New User-Friendly Dashboard Provides Real-Time Mississippi River Basin Drought Data

NOAA's NIDIS has launched the Mississippi River Basin Drought and Water Dashboard, an innovative new tool designed to make complex drought information accessible and actionable for decision-makers across the 31-state watershed.

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This new Dashboard transforms how users access drought information through: 

• Interactive, auto-updating maps that provide the latest drought and river conditions
• Flexible viewing options allowing users to examine the entire basin or focus on specific sub-basins
• One-click map customization with high-quality images ready for download
• Plain-language educational content that explains complex drought impacts on transportation, agriculture, and local communities

Developed through extensive stakeholder engagement, including listening sessions with real users across the basin, the Dashboard directly responds to requests for more streamlined, comprehensive drought information. 

Usability testing by experts at UNC Asheville's National Environmental Mapping and Applications Center (NEMAC) emphasized the need for timely, actionable data that connects upstream drought conditions to downstream impacts. This tool addresses critical gaps highlighted during the 2023 drought when historically low Mississippi River levels disrupted barge transportation, increased agricultural shipping costs, and forced Louisiana parishes to issue drinking water advisories.

Access the Mississippi River Basin Drought and Water Dashboard here