Digital Wandering

Drought is an extended period of exceptionally low precipitation. A drought can feature additional weather characteristics, including high temperatures and high winds. Although low precipitation (rain, snow, or sleet) marks both droughts and deserts, the two are different. A desert is a region that experiences low precipitation as an everyday occurrence. A drought, on the other hand, is a temporary condition in which precipitation is abnormally low for a particular region. Droughts may occur at any time in any part of the world and last anywhere from days to weeks to decades.The U.S. National Weather Service recognizes three categories of drought. A dry spell occurs when there is less than .08 centimeter (.03 inch) of rainfall during a minimum of 15 consecutive days. A partial drought occurs when the average daily rainfall does not exceed .02 centimeter (.008 inc scholarship opportunities h) during a 29-day period. An absolute drought occurs when there is no measurable rainfall over a period of at least 15 days. The intensity of a drought may be measured by the ability of living things in the affected area to tolerate the dry conditions. Some plants quickly fall prey to droughts while others, such as cacti and mesquite trees, survive dry conditions by either storing water in their tissues or by going dormant (a state in which growth activity stops). Although a drought may end abruptly with the return of adequate rainfall, the effects of a drought on the landscape and its inhabitants may last for years.Droughts have taken place around the world throughout history. Some scientists theorize that droughts brought about the migrations of early humans. From 1876 to 1879, severe droughts in China caused the deaths of millions of people from lack of food.