Abstract
Droughts are a recurrent phenomenon in the Mediterranean basin with negative consequences for society, economic activities, and natural systems. Nevertheless, the study of drought recurrence and severity in Spain has been limited so far due to the relatively short instrumental period. In this work, we present a reconstruction of the standardized precipitation index (SPI) for the Iberian Range. Growth variations and climatic signals within the network are assessed developing a correlation matrix and the data combined to a single chronology integrating 336 samples from 169 trees of five different pine species distributed throughout the province of Teruel. The new chronology, calibrated against regional instrumental climatic data, shows a high and stable correlation with the July SPI integrating moisture conditions over 12months forming the basis for a 318-year drought reconstruction. The climate signal contained in this reconstruction is highly significant (p < 0.05) and spatially robust over the interior areas of Spain located above 1000 meters above sea level (masl). According to our SPI reconstruction, seven substantially dry and five wet periods are identified since the late seventeenth century considering ≥±1.76 standard deviations. Besides these, 36 drought and 28 pluvial years were identified. Some of these years, such as 1725, 1741, 1803, and 1879, are also revealed in other drought reconstructions in Romania and Turkey, suggesting that coherent larger-scale synoptic patterns drove these extreme deviations. Since regional drought deviations are also retained in historical documents, the tree-ring-based reconstruction presented here will allow us to cross-validate drought frequency and magnitude in a highly vulnerable region.
Highlights
Nowadays, there is a high consensus on the possible increase of the average temperature of the planet in upcoming decades
The high intersite correlations reaching 0.46 from 1940 to 1977 and 0.42 over the full overlapping period justified the development of a 511-year chronology for the eastern Iberian Range covering the 1503–2013 time period (Fig. 4)
The highest correlation is found between the highest elevation sites for both P. uncinata (PRU and 495) and P. sylvestris (PRS and PER) whereas the lowest correlation is found between the lowest P. halepensis site (PDH) and the highest P. sylvestris site (PER)
Summary
There is a high consensus on the possible increase of the average temperature of the planet in upcoming decades. Such a trend is less evident in precipitation. Several studies analyzing the instrumental data from Spain suggest that drought severity has increased over the past five decades (Vicente-Serrano et al 2011, 2014). The relative short observational data make it difficult to determine changes in drought severity (Redmond 2002) resulting in low confidence in drought trends worldwide (Seneviratne et al 2012). Despite of major recent efforts, knowledge of droughts affecting the Iberian Peninsula is severely limited due to the fact that most of the historical instrumental climatic records do not begin until the 1950s (Gonzalez-Hidalgo et al 2011)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
