Are Drought Conditions in the U.S. Southwest Here to Stay?

A new study suggests that dry conditions in the southwestern United States, including the ongoing California drought, may become standard.

The study, published in Geophysical Research Letters, analyzes weather types to demonstrate how the American Southwest has already shifted to a much drier climate system than it once had, along with showing a downward trend in overall precipitation. The research, which uses data from 1979 to 2014 collected from across the contiguous United States, could show that the dry pattern will continue into the future.