ARIDITY SPATIAL CHANGES IN ARGENTINA: EXPLORATORY ANALYSIS TO UNDERSTAND DESERTIFICATION IN THE COUNTRY

BLANCO PEDRO SAMUEL; DOYLE MOIRA EVELINA

Cachoeira Paulista

Simposio; X Simpósio da Pós-Graduação em Ciência do Sistema Terrestre; 2021

Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE)

Aridity is a climatic condition characterized by the permanent natural water deficit in the environment; this concept is related to desertification, since persistent moisture deficit favors the expansion of arid regions. In fact, some regions of the planet are continuously becoming more arid which in consequence increases the impact on the population and its resources. The goal here is to examine the changes in aridity in Argentina by comparing the 1961-1990 and 1991-2018 periods. Based on the De Martonne aridity index, aridity maps were prepared for the study periods, quantifying the area and spatial changes for each category of the index, and the changes (gains or losses) and persistence were mapped. In general, the aridity in Argentina shows spatial patterns that persist over time, although the bordering areas of the different categories suffer changes due to advances (gains) or setbacks (losses) of other categories. This result is important since it will serve as a basis for the identification of the most susceptible areas to future desertification.