50% Chance of 'Megadrought' in Southwest

The chance of a "megadrought" gripping the Southwest for more than 30 years has increased to 50 percent, according to a new study to be published in the American Meteorological Society's Journal of Climate. The odds of a 10-year drought afflicting the southwestern U.S. have increased to 80 percent, according to the new study by Cornell University, the University of Arizona and the U.S. Geological Survey. Nearly 82 percent of California is experiencing "extreme" drought -- the fourth harshest on a five-level scale measured in a weekly U.S. Drought Monitor report. But roughly 58 percent of the state of facing worse, "exceptional" drought conditions.