Evaluation of climate indices related to water resources in Iran over the past 3 decades

Abstract Climate change has significantly altered water resources globally. This study examines the effects of climate change on Iran’s water resources using twelve climate indices developed by the Expert Team on Climate Change Detection and Indices (ETCCDI) from 1992 to 2022. Daily climate data wer...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Fatemeh Chaparinia, Mostafa Hadei, Kamyar Yaghmaeian, Mahdi Hadi, Kazem Naddafi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-04-01
Series:Scientific Reports
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-95370-7
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850145465894436864
author Fatemeh Chaparinia
Mostafa Hadei
Kamyar Yaghmaeian
Mahdi Hadi
Kazem Naddafi
author_facet Fatemeh Chaparinia
Mostafa Hadei
Kamyar Yaghmaeian
Mahdi Hadi
Kazem Naddafi
author_sort Fatemeh Chaparinia
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Climate change has significantly altered water resources globally. This study examines the effects of climate change on Iran’s water resources using twelve climate indices developed by the Expert Team on Climate Change Detection and Indices (ETCCDI) from 1992 to 2022. Daily climate data were obtained from the Global Surface Summary of the Day (GSOD) database, which includes quality-controlled data from Iran’s Meteorological Organization. The GSOD data undergo extensive automated quality control processes to eliminate random errors and ensure data reliability. Long-term trends were analyzed using linear regression, and spatial patterns were identified using K-means and hierarchical clustering methods. Analysis of 29 provincial capitals revealed significant trends in precipitation and temperature patterns. Temperature indices showed widespread increases, with 75.86% of cities experiencing significant rises in Mean daily mean temperature (TMm) (p < 0.05, up to 0.16 °C/year) and 96.55% showing increases in Mean daily maximum temperature (TXm). Heavy precipitation indices showed significant decreases (p < 0.05): 11.11% of cities for Annual Total Precipitation from Very Wet Days (R95pTOT) and 22.22% for Extremely Wet Days (R99pTOT). Annual Total Wet-Day Precipitation (PRCPTOT) showed spatial variation, with Rasht showing a significant increase (19.07 mm/year, p < 0.05), while Bojnourd exhibited a decrease (− 4.28 mm/year, p > 0.05). The Consecutive Dry Days (CDD) index showed a significant increase in 14.81% of the cities, with Khorramabad experiencing the highest increase of 4.4 days/year (p < 0.05). Fraction of days with above average temperature (TXgt50p) increased significantly in over 70% of the cities. Study limitations include incomplete data for Karaj and Qom, and missing precipitation records for Kermanshah and Sari. These findings reflect significant impact of climate change on Iran’s climate patterns, indicating increased water scarcity. Effective water resource management and climate adaptation are crucial.
format Article
id doaj-art-c1b8adeec0044e8984dae4cacc5f2562
institution OA Journals
issn 2045-2322
language English
publishDate 2025-04-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
record_format Article
series Scientific Reports
spelling doaj-art-c1b8adeec0044e8984dae4cacc5f25622025-08-20T02:28:05ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-04-0115111410.1038/s41598-025-95370-7Evaluation of climate indices related to water resources in Iran over the past 3 decadesFatemeh Chaparinia0Mostafa Hadei1Kamyar Yaghmaeian2Mahdi Hadi3Kazem Naddafi4Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical SciencesDepartment of Health in Emergencies and Disasters, Tehran University of Medical SciencesDepartment of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical SciencesCenter for Water Quality Research (CWQR), Institute for Environmental Research (IER), Tehran University of Medical SciencesDepartment of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical SciencesAbstract Climate change has significantly altered water resources globally. This study examines the effects of climate change on Iran’s water resources using twelve climate indices developed by the Expert Team on Climate Change Detection and Indices (ETCCDI) from 1992 to 2022. Daily climate data were obtained from the Global Surface Summary of the Day (GSOD) database, which includes quality-controlled data from Iran’s Meteorological Organization. The GSOD data undergo extensive automated quality control processes to eliminate random errors and ensure data reliability. Long-term trends were analyzed using linear regression, and spatial patterns were identified using K-means and hierarchical clustering methods. Analysis of 29 provincial capitals revealed significant trends in precipitation and temperature patterns. Temperature indices showed widespread increases, with 75.86% of cities experiencing significant rises in Mean daily mean temperature (TMm) (p < 0.05, up to 0.16 °C/year) and 96.55% showing increases in Mean daily maximum temperature (TXm). Heavy precipitation indices showed significant decreases (p < 0.05): 11.11% of cities for Annual Total Precipitation from Very Wet Days (R95pTOT) and 22.22% for Extremely Wet Days (R99pTOT). Annual Total Wet-Day Precipitation (PRCPTOT) showed spatial variation, with Rasht showing a significant increase (19.07 mm/year, p < 0.05), while Bojnourd exhibited a decrease (− 4.28 mm/year, p > 0.05). The Consecutive Dry Days (CDD) index showed a significant increase in 14.81% of the cities, with Khorramabad experiencing the highest increase of 4.4 days/year (p < 0.05). Fraction of days with above average temperature (TXgt50p) increased significantly in over 70% of the cities. Study limitations include incomplete data for Karaj and Qom, and missing precipitation records for Kermanshah and Sari. These findings reflect significant impact of climate change on Iran’s climate patterns, indicating increased water scarcity. Effective water resource management and climate adaptation are crucial.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-95370-7Global warmingWater crisisWater managementClimate adaptationDrought
spellingShingle Fatemeh Chaparinia
Mostafa Hadei
Kamyar Yaghmaeian
Mahdi Hadi
Kazem Naddafi
Evaluation of climate indices related to water resources in Iran over the past 3 decades
Scientific Reports
Global warming
Water crisis
Water management
Climate adaptation
Drought
title Evaluation of climate indices related to water resources in Iran over the past 3 decades
title_full Evaluation of climate indices related to water resources in Iran over the past 3 decades
title_fullStr Evaluation of climate indices related to water resources in Iran over the past 3 decades
title_full_unstemmed Evaluation of climate indices related to water resources in Iran over the past 3 decades
title_short Evaluation of climate indices related to water resources in Iran over the past 3 decades
title_sort evaluation of climate indices related to water resources in iran over the past 3 decades
topic Global warming
Water crisis
Water management
Climate adaptation
Drought
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-95370-7
work_keys_str_mv AT fatemehchaparinia evaluationofclimateindicesrelatedtowaterresourcesiniranoverthepast3decades
AT mostafahadei evaluationofclimateindicesrelatedtowaterresourcesiniranoverthepast3decades
AT kamyaryaghmaeian evaluationofclimateindicesrelatedtowaterresourcesiniranoverthepast3decades
AT mahdihadi evaluationofclimateindicesrelatedtowaterresourcesiniranoverthepast3decades
AT kazemnaddafi evaluationofclimateindicesrelatedtowaterresourcesiniranoverthepast3decades