This study forecasts and assesses drought situations in various regions of India (the Araveli region, the Bundelkhand region, and the Kansabati river basin) based on seven simulated climates in the near future (2015–2044). The self-calibrating Palmer Drought Severity Index (scPDSI) was used based on its fairness in identifying drought conditions that account for the temperature as well. Gridded temperature and rainfall data of spatial resolution of 1 km were used to bias correct the multi-model ensemble mean of the Global Climatic Models from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) project. Equidistant quantile-based mapping was adopted to remove the bias in the rainfall and temperature data, which were corrected on a monthly scale. The outcome of the forecast suggests multiple severe-to-extreme drought events of appreciable durations, mostly after the 2030s, under most climate scenarios in all the three study areas. The severe-to-extreme drought duration was found to last at least 20 to 30 months in the near future in all three study areas. A high-resolution drought index was developed and proven to be a key to assessing the drought situation.

The complex interactions between soil moisture and precipitation are difficult to observe, and consequently there is a lack of consensus as to the sign, strength, and location of these interactions. Inconsistency between soil moisture–precipitation interaction studies can be attributed to a multitude of factors, including the difficulty of demonstrating causal relationships, dataset differences, and precipitation autocorrelation. The purpose of this study is to explore these potential confounding factors and determine which are most important for consideration when assessing statistical coupling between soil moisture and precipitation. Soil moisture is assessed via three remote sensing datasets: the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for Earth Observing System, the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission Microwave Imager, and the Essential Climate Variable Soil Moisture. Estimates of soil moisture are coupled with afternoon thunderstorm events identified by the Thunderstorm Observation by Radar (ThOR) algorithm, and dry soil or wet soil preferences for convection initiation are determined for over 16 000 thunderstorm events between 2005 and 2007. Differences in soil moisture datasets were found to have the largest impact with regard to determining wet or dry soil preferences. Precipitation autocorrelation is prevalent in the data; however, precipitation autocorrelation did not influence the results with regard to dry or wet soil preferences. Consideration of the convective environment (i.e., weakly or synoptically forced) did result in significant differences in wet/dry soil preference, but only for certain soil moisture datasets. The results suggest that observation-driven soil moisture–precipitation interaction studies should both consider the convective environment and implement multiple soil moisture datasets to assure robust results.

The spatiotemporal hydrologic variability over different regions of the contiguous United States poses the risk of droughts and floods. Understanding the historic variations in streamflow can help in accessing future hydrologic conditions. The current study investigates the historic changes in the streamflow within the climate regions of the continental United States. The streamflow records of 419 unimpaired streamflow stations were grouped into seven climate regions based on the National Climate Assessment, to evaluate the regional changes in both seasonal streamflow and yearly streamflow percentiles. The non-parametric Mann–Kendall test and Pettitt’s test were utilized to evaluate the streamflow variability as a gradual trend and abrupt shift, respectively. The Walker test was performed to test the global significance of the streamflow variability within each climate region based on local trend and shift significance of each streamflow station. The study also evaluated the presence of serial correlation in the streamflow records and its effects on both trend and shift within the climate regions of the contiguous United States for the first time. Maximum variability in terms of both trend and shift was observed for summer as compared to other seasons. Similarly, a greater number of stations showed streamflow variability for 5th and 50th percentile streamflow as compared to 95th and 100th percentile streamflow. It was also observed that serial correlation affected both trends and steps, while accounting for the lag-1 autocorrelation improved shift results. The results indicated that the streamflow variability has more likely occurred as shift as compared to the gradual trend. The outcomes of the current result detailing historic variability may help to envision future changes in streamflow. The current study may favor the water managers in developing future decisions to resolve the issues related to the streamflow variability in flood and drought-prone regions.

This research article explores the behavior of a phase change material (PCM) when it undergoes interrupted melting and freezing, through experimental investigations using a heat flow meter apparatus. A fatty acid-based organic PCM, encapsulated within polyethylene and thin aluminum foil layers, was experimentally tested in this study. Experiments were designed to represent multiple interrupted phase change scenarios that could occur within PCMs applied in buildings. The experimental results were analyzed and compared with previously reported assumptions in numerical models dealing with PCM hysteresis and interrupted phase change processes. These comparisons indicated that the assumptions used in the different numerical models considered can capture the interrupted phase change phenomena with varying degrees of accuracy. The findings also highlighted the need for additional experimental research on different phase change processes that can occur in building applications of PCMs.

This article describes an aging study of a foam-vacuum insulation panel (VIP) composite insulation board installed on a test wall in a natural exposure test facility through a 30-month period. Silica-based VIPs with a polymeric barrier film were used in this study. The study results showed the effectiveness of a VIP-based insulation to reduce the heat gains and losses through a wall compared to regular rigid foam insulation of the same thickness. However, the long-term performance monitoring indicated a gradual decline in the thermal performance of the foam-VIP composite. In addition, one-dimensional numerical models were created to simulate the in situ behavior of the foam-VIP composite. One model utilized constant thermal conductivities of the test wall components and another utilized temperature-dependent thermal conductivities; the latter used measurements of conductivity over temperatures ranging from −15 to 55 °C. The results of the simulations emphasized the need to use both temperature and time-dependent material properties for accurately predicting the long-term performance of VIP-based insulation systems.

This report documents the Transformative Efficiency and Automation in Modular Homes (TEAMH) project, which evaluates the integration of advanced building envelope technologies and automation-assisted modular construction to improve residential energy performance and construction efficiency. The study investigates high-performance insulation systems, including vacuum insulation panels (VIPs), combined with light gauge steel (LGS) modular construction and factory automation. Laboratory testing, whole-building energy modeling across multiple climate zones, and factory demonstrations were conducted to assess thermal performance, energy savings, and production efficiency. Results indicate that upgraded envelope assemblies can achieve up to ~50% heating and ~34% cooling energy savings relative to IECC 2018 code-compliant homes, while automation-assisted construction can reduce wall assembly time by 24%–46% compared to conventional wood framing. The findings demonstrate the potential for scalable, high-performance modular homes that deliver significant energy savings with competitive projected costs.