Thursday May 14, 2026
Courthouse News Service —
Heavier downpours and longer dry stretches, attributed to climate change, are likely leaving less water available for ecosystems, groundwater and public supplies even in places on the planet that are experiencing more annual rainfall.
That’s the key finding from a study published Wednesday in the journal Nature.
Since soil can only absorb so much water at once, intense bursts of rain are more likely to pool at the surface and evaporate, rather than soak into the ground, researchers say in the study.
“It doesn’t matter where you are, more consolidated rainfall means less water is available for the land. We show that this phenomenon is consistent worldwide, what physically accounts for it, and what we should expect going forward,” said Justin Mankin, the study’s senior author and an associate professor of geography at Dartmouth College.
Researchers analyzed global precipitation records from 1980 to 2022 and found rainfall patterns shifting toward fewer, heavier storms in many regions, regardless of whether those areas were historically wet or dry.