Articles | Volume 25, issue 4
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1761-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1761-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
07 Apr 2021
Research article |
| 07 Apr 2021
| 07 Apr 2021
Space–time variability in soil moisture droughts in the Himalayan region
International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD),
Kathmandu, Nepal
Saurav Pradhananga
International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD),
Kathmandu, Nepal
Narayan Kumar Shrestha
International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD),
Kathmandu, Nepal
School of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, Canada
Sven Kralisch
Department of Geoinformation Science, Friedrich Schiller University
Jena, Jena, Germany
Institute of Data Science, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Jena,
Germany
Jayandra P. Shrestha
International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD),
Kathmandu, Nepal
Department of Civil and Natural Resources Engineering, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand
Manfred Fink
Department of Geoinformation Science, Friedrich Schiller University
Jena, Jena, Germany
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- Spatiotemporal analysis of future drought vulnerability in the Hindu Kush Region: A case study of the Karnali River Basin S. Hamal et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-024-05347-1
- Advances in surface water hydrology research in India T. Chauhan et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43538-024-00234-9
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- Towards the development of an isotope‐enabled rainfall‐runoff model: Improving the ability to capture hydrological and anthropogenic change A. Watson et al. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.14819
- Study on the propagation characteristics and triggering thresholds of meteorological, hydrological and agricultural drought in the Mu Us sandy land X. Wang et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cliser.2026.100648
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30 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Future snow projections in a small basin of the Western Himalaya S. Nepal et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.148587
- SGD-SM 2.0: an improved seamless global daily soil moisture long-term dataset from 2002 to 2022 Q. Zhang et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-4473-2022
- Multi-mode SAR observations of interannual frozen regimes of glacial lakes in central Himalaya M. Zhang et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrh.2026.103870
- Assessment of meteorological, agricultural and hydrological droughts in Central Himalaya region under climate change L. Wang et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102586
- Using soil-moisture drought indices to evaluate key indicators of agricultural drought in semi-arid Mediterranean Southern Africa A. Watson et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.152464
- Variation of hydro-climatic extremes in headwater regions of Hei River basin under climate change L. Wang et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrh.2023.101561
- Quantifying agricultural drought in the Koshi River basin through soil moisture simulation P. Banjara et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrh.2024.102132
- SPEI-Based Drought Frequency, Intensity, and Duration from CMIP6 Models Under SSP1-2.6 and SSP5-8.5 Across Tropical–Subtropical Monsoon Asia M. Liu et al. https://doi.org/10.3390/w18141745
- Application of ESACCI SM product-assimilated to a statistical model to assess the drought propagation for different Agro-Climatic zones of India using copula H. Palagiri et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jag.2024.103701
- Investigating climate change impacts on runoff and sediment transport processes in the midstream of the Yarlung Tsangpo river based on hydrological simulation L. Wang et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2025.108920
- Assessment of the river flow regimes over the Chitral and Gilgit Basins, Pakistan, under IPCC climate change scenarios using the HyMoLAP-SM model S. Hassan & M. Khan https://doi.org/10.2166/wcc.2022.151
- Quantifying Residual Soil Moisture through Empirical Orthogonal Functions Analysis to Support Legume-Based Cropping Systems T. Jimma et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41748-024-00514-w
- Climatic variability impact on river flow modeling of Chitral and Gilgit stations, Pakistan S. Hassan & M. Khan https://doi.org/10.1007/s40808-022-01364-z
- Rainfall thresholds for flood early warning in the Babai River Basin, Nepal using rainfall-runoff modelling D. Pradhan et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44288-026-00631-1
- Assessing water use efficiency reactivity to meteorological, hydrological, and agricultural droughts on the Mongolian Plateau L. Mei et al. https://doi.org/10.1080/17538947.2024.2398056
- Contributions of meteorological and vegetation factors to surface and root zone soil moisture variability across India's Agro-ecological regions A. Naidu et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsase.2025.101803
- Drought dynamics, teleconnection controls, and ecosystem response in the Northwest Himalayan Region: historical evolution and future projections . Neha et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-026-06639-4
- Drought, temperature, and moisture availability: understanding the drivers of isotopic decoupling in native pine species of the Nepalese Himalaya S. Aryal et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00484-024-02647-z
- Spatiotemporal analysis of future drought vulnerability in the Hindu Kush Region: A case study of the Karnali River Basin S. Hamal et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-024-05347-1
- Advances in surface water hydrology research in India T. Chauhan et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43538-024-00234-9
- Elevation controls bacterial branched GDGT-based temperature proxies: A regional to global perspective B. Roy et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2025.105101
- Better Drought Index between SPEI and SMDI and the Key Parameters in Denoting Drought Impacts on Spring Wheat Yields in Qinghai, China M. Hou et al. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12071552
- Towards the development of an isotope‐enabled rainfall‐runoff model: Improving the ability to capture hydrological and anthropogenic change A. Watson et al. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.14819
- Study on the propagation characteristics and triggering thresholds of meteorological, hydrological and agricultural drought in the Mu Us sandy land X. Wang et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cliser.2026.100648
- Co-optimization of soil moisture spatial variability and hydraulic performance of subsurface drip irrigation network based on HHO M. Li & D. Bai https://doi.org/10.1007/s00271-026-01189-z
- Challenges in Understanding the Variability of the Cryosphere in the Himalaya and Its Impact on Regional Water Resources B. Vishwakarma et al. https://doi.org/10.3389/frwa.2022.909246
- Evaluation of long-term changes in water balances in the Nepal Himalayas R. Talchabhadel & R. Chhetri https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-023-04646-3
- Climate change will exacerbate seasonal flow variability in the Karnali River basin: Implications for water, energy, and agriculture sectors S. Pradhananga et al. https://doi.org/10.2166/nh.2025.193
- Advancing isotope‐enabled hydrological modelling for ungauged calibration of data‐scarce humid tropical catchments A. Watson et al. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.15065
- Short-term satellite soil moisture for agricultural drought characterization over Godavari basin, India H. Palagiri et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-025-14044-z
Saved (final revised paper)
Latest update: 12 Nov 2026
Short summary
This paper examines soil moisture drought in the central Himalayan region by applying a process-based hydrological model. Our results suggest that both the occurrence and severity of droughts have increased over the last 3 decades, especially in the winter and
pre-monsoon seasons. The insights provided into the frequency, spatial coverage, and severity of the drought conditions can provide valuable inputs towards improved management of water resources and greater agricultural productivity.
This paper examines soil moisture drought in the central Himalayan region by applying a...
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