Randomized trial analyzes drought propagation in arid and humid climates, indicating key influencing factors.
Key Points
This study aims to explore how precipitation deficits lead to runoff deficits in different climate regions of China and to identify the key factors influencing this transition.
Analyzed five climate zones in China from 1970 to 2020.
Employed the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) and Standardized Runoff Index (SRI) to assess drought propagation.
Utilized multiple linear regression and Kendall’s test to identify influencing factors.
Drought propagation time (DPT) peaked in winter at 7.35 months and was lowest in summer at 2.54 months.
Propagation times were shorter and more stable in humid regions compared to longer, variable times in semi-arid and humid–semi-humid regions.
Temperature and potential evaporation significantly influenced DPT, along with summer precipitation having a 9.38% impact.