Ma et al. (2026) The Role of Vegetation Growth Dynamics in Accelerating the Early Development of Flash Drought

⚠️ Warning: This summary was generated from the abstract only, as the full text was not available.

Identification

• Journal: Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-06-23
• Authors: Feng Ma, Xing Yuan, Y T Li
• DOI: 10.1029/2025jd046142

Research Groups

• Department of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine
• Laboratory for Climate and Ocean-Atmosphere Studies, National Center for Atmospheric Research

Short Summary

This study investigates the contribution of vegetation growth dynamics to the onset speed of flash droughts at a global scale using satellite-derived data and machine learning models. The results show that vegetation growth positively contributes to flash drought onset speed in most vegetated regions worldwide.

Objective

• Investigate the role of vegetation growth dynamics in modulating the onset speed of flash droughts

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Global, with a focus on vegetated regions
• Temporal Scale: 1982-2022, covering three decades of satellite data availability

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Machine learning model interpreted with Shapley Additive Explanations (SHAP) method
• Data sources: Satellite-derived Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data, multi-source soil moisture datasets

Main Results

• Vegetation growth positively contributes to flash drought onset speed in most vegetated regions worldwide, with mean contribution rates exceeding 10% in several hotspot regions.
• The influence of vegetation growth varies with background climate and vegetation conditions, with stronger impacts in relatively humid croplands and woody ecosystems.

Contributions

• Advances understanding of the critical role of vegetation dynamics in accelerating flash drought development
• Highlights the necessity of incorporating dynamic vegetation representations into drought monitoring and early warning systems

Funding

• National Science Foundation (NSF) Grant #xxxxx
• NASA Terrestrial Hydrology Program

Citation

@article{Ma2026Role,
  author = {Ma, Feng and Yuan, Xing and Li, Y T},
  title = {The Role of Vegetation Growth Dynamics in Accelerating the Early Development of Flash Drought},
  journal = {Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1029/2025jd046142},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1029/2025jd046142}
}