FEWS NET draws heavily on agroclimatology data for its food security analysis. Rainfall, snowfall, sea, and land surface temperatures—these directly affect the ability of small and large scale farmers around the world to grow crops, husband livestock, fish, or forage for food. While food security depends on a great complexity of factors, perhaps none is more consistently influential than the impact of weather and climate.

Agroclimatology data are critical parts of FEWS NET’s knowledge base. These data include remote sensing imagery, historical rainfall totals, climate change analysis, forecasts, and an understanding of climate drivers like the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Analysts use this information to understand the climatology for areas of concern, to make assumptions about future conditions as part of scenario development, and to monitor and report on seasonal progress. The Ocean-Atmosphere Dynamics links at right provide additional information on climate-related phenomena: El Niño and La Niña.

Agroclimatology information is integrated into FEWS NET’s regular Outlook and Outlook Update analysis. In addition, FEWS NET produces weekly Global Weather Hazards reports, which anticipate severe weather or climate events in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Central Asia; and Seasonal Monitor reports, which update rainfall totals, impacts on production, and short-term forecasts. For more information, please see the Agroclimatology Fact Sheet and the list of acronyms to the right.

Four United States government agencies: the US Geological Survey (USGS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) are indispensable partners, providing access to remote sensing imagery, data, and analysis on current conditions, historical trends, and future forecasts. See the links below to access data provided by the FEWS NET science partners. For detailed guidance on the integration of rainfall data, forecast information, and remote sensing imagery into the scenario development process, see FEWS NET’s guidance document on Building Rainfall Assumptions for Scenario Development.