Climate and rainfall trend analysis in Ramanathapuram district, Tamil Nadu

Abstract

Water resources and their planning and management can benefit greatly from rainfall predictions. The most important phenomenon is the fluctuating climate. It affects the world's water supplies and rainfall patterns. In order to plan and carry out regional projects like sustainable agriculture, rainfall data has become increasingly important. However, little less is known about the causes and spatiotemporal shift characteristics of extreme occurrences under climate change, particularly in Tamil Nadu's drought zones. Considering the secondary data from 1990-2022, this study examined the spatiotemporal change characteristics and trend analysis of extreme rainfall occurrences in Ramanathapuram district of Tamil Nadu. This study examines and compares the rainfall throughout four seasons and the level of instability in—Ramanathapuram district which lies inthe Southern Zone of Tamil Nadu. The information was collected from seasonal crop reports, Department of Economics and Statistics in Chennai as well as from Tamil Nadu's policy and statistical reports. This research offers an in-depth evaluation of trend prevailing in the district. The results provide results on climate change and patterns in the area by highlighting clear differences in rainfall trends and instability. Thirteen years show positive SPI and the rest of the 18 years show negative SPI which shows drier years. Only two years shows normal precipitation conditions (0.08 in 2021 and 0.02 in 1996). When comparing the Ramanathapuram district to the other three districts, the temporal fluctuations show a decrease in rainfall.