Chile Facing Its Own Decade-Long Megadrought, Thanks To Distant Warming In Pacific Ocean
A blob of warm water in the southern Pacific is fueling a decade-long megadrought in Chile, and climate change is at least partly to blame, scientists say. The "Southern Blob" east of New Zealand is driving hot and dry conditions in Chile, with snow caps melting on the Andes, reservoirs running low and once-lush landscapes withered. Chilean authorities this year were forced to truck water to some 400,000 people living in rural areas.
Research published Thursday in the Journal of Climate finds that human-driven climate change is partly behind the blob, and consequentially the drought, though to what degree exactly is still unclear. Natural variability in ocean and atmospheric temperatures also played a role, the scientists say. That massive blob – wider than the continental United States – is now 1.5 degrees Celsius warmer than it was 40 years ago. Areas of nearby ocean, however, have warmed much more slowly during that time, and are just 0.2C to 1C warmer, the study shows.
The heat from the blob warms the air directly above it and winds carry the heated air toward Chile. This impacts pressure trends, affecting rainfall and resulting in dry conditions in Chile. The blob "is only perhaps 3% of the South Pacific, but it's located in such a sensitive area that it produces this chain of events," said study co-author Rene Dario Garreaud, a climate scientist at the University of Chile in Santiago.
While drought is not uncommon in Chile, the current megadrought has persisted since 2010. Some scientists and politicians have begun warning of possible long-term water shortages in the central region, home to vineyards and farms.
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