Lin Zhao in his office at the NDMCLin Zhao, a Ph.D. student at the Academy of Disaster Reduction and Emergency Management at Beijing Normal University, will return to China on Feb. 28 after three months at the NDMC.
Zhao's research was the first to investigate the relationships between meteorological drought and streamflow in the Jinghe River Basin, a region dependent on rainfed agriculture, using data from 1970 to 1990. He found that streamflow drought lagged meteorological drought by about 112 days.
"The time lag between meteorological drought and hydrologic drought is very important," Zhao said. "You can manage hydrologic drought from the viewpoint of meteorological drought. This can be applied to other periods or other regions."
Zhao said his time at the NDMC provided a valuable opportunity to work face-to-face with other drought researchers, as well as an interval to focus on his studies without the social obligations of life at home. Zhao, who is originally from Chongqing, plans to complete his Ph.D. in June and to find a job at a university.
He made time in his final week at the NDMC to shop for Nebraska goods for friends and family back home. "I hope I can find another opportunity to come here after I graduate," he said. "The air is always clear."