Assessment of the temporal and Spatial Pattern of Drought in Meteorology and Hydrogeology in Arid and Desert Regions (case study: Bam plain)

Changes in temporal and spatial patterns of droughts are always a pivotal element of water resource planning, and the necessary strategies for policy-making and integrated water resources management are considered based on this parameter. Drought is a phenomenon degrading the lands and sometimes causes irreparable damages. In this research, SPI and GRI indices were used to study the spatial and temporal patterns of meteorological and hydrological droughts in Bam Plain. The results of this study showed that the most severe meteorological drought and the most severe wet occurred in 2002 and 2014 in the study area, respectively. Also, the most severe hydrological wet (SHW) and the most severe hydrological drought (SHD) are related to 2002 and 2014, respectively. Meanwhile, the hydrological drought temporal pattern occurs with a one-year delay as compared with meteorological drought in the study area. According to the results of the spatial pattern analysis, the moderate and normal drought classes covered most of the region. In addition, as moving from east to west, the severity of drought is increased and wet periods are mostly observed in the northeast of the region.