Adem et al. (2026) Advancing global drought monitoring: A review of portals, practices, and future directions

Identification

• Journal: Elsevier eBooks
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-01-01
• Authors: Anwar A. Adem, Ali Fares, Anoop Valiya Veettil, A. S. M. Asifur Rahman
• DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-443-44625-2.00014-x

Research Groups

• Cooperative Agricultural Research Center, College of Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources, Prairie View A&M University, Prairie View, TX, United States
• Department of Natural Resources Management, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Bahir Dar University, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia

Short Summary

This review synthesizes and evaluates major global drought monitoring portals, assessing their methodologies, indices, forecasting capabilities, and decision-support utility. It identifies their strengths, overlaps, and significant gaps, while also highlighting future directions for improving global drought resilience.

Objective

• To synthesize and evaluate the methodological frameworks, indices, visualization tools, forecasting capability, usability, and decision-support utility of major global drought monitoring portals.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Global (review of global drought monitoring portals)
• Temporal Scale: Focuses on portals developed over the last two decades, providing near-real-time assessments and seasonal forecasts.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: The reviewed portals utilize hydrological models, climate reanalysis, and various standardized drought indices (e.g., Standardized Precipitation Index, Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index, soil moisture anomalies).
• Data sources: The reviewed portals integrate satellite observations, ground-based data, and climate reanalysis.

Main Results

• Most global drought monitoring platforms offer significant decision-support value, with distinct strengths: GDO for transboundary policy, GIDMaPS for probabilistic forecasting, ASIS and PRISM for agricultural and humanitarian contexts, and SPEI for long-term climate research.
• Overlaps exist in standardized drought indices and visualization methodologies, underscoring the need for interoperability and data sharing.
• Significant gaps include the management of compound phenomena (e.g., drought-heatwave periods), depiction of groundwater drought, and incorporation of socioeconomic implications.
• Emerging opportunities involve leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning for forecasting, developing anticipatory action frameworks, and designing equity-focused solutions for data-scarce, vulnerable regions.

Contributions

• Provides a comprehensive synthesis and evaluation of the current landscape of global drought monitoring portals, identifying their comparative strengths and weaknesses.
• Highlights critical gaps in current monitoring capabilities, particularly concerning compound hazards, groundwater drought, and socioeconomic impacts.
• Proposes future directions for enhancing global drought portals through multihazard analytics, improved data standards (FAIR principles), and codesigned decision triggers to bolster resilience against climate change.

Funding

• Not explicitly mentioned in the provided text.

Citation

@article{Adem2026Advancing,
  author = {Adem, Anwar A. and Fares, Ali and Veettil, Anoop Valiya and Rahman, A. S. M. Asifur},
  title = {Advancing global drought monitoring: A review of portals, practices, and future directions},
  journal = {Elsevier eBooks},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1016/b978-0-443-44625-2.00014-x},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-443-44625-2.00014-x}
}