Developed by NOAA’s National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) program, the U.S. Drought Portal offers access to maps, data, and expert assessments through easy-to-use tools designed to help decision makers monitor, plan for, and recover from water shortages.

The interactive system provides:

• Early warnings on emerging and anticipated droughts.
• Announcements of upcoming Drought Assessment Webinars and Workshops.
• Quality-controlled climate data, including historical drought data for comparison to current conditions.
• Decision-support services for managing the impacts of drought.
• A forum for a range of stakeholders to discuss drought-related issues.

The U.S. Drought Portal includes:

• The U.S. Drought Monitor, providing up-to-date drought maps at the national, regional, and state level.
• A GIS Map and Data Viewer.
• The Drought Monitor Graphics tool, which creates custom drought charts and graphs.
• The GIS-based Climate Reference Network (CRN) Soil Moisture viewer.
• Weekly Drought Update.

The Portal also provides links to regional drought programs and local, state, and regional drought resources, as well as information on drought-related planning, education, research, and recovery.