Regional Drought Assessment Based on the Standard Precipitation Index (SPI) and Precipitation Concentration Index (PCI) in Middle Part of Iraq by Using GIS

The study focused on the study and analysis of the characteristics of drought and the rainfall Concentration Index in the central region of Iraq from 1984 to 2021. It revealed that 50% of the stations under study, represented by Najaf and Karbala, fell under the moderate drought climate category, which comprises 30.89%, followed by the mild drought category, which accounts for 15.04%, and the severe and extreme drought categories, which account for 5.28 and 1.22% respectively. Regarding the rainfall concentration index, it demonstrates that the area falls between the seasonal and severe seasonal rain categories. The areas where there is a deficit in rainfall are also the areas where the rainfall concentration is severe seasonal, which tends towards irregularity, and are the driest areas according to the standard precipitation index (SPI), and represent the dominant climate in the central regions of Iraq during the period in question. Seasonal and severe seasonal variations constitute 66.67% and 33.33% of the total, respectively.