Study Warns California , Continues to Face , Threat of Megadrought.<br />'Newsweek' reports that California may <br />not have cured the state's water woes, <br />despite several years of snow-heavy winters. .<br />According to NASA satellite data, recent snowfall has been insufficient to offset the impact of an ongoing megadrought across the western states. .<br />A new paper published in the journal, 'Geophysical Research <br />Letters', details how groundwater supplies remain <br />concerning for both domestic and agricultural use.<br />Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellites <br />revealed that the entire Great Basin groundwater supply <br />has dropped by 16.5 cubic miles in the last 20 years.<br />The data highlights that while snowmelt does <br />help resupply groundwater levels, it is not <br />enough to replenish the current diminished levels.<br />In years like the 2022-23 winter, <br />I expected that the record amount <br />of snowfall would really help to <br />replenish the groundwater supply. <br />But overall, the decline continued, Dorothy Hall, Study co-author and University <br />of Maryland earth scientist, via NASA statement.<br />'Newsweek' reports that the U.S. southwest <br />has been facing a megadrought since <br />the beginning of the millennium. .<br />A megadrought is a drought <br />that lasts two or more decades. , Jonathan Overpeck, Dean of environmental studies at the University of Michigan, via 'Newsweek'.<br />The current southwest <br />megadrought started in 1999 <br />and has become the longest <br />drought in U.S. history, and also the <br />most severe in at least 1,200 years, Jonathan Overpeck, Dean of environmental studies at the University of Michigan, via 'Newsweek'.<br />With the ongoing threat of <br />drought, farmers downstream <br />often can't get enough water. <br />The ultimate solution will have to <br />include wiser water management, Dorothy Hall, Study co-author and University <br />of Maryland earth scientist, via NASA statement
