Long-term high-resolution multi-drought indices datasets for Austria derived from ERA5 Land Reanalysis.

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Climatology
• Hydrology

Background:

• Droughts and wet spells are escalating global environmental hazards, impacting Austria with increasing frequency and severity.
• Effective monitoring and impact assessment require comprehensive, high-resolution hydroclimatic data.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and present a long-term, high-resolution multi-drought indices dataset for Austria.
• To enhance the monitoring and impact assessment of drought and wet periods across the country.

Main Methods:

• Calculated six drought indices: Standardised Precipitation Index (SPI), Standardised Precipitation-Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI), self-calibrating Palmer Drought Severity Index (scPDSI), Reconnaissance Drought Index (RDI), modified Reconnaissance Drought Index (RDIe), and Vapour Pressure Deficit (VPD).
• Utilized monthly Reanalysis ERA5-Land data at a 0.1° horizontal resolution for the period 1950–2023.
• Computed multiscale indices across timescales from 1 to 48 months to represent diverse drought types and hydroclimatic variability.

Main Results:

• A comprehensive dataset of drought and wet period indices for Austria (1950–2023) was generated.
• The dataset offers high spatial (0.1°) and temporal (monthly) resolution, covering multiple drought types.
• The 2003 drought event was used to demonstrate the dataset's performance and index consistency.

Conclusions:

• The presented dataset significantly enhances drought and wet period monitoring and impact assessment capabilities in Austria.
• It provides a valuable resource for trend detection, drought frequency analysis, model validation, and climate impact studies.
• Freely accessible data promotes reproducible research and supports informed decision-making in water resource management and early warning systems.