Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Advanced economies
Advanced economies: Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly was -0.5138 Percentage change in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Advanced economies, 1981–2024
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
In 2024, exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Advanced economies stood at -0.5138 Percentage change.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 81.7% on the previous year and up 48.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Advanced economies peaked at 2.61 Percentage change in 1984 and was at its lowest, -2.97 Percentage change, in 2012.
That places Advanced economies 14th out of 67 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Advanced economies, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 0.9053 Percentage change | — |
| 1982 | 0.7956 Percentage change | -12.1% |
| 1983 | 2.18 Percentage change | +173.5% |
| 1984 | 2.61 Percentage change | +19.8% |
| 1985 | 1.55 Percentage change | -40.5% |
| 1986 | 2.22 Percentage change | +43.5% |
| 1987 | 0.8539 Percentage change | -61.6% |
| 1988 | -0.9643 Percentage change | -212.9% |
| 1989 | -0.7862 Percentage change | -18.5% |
| 1990 | -1.39 Percentage change | +76.6% |
| 1991 | -0.6504 Percentage change | -53.2% |
| 1992 | 0.5682 Percentage change | -187.4% |
| 1993 | 1.25 Percentage change | +119.7% |
| 1994 | -2.44 Percentage change | -295.1% |
| 1995 | 0.4207 Percentage change | -117.3% |
| 1996 | 0.8681 Percentage change | +106.3% |
| 1997 | 1.29 Percentage change | +48.7% |
| 1998 | 1.76 Percentage change | +36.7% |
| 1999 | -0.5613 Percentage change | -131.8% |
| 2000 | 0.9319 Percentage change | -266.0% |
| 2001 | -0.5327 Percentage change | -157.2% |
| 2002 | -2.73 Percentage change | +412.8% |
| 2003 | -1.33 Percentage change | -51.4% |
| 2004 | 0.5138 Percentage change | -138.7% |
| 2005 | -1.3 Percentage change | -352.2% |
| 2006 | -2.39 Percentage change | +84.1% |
| 2007 | -2.14 Percentage change | -10.4% |
| 2008 | -1.89 Percentage change | -11.4% |
| 2009 | -1.22 Percentage change | -35.6% |
| 2010 | 1.59 Percentage change | -230.4% |
| 2011 | -0.2067 Percentage change | -113.0% |
| 2012 | -2.97 Percentage change | +1337.7% |
| 2013 | -1.59 Percentage change | -46.4% |
| 2014 | -1.01 Percentage change | -36.8% |
| 2015 | -1.35 Percentage change | +33.8% |
| 2016 | 0.713 Percentage change | -153.0% |
| 2017 | -1.05 Percentage change | -246.8% |
| 2018 | -2.09 Percentage change | +99.6% |
| 2019 | -1.66 Percentage change | -20.3% |
| 2020 | -1.54 Percentage change | -7.3% |
| 2021 | -0.8057 Percentage change | -47.8% |
| 2022 | -1.72 Percentage change | +113.6% |
| 2023 | -2.8 Percentage change | +62.9% |
| 2024 | -0.5138 Percentage change | -81.7% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Advanced economies changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | -1337.7% | -0.2067 Percentage change | -2.97 Percentage change |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 1.04 Percentage change | -0.9643 Percentage change | 2.61 Percentage change | 9 |
| 1990s | 0.1126 Percentage change | -2.44 Percentage change | 1.76 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -1.21 Percentage change | -2.73 Percentage change | 0.9319 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -0.9618 Percentage change | -2.97 Percentage change | 1.59 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -1.48 Percentage change | -2.8 Percentage change | -0.5138 Percentage change | 5 |
Countries ranked near Advanced economies
- 11 Belgium 7.25 Percentage change compare
- 11 Fiji 0.8198 Percentage change compare
- 12 Denmark 6.92 Percentage change compare
- 13 Antigua and Barbuda 6.9 Percentage change compare
- 14 Mauritius 6.77 Percentage change compare
- 15 Puerto Rico 5.6 Percentage change compare
- 16 Kazakhstan 5.49 Percentage change compare
- 17 Faroe Islands 5.29 Percentage change compare
More environment data for Advanced economies
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -3.22 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -2.55 Percentage change (2025)
- Exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -2.42 Percentage change (2024)
- River flooding exposure — Cropland share exposed to river flooding 4.4 Percentage of agricultural land area (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Advanced economies?
- Exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Advanced economies was -0.5138 Percentage change in 2024, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in Advanced economies?
- The highest recorded value was 2.61 Percentage change in 1984.
- What is the lowest exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in Advanced economies?
- The lowest recorded value was -2.97 Percentage change in 2012.
- How does Advanced economies rank for exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly?
- Advanced economies ranks 14th out of 67 groups with data for 2024.
- Is exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in Advanced economies?
- Over the last ten years it is up 48.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Advanced economies data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The dataset provides annual anomalies in land and cropland soil moisture content of the top soil layer compared to the reference period 1981-2010. Exposure indicators to drought have been prepared by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Please see the working paper for a more complete description of the methods. The datasets span the period 1981-2022 and is the result of the use of a variety of geospatial data sources, including the ERA5-Land averaged monthly data of volumetric soil moisture and ESA CCI land cover data. Average anomalies have been calculated for both land and cropland exposure to drought. The dataset has a global coverage on a national level; on the sub-national TL2 level (i.e. large subnational regions) results are reported for all OECD countries as well as for Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia and South Africa. A number of aggregates are included: Euro area, European Union, Advanced economies, Emerging market economies, G7, G20, OECD, OECD Europe, OECD Asia Oceania, OECD Americas and the LAC region. Data source(s): Copernicus Climate Change Initiative land cover data and Copernicus Climate Data Store monthly soil moisture data (ERA5). Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org Database documentation