Major Natural Disasters in Deserts: Interventions Using Geospatial Technologies

Desert ecosystems cover One-third of Earth's land surface; although the living conditions in the deserts and desert margin regions are hostile but provide adaptability and life support systems to numerous species, including humans. Desert regions are dominated by the cycle of actions resulting due to wind action, erosion, deposition, water/moisture action (or absence), and salt accumulations. The extreme weather settings of the Deserts provoke disaster situations like droughts, flash floods, salt weathering, and strong dust storm events; these events create a dent in the economy of the region. Similarly, the menace created by the native desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria) will have devastating effects on food security issues during the phases of upsurge and plagues. A synergy due to the integration of advancements in Earth Observation systems and numerically computed climate variables provides effective management to assess the risk, simulation models, forecasting/early warning, monitoring, damage assessment, and prevention/planning during the aforementioned disasters. This chapter emphasizes the usage of geospatial technologies to manage desert locusts and dust storms.