A monthly global dataset of a multiscalar drought index is presented and compared in terms of spatial and temporal variability with the existing continental and global drought datasets based on the Palmer drought severity index (PDSI, scPDSI). The new dataset is based on the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI). The index was obtained from the CRU TS3.0 data, covering time scales from 1 to 48 months for the period 1901-2006, and has a spatial resolution of 0.5°. The advantages of the new dataset are that: i) it improves the spatial resolution of the unique global drought dataset at a global scale; ii) it is spatially and temporally comparable to other datasets, given the probabilistic nature of the SPEI, and, in particular; iii) it enables identification of various drought types, given the multiscalar character of the SPEI. More details at: http://www.eead.csic.es/spei/spei.html

Format: netcdf The netcdf archive is composed of 96 zipped files containing the spei dataset from 1901 to 2006 at 1 to 48 months time scales, separated for the East hemisphere (i.e. Europa, Africa, Asia and Australia) and the West hemisphere (the Americas). Each zipped file contains one single netCDF file (.nc), i.e. no header files are necessary because all necessary meta-data are self-contained in the .nc file. Naming convention spei_[tempscale]_[hemisphere].zip, where [tempscale] is a number between 1 and 48 indicating the temporal scale of the index (months), and [hemisphere] indicates the fraction of the World covered and can have values eh (East hemisphere) or wh (West hemisphere). Example: spei_12_eh.zip

All currently available gridded drought datasets at continental and global scales are based on either the PDSI or the sc-PDSI. A new global drought dataset based on the Standardised Precipitation-Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) has been developed, which covers time scales from 1-48 months at a spatial resolution of 0.5°, and provides temporal coverage for the period 1901-2006. This dataset represents an improvement in spatial resolution and operative capability of previous gridded drought datasets based on the PDSI, and enables identification of various drought types.

The Global 0.5° gridded SPEI dataset is made available under the Open Database License. Any rights in individual contents of the database are licensed under the Database Contents License. Users of the dataset are free to share, create and adapt under the conditions of attribution and share-alike. Use of the newest version is recommended. Older versions are still available to allow replicability.

The dataset is freely available on the web repository of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) in three different formats (NetCDF, binary raster, and plain text).

Peer reviewed