Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in World
World: Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly was -3.5 Percentage change in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in World, 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 World is -3.5 Percentage change, measured in 2025.
The figure is down 6.6% on the previous year and down 108.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in World peaked at 1.86 Percentage change in 1978 and was at its lowest, -3.78 Percentage change, in 2023.
That places World 1877th out of 3112 groups with data for 2025, putting it 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 World, year by year
| Year | Percentage change | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | -2.05 Percentage change | — |
| 1951 | -2.6 Percentage change | +27.2% |
| 1952 | -2.21 Percentage change | -15.2% |
| 1953 | -0.2717 Percentage change | -87.7% |
| 1954 | -0.5666 Percentage change | +108.5% |
| 1955 | -0.5404 Percentage change | -4.6% |
| 1956 | 0.0592 Percentage change | -111.0% |
| 1957 | -0.3302 Percentage change | -657.8% |
| 1958 | -0.1746 Percentage change | -47.1% |
| 1959 | -1.03 Percentage change | +490.7% |
| 1960 | -1.65 Percentage change | +59.5% |
| 1961 | -1.82 Percentage change | +10.8% |
| 1962 | -1.17 Percentage change | -35.9% |
| 1963 | -0.6635 Percentage change | -43.2% |
| 1964 | -0.5055 Percentage change | -23.8% |
| 1965 | -2.39 Percentage change | +372.2% |
| 1966 | -2.6 Percentage change | +9.0% |
| 1967 | -0.5487 Percentage change | -78.9% |
| 1968 | -0.0114 Percentage change | -97.9% |
| 1969 | -0.6347 Percentage change | +5480.0% |
| 1970 | -0.6038 Percentage change | -4.9% |
| 1971 | 0.6362 Percentage change | -205.4% |
| 1972 | 1.17 Percentage change | +84.6% |
| 1973 | 1.51 Percentage change | +28.3% |
| 1974 | 1.77 Percentage change | +17.3% |
| 1975 | 1.09 Percentage change | -38.1% |
| 1976 | 0.8851 Percentage change | -19.1% |
| 1977 | 0.8188 Percentage change | -7.5% |
| 1978 | 1.86 Percentage change | +126.6% |
| 1979 | 0.7516 Percentage change | -59.5% |
| 1980 | 0.8293 Percentage change | +10.3% |
| 1981 | 1.29 Percentage change | +56.1% |
| 1982 | 1.18 Percentage change | -9.0% |
| 1983 | 0.6601 Percentage change | -44.0% |
| 1984 | 1.25 Percentage change | +89.7% |
| 1985 | 1.83 Percentage change | +45.9% |
| 1986 | 1.5 Percentage change | -18.0% |
| 1987 | 0.6076 Percentage change | -59.4% |
| 1988 | 0.4273 Percentage change | -29.7% |
| 1989 | 0.5515 Percentage change | +29.1% |
| 1990 | 0.5999 Percentage change | +8.8% |
| 1991 | -0.3453 Percentage change | -157.6% |
| 1992 | 0.1507 Percentage change | -143.7% |
| 1993 | 1.11 Percentage change | +633.3% |
| 1994 | -0.1404 Percentage change | -112.7% |
| 1995 | -0.3141 Percentage change | +123.8% |
| 1996 | 0.8017 Percentage change | -355.2% |
| 1997 | 0.5908 Percentage change | -26.3% |
| 1998 | 0.412 Percentage change | -30.3% |
| 1999 | -0.1629 Percentage change | -139.6% |
| 2000 | -0.0993 Percentage change | -39.1% |
| 2001 | -0.6746 Percentage change | +579.6% |
| 2002 | -1.93 Percentage change | +185.9% |
| 2003 | -0.7746 Percentage change | -59.8% |
| 2004 | -0.5319 Percentage change | -31.3% |
| 2005 | -1.03 Percentage change | +93.1% |
| 2006 | -1.03 Percentage change | +0.1% |
| 2007 | -1.88 Percentage change | +82.4% |
| 2008 | -1.72 Percentage change | -8.1% |
| 2009 | -1.91 Percentage change | +10.8% |
| 2010 | -0.4186 Percentage change | -78.1% |
| 2011 | -1.62 Percentage change | +286.9% |
| 2012 | -2.35 Percentage change | +45.4% |
| 2013 | -1.49 Percentage change | -36.6% |
| 2014 | -1.66 Percentage change | +11.4% |
| 2015 | -1.68 Percentage change | +1.3% |
| 2016 | -1.29 Percentage change | -23.5% |
| 2017 | -1.13 Percentage change | -12.1% |
| 2018 | -1.61 Percentage change | +42.6% |
| 2019 | -2.45 Percentage change | +51.8% |
| 2020 | -2.6 Percentage change | +6.3% |
| 2021 | -3.22 Percentage change | +23.5% |
| 2022 | -2.72 Percentage change | -15.4% |
| 2023 | -3.78 Percentage change | +38.8% |
| 2024 | -3.29 Percentage change | -12.9% |
| 2025 | -3.5 Percentage change | +6.6% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly in World 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | -5480.0% | -0.0114 Percentage change | -0.6347 Percentage change |
| 1957 | -657.8% | 0.0592 Percentage change | -0.3302 Percentage change |
| 1993 | +633.3% | 0.1507 Percentage change | 1.11 Percentage change |
| 2001 | -579.6% | -0.0993 Percentage change | -0.6746 Percentage change |
| 1959 | -490.7% | -0.1746 Percentage change | -1.03 Percentage change |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | -0.9712 Percentage change | -2.6 Percentage change | 0.0592 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1960s | -1.2 Percentage change | -2.6 Percentage change | -0.0114 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.9886 Percentage change | -0.6038 Percentage change | 1.86 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.01 Percentage change | 0.4273 Percentage change | 1.83 Percentage change | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.2698 Percentage change | -0.3453 Percentage change | 1.11 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2000s | -1.16 Percentage change | -1.93 Percentage change | -0.0993 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2010s | -1.57 Percentage change | -2.45 Percentage change | -0.4186 Percentage change | 10 |
| 2020s | -3.19 Percentage change | -3.78 Percentage change | -2.6 Percentage change | 6 |
More environment data for World
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -2.99 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.208 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.88 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 4.53 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 1.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 0.2123 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in World?
- Historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly in World was -3.5 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 World?
- The highest recorded value was 1.86 Percentage change in 1978.
- What is the lowest historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly recorded in World?
- The lowest recorded value was -3.78 Percentage change in 2023.
- How does World rank for historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly?
- World ranks 1877th out of 3112 groups with data for 2025.
- Is historical exposure to drought — land soil moisture anomaly rising or falling in World?
- Over the last ten years it is down 108.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this World 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.
Download this data
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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