Study Finds Heat-Triggered Droughts Expanding Sixfold

A new study reveals that heat waves triggering sudden droughts are expanding rapidly across the globe, covering more than six times the land area they did four decades ago, as climate change intensifies these interconnected weather extremes.

Scientists from South Korea and Australia analyzed decades of climate data and found that compound events combining extreme heat and drought have increased with global warming. The most concerning trend involves heat striking first, which evaporates soil moisture and sparks stronger, faster-onset droughts known as flash droughts. These differ from traditional droughts by developing abruptly, leaving little time for farmers, communities or ecosystems to adapt. In the 1980s, such heat-first events affected about 2.5 percent of Earth's land surface annually. By 2023, the figure had risen to 16.7 percent, with a 10-year average of 7.9 percent. The researchers noted that 2024's record global temperatures and the near-record warmth of 2025 likely pushed these averages even higher.

The pace of this expansion has accelerated sharply. From 1980 to around 2000, the spread of heat-first extremes grew steadily, but over the subsequent 22 years, the rate...