Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in South America
South America: Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly was -4.98 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in South America, 1950–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
The most recent figure for historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in South America is -4.98 Percentage change, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of up 49.5% on the previous year and down 77.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in South America peaked at 3.62 Percentage change in 1985 and was at its lowest, -9.86 Percentage change, in 2024.
South America ranks 40th of 72 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in South America, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | -1.52 Percentage change | — |
| 1951 | -0.9674 Percentage change | -36.3% |
| 1952 | -1.32 Percentage change | +36.1% |
| 1953 | -0.3939 Percentage change | -70.1% |
| 1954 | -1.59 Percentage change | +303.3% |
| 1955 | -2.23 Percentage change | +40.6% |
| 1956 | 2.15 Percentage change | -196.2% |
| 1957 | -2.51 Percentage change | -216.6% |
| 1958 | -2.4 Percentage change | -4.1% |
| 1959 | -3.16 Percentage change | +31.4% |
| 1960 | -3.49 Percentage change | +10.5% |
| 1961 | -8.88 Percentage change | +154.5% |
| 1962 | -4 Percentage change | -54.9% |
| 1963 | -5.96 Percentage change | +48.9% |
| 1964 | -2.36 Percentage change | -60.5% |
| 1965 | -3.72 Percentage change | +57.9% |
| 1966 | -0.913 Percentage change | -75.5% |
| 1967 | -0.7546 Percentage change | -17.4% |
| 1968 | -2.53 Percentage change | +234.9% |
| 1969 | -4.12 Percentage change | +63.2% |
| 1970 | -2.47 Percentage change | -40.0% |
| 1971 | 0.3123 Percentage change | -112.6% |
| 1972 | -1.19 Percentage change | -479.4% |
| 1973 | 2.58 Percentage change | -317.3% |
| 1974 | 1.22 Percentage change | -52.7% |
| 1975 | 1.47 Percentage change | +20.6% |
| 1976 | -0.0164 Percentage change | -101.1% |
| 1977 | 0.7845 Percentage change | -4891.2% |
| 1978 | 1.6 Percentage change | +103.5% |
| 1979 | 0.322 Percentage change | -79.8% |
| 1980 | 0.3947 Percentage change | +22.6% |
| 1981 | 0.0112 Percentage change | -97.2% |
| 1982 | 2 Percentage change | +17783.1% |
| 1983 | 0.9963 Percentage change | -50.2% |
| 1984 | 3.29 Percentage change | +230.4% |
| 1985 | 3.62 Percentage change | +10.0% |
| 1986 | 2.74 Percentage change | -24.4% |
| 1987 | 0.7804 Percentage change | -71.5% |
| 1988 | -1.36 Percentage change | -274.5% |
| 1989 | 1.79 Percentage change | -231.1% |
| 1990 | 0.9114 Percentage change | -49.0% |
| 1991 | 0.317 Percentage change | -65.2% |
| 1992 | 1.3 Percentage change | +310.2% |
| 1993 | 0.4918 Percentage change | -62.2% |
| 1994 | 1.26 Percentage change | +155.3% |
| 1995 | -1.66 Percentage change | -232.3% |
| 1996 | 0.1567 Percentage change | -109.4% |
| 1997 | -0.635 Percentage change | -505.3% |
| 1998 | -0.8883 Percentage change | +39.9% |
| 1999 | 0.4809 Percentage change | -154.1% |
| 2000 | 1.6 Percentage change | +233.2% |
| 2001 | 0.4795 Percentage change | -70.1% |
| 2002 | -0.0337 Percentage change | -107.0% |
| 2003 | -2.05 Percentage change | +5979.8% |
| 2004 | -1.57 Percentage change | -23.3% |
| 2005 | -1.35 Percentage change | -14.1% |
| 2006 | -1.51 Percentage change | +11.6% |
| 2007 | -4.21 Percentage change | +179.5% |
| 2008 | -1.41 Percentage change | -66.5% |
| 2009 | -2.65 Percentage change | +88.5% |
| 2010 | -2.9 Percentage change | +9.2% |
| 2011 | -1.85 Percentage change | -36.2% |
| 2012 | -3.49 Percentage change | +89.1% |
| 2013 | -2.54 Percentage change | -27.2% |
| 2014 | -1.74 Percentage change | -31.7% |
| 2015 | -2.81 Percentage change | +62.0% |
| 2016 | -3.47 Percentage change | +23.5% |
| 2017 | -1.23 Percentage change | -64.6% |
| 2018 | -2.73 Percentage change | +121.5% |
| 2019 | -5.16 Percentage change | +89.4% |
| 2020 | -5.77 Percentage change | +11.7% |
| 2021 | -5.4 Percentage change | -6.3% |
| 2022 | -6.28 Percentage change | +16.2% |
| 2023 | -8.7 Percentage change | +38.6% |
| 2024 | -9.86 Percentage change | +13.3% |
| 2025 | -4.98 Percentage change | -49.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | -1.39 Percentage change | -3.16 Percentage change | 2.15 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1960s | -3.67 Percentage change | -8.88 Percentage change | -0.7546 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.4603 Percentage change | -2.47 Percentage change | 2.58 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.43 Percentage change | -1.36 Percentage change | 3.62 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.173 Percentage change | -1.66 Percentage change | 1.3 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -1.27 Percentage change | -4.21 Percentage change | 1.6 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -2.79 Percentage change | -5.16 Percentage change | -1.23 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -6.83 Percentage change | -9.86 Percentage change | -4.98 Percentage change | 6 |
Countries ranked near South America
- 37 Thailand 1.44 Percentage change compare
- 38 Suriname 1.4 Percentage change compare
- 39 Indonesia 1.36 Percentage change compare
- 40 Sweden 1.1 Percentage change compare
- 41 Norway 0.9857 Percentage change compare
- 42 Liechtenstein 0.7508 Percentage change compare
- 43 Mexico 0.6859 Percentage change compare
More environment data for South America
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -6.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.218 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.23 °C (2025)
- Roundwood — Production 477.72 million m3 (2024)
- Roundwood, non-coniferous — Production 379.32 million m3 (2024)
- Roundwood, coniferous — Production 98.40 million m3 (2024)
- Roundwood — Export value 589,290 1000 USD (2024)
- Roundwood — Export quantity 4.28 million m3 (2024)
- Roundwood — Import value 18,446 1000 USD (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in South America?
- Historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in South America was -4.98 Percentage change in 2025, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in South America?
- The highest recorded value was 3.62 Percentage change in 1985.
- What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in South America?
- The lowest recorded value was -9.86 Percentage change in 2024.
- How does South America rank for historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly?
- South America ranks 40th out of 72 groups with data for 2025.
- Is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in South America?
- Over the last ten years it is down 77.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this South America data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Historical 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 (0 to 7 cm) 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 1981-2024 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 based on the ERA5-Land reanalysis dataset. Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org