribal Drought Resilience

NOAA’s National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) has announced a total annual award of $6.2 million to support 12 new, innovative, and impactful projects that will improve our nation’s resilience at a critical time in the fight against the drought crisis. The projects will focus on ecological drought and building tribal drought resilience. NIDIS is funding seven new 2-year
A cross-section of soil, with drying grass growing from the top of the soil
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News & Events

NIDIS and Partners Launch National Soil Moisture Strategy

The National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) is pleased to release A Strategy for the National Coordinated Soil Moisture Monitoring Network: Coordinated, High-Quality, Nationwide Soil Moisture Information for the Public Good (also known as the “NCSMMN Strategy”). Developed in part to fulfill the requirements of the NIDIS Reauthorization Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-423
A wildfire burns out of control, consuming trees
Site Section
News & Events

New USGS Strategy Harnesses Science to Tackle Wildfires Before, During, and After the Flames

Last year, extreme heat and extensive drought led to a series of large wildfires across the western United States. Wildfires covered 10,122,336 acres of the U.S. in 2020, and federal fire suppression costs alone totaled nearly $2.3 billion. In drought conditions, dry, hot, and windy weather combined with dried out (and more flammable) vegetation can increase the potential for large-scale
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News & Events

Sub-Seasonal Climate Forecast Rodeo Winners Announced

Kicked off in March 2017, the Sub-Seasonal Climate Forecast Rodeo comprised of a year-long, real-time forecasting competition. The Bureau of Reclamation sponsored the competition in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and California Department of Water Resources. Competition Results -- Click
Colorado River Basin map
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News & Events

Colorado River Drought Contingency Planning

The Colorado River provides water to almost 40 million people and 4 million acres of farmland. Since 2000, historically dry conditions have added stress to the Colorado River’s water resources. As a result, the risk of reaching critically low elevations at Lakes Powell and Mead has increased nearly four-fold over the past decade. Critically low reservoir levels could affect compliance with the
Site Section
News & Events

Forecast Rodeo: Four Months Down, Eight to Go!

With approximately one third of the Sub-Seasonal Climate Forecast Rodeo under their belts, team standings are tightening and the seasons are changing. This means top honors in each of the four categories are very much up for grabs, and that cool-season forecasts will play a big role in determining which teams are well positioned on the leader board heading into the spring home stretch
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News & Events

QuickDRI Alerts Farmers, Fire Managers to Impending Drought

Agricultural crops can wither in a flash when the days turn hot, the air dries, the rain stops and moisture evaporates quickly from the soil. A new early warning system developed by two nationally recognized centers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, along with the U.S. Geological Survey, can help alert stakeholders as drought begins. The Quick Drought Response Index, or QuickDRI,
Site Section
News & Events

Forecast Rodeo in Full Swing

About the Rodeo The Sub-Seasonal Climate Forecast Rodeo is a year-long, real-time forecasting competition, focused on western U.S. temperature and precipitation for weeks 3&4 and weeks 5&6. The Bureau of Reclamation is sponsoring the competition in partnership with NOAA, USGS, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Contestants submit forecasts every other week, and these are 
Related Documents
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July 2025
Drought and Aquatic Ecosystems in the Southeast Workshop: Informing drought response and ecological resilience to future low-flow events
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January 2024
Drought Prediction and Water Availability: A Report on the 2022 USGS-NIDIS National Listening Session Series
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May 2023
Upper Missouri River Basin Soil Moisture and Snowpack Data Value Study Fact Sheet
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November 2021
Coastal Salinity Index (CSI) - A New Tool for Coastal Managers
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June 2021
A Strategy for the National Coordinated Soil Moisture Monitoring Network
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June 2021
Executive Summary: A Strategy for the National Coordinated Soil Moisture Monitoring Network
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October 2020
Northeast Drought Early Warning Update: October 23, 2020
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January 2016
Story Map: Drought in the Colorado River Basin
Related Research
The Rosebud Sioux Tribe Drought Trends Analysis and Groundwater Recharge Implementation Plan
Building a Mississippi River Drought & Water Dashboard
Building a Drought Early Warning System for Cold-Water Fisheries Management Across the Northern Rocky Mountains
Developing a Drought Early Warning System and Indices for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation
Upper Missouri River Basin Soil Moisture and Plains Snow Data Value Study
Advancing Forest Soil Moisture Monitoring in the Daniel Boone National Forest: Exploring Complex Topography
Installation Protocol for In Situ Soil Moisture Data Collection
Visualizing Ecological Drought Impacts, Vulnerabilities and Drivers to Inform Deliberate Decision-Making
Expanding Monitoring & Modeling to Assess the Role of Drought in the Persistence of Post-Fire Debris-Flow and Flood Hazards in the Western U.S.
Advancing the Development and Use of the Coastal Salinity Index (CSI)