What is the Palfai Drought Index (PaDI)?
In short: the Palfai Drought Index (PaDI), developed by Imre Pálfai in Hungary, characterizes agricultural drought over the April–August growing season. It combines a weighted sum of monthly precipitation with mean temperature, then applies correction factors for antecedent moisture, groundwater, and heat, so higher values mean more severe drought. It is widely used across Central and Eastern Europe. DMAP V2.1 calculates a wide range of drought indices for meteorological, agricultural, and hydrological drought.