Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Townsville
Townsville: Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly was 19.21 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in Townsville, 1950–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage change.
Analysis
In 2025, historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Townsville stood at 19.21 Percentage change.
The figure is up 3.0% on the previous year and up 223.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Townsville peaked at 34.12 Percentage change in 2010 and was at its lowest, -23.44 Percentage change, in 1969.
Townsville ranks 7th of 3112 regions on this measure, in the top 10%.
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 Townsville, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 28.4 Percentage change | — |
| 1951 | -14.92 Percentage change | -152.6% |
| 1952 | -10.32 Percentage change | -30.9% |
| 1953 | -11.77 Percentage change | +14.1% |
| 1954 | -8.32 Percentage change | -29.3% |
| 1955 | 3.53 Percentage change | -142.4% |
| 1956 | 25.84 Percentage change | +632.9% |
| 1957 | 6.18 Percentage change | -76.1% |
| 1958 | 3.1 Percentage change | -49.9% |
| 1959 | 3.2 Percentage change | +3.3% |
| 1960 | -9.58 Percentage change | -399.5% |
| 1961 | -11.53 Percentage change | +20.3% |
| 1962 | -18.41 Percentage change | +59.7% |
| 1963 | 11.1 Percentage change | -160.3% |
| 1964 | -17.53 Percentage change | -258.0% |
| 1965 | -14.27 Percentage change | -18.6% |
| 1966 | -22.04 Percentage change | +54.4% |
| 1967 | -13.13 Percentage change | -40.4% |
| 1968 | -6.19 Percentage change | -52.9% |
| 1969 | -23.44 Percentage change | +278.8% |
| 1970 | -14.9 Percentage change | -36.5% |
| 1971 | 1.86 Percentage change | -112.5% |
| 1972 | -5.25 Percentage change | -381.7% |
| 1973 | -5.68 Percentage change | +8.3% |
| 1974 | 21.17 Percentage change | -472.5% |
| 1975 | 13.51 Percentage change | -36.2% |
| 1976 | 9.69 Percentage change | -28.3% |
| 1977 | 1.37 Percentage change | -85.9% |
| 1978 | 6.37 Percentage change | +364.6% |
| 1979 | -1.86 Percentage change | -129.2% |
| 1980 | -5.63 Percentage change | +203.2% |
| 1981 | 25.44 Percentage change | -552.0% |
| 1982 | -13.6 Percentage change | -153.5% |
| 1983 | 6.16 Percentage change | -145.3% |
| 1984 | -0.3674 Percentage change | -106.0% |
| 1985 | -4.42 Percentage change | +1104.6% |
| 1986 | 3.48 Percentage change | -178.7% |
| 1987 | -9.53 Percentage change | -373.4% |
| 1988 | 7.48 Percentage change | -178.5% |
| 1989 | 16.14 Percentage change | +115.8% |
| 1990 | -0.951 Percentage change | -105.9% |
| 1991 | -3.05 Percentage change | +221.0% |
| 1992 | -17.99 Percentage change | +489.3% |
| 1993 | -15.38 Percentage change | -14.5% |
| 1994 | -14.45 Percentage change | -6.0% |
| 1995 | -17.15 Percentage change | +18.7% |
| 1996 | -20.46 Percentage change | +19.3% |
| 1997 | 8 Percentage change | -139.1% |
| 1998 | 33.64 Percentage change | +320.4% |
| 1999 | 13.58 Percentage change | -59.6% |
| 2000 | 19.12 Percentage change | +40.8% |
| 2001 | 3.03 Percentage change | -84.1% |
| 2002 | -21.48 Percentage change | -807.9% |
| 2003 | -13.35 Percentage change | -37.9% |
| 2004 | -10.73 Percentage change | -19.6% |
| 2005 | -18.47 Percentage change | +72.1% |
| 2006 | -4.75 Percentage change | -74.3% |
| 2007 | 6.99 Percentage change | -247.0% |
| 2008 | 10.36 Percentage change | +48.2% |
| 2009 | -1.41 Percentage change | -113.6% |
| 2010 | 34.12 Percentage change | -2518.4% |
| 2011 | 17.24 Percentage change | -49.5% |
| 2012 | 23.11 Percentage change | +34.0% |
| 2013 | -5.06 Percentage change | -121.9% |
| 2014 | -8.42 Percentage change | +66.5% |
| 2015 | -15.51 Percentage change | +84.1% |
| 2016 | -4.43 Percentage change | -71.5% |
| 2017 | -12.56 Percentage change | +183.7% |
| 2018 | -8.77 Percentage change | -30.2% |
| 2019 | 3.74 Percentage change | -142.7% |
| 2020 | -2.21 Percentage change | -158.9% |
| 2021 | 22.62 Percentage change | -1125.7% |
| 2022 | 23.25 Percentage change | +2.8% |
| 2023 | 0.5065 Percentage change | -97.8% |
| 2024 | 18.65 Percentage change | +3582.9% |
| 2025 | 19.21 Percentage change | +3.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 2.49 Percentage change | -14.92 Percentage change | 28.4 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1960s | -12.5 Percentage change | -23.44 Percentage change | 11.1 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.63 Percentage change | -14.9 Percentage change | 21.17 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.52 Percentage change | -13.6 Percentage change | 25.44 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1990s | -3.42 Percentage change | -20.46 Percentage change | 33.64 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -3.07 Percentage change | -21.48 Percentage change | 19.12 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.35 Percentage change | -15.51 Percentage change | 34.12 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.67 Percentage change | -2.21 Percentage change | 23.25 Percentage change | 6 |
Countries ranked near Townsville
- 4 Mauritius 9.92 Percentage change compare
- 5 Northern Mariana Islands 8.23 Percentage change compare
- 6 New Caledonia 7.82 Percentage change compare
- 7 Philippines 6.85 Percentage change compare
- 8 San Marino 6.82 Percentage change compare
- 9 Botswana 6.04 Percentage change compare
- 10 Panama 5.66 Percentage change compare
More environment data for Townsville
- Drought - Cities and FUAs — Land soil moisture anomaly 18.9 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 12.4 Percentage change (2025)
- Greenhouse gas emissions - Cities and FUAs — GHG emissions from waste 0.03 Tonnes of CO2-equivalent (2024)
- River flooding exposure — Cropland share exposed to river flooding 53.7 Percentage of agricultural land area (2022)
- Total and environment-related patents - FUAs — Patent applications 6.1 Patents (2022)
- Land surface temperature - Cities and FUAs — Daytime summer land 35.57 Degrees celsius (2024)
- Land surface temperature - Cities and FUAs — Daytime winter land 27.21 Degrees celsius (2024)
- Land surface temperature - Cities and FUAs — Daytime yearly land 30.98 Degrees celsius (2024)
- Land surface temperature - Cities and FUAs — Nighttime summer land 23.54 Degrees celsius (2024)
- Land surface temperature - Cities and FUAs — Nighttime winter land 16 Degrees celsius (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Townsville?
- Historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in Townsville was 19.21 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 Townsville?
- The highest recorded value was 34.12 Percentage change in 2010.
- What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in Townsville?
- The lowest recorded value was -23.44 Percentage change in 1969.
- How does Townsville rank for historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly?
- Townsville ranks 7th out of 3112 regions with data for 2025.
- Is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in Townsville?
- Over the last ten years it is up 223.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Townsville 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