New research published in New Scientist says that severe droughts that persist for years have grown hotter, drier and larger since the 1980s. These long-lasting droughts – some of which are extreme enough to be classified as “megadroughts” – can be especially devastating to agriculture and ecosystems.

Photo credit: Yusuf Gündüz

Rising temperatures linked to climate change have increased the risk of drought because warmer air can hold more moisture, boosting evaporation from the land. Combined with changing precipitation patterns that lead to less rain, this can exacerbate and lengthen periods of drought – as witnessed in the recent worst-in-a-millennium megadroughts in parts of North and South America.

Meanwhile, the hottest January on record globally is continuing the series of record or near-record temperatures observed in the last two years.

Covered in The Guardian Hottest January on record mystifies climate scientists