SAVE MONEY ON TRAVEL DEALS

Malcolm Cleaveland of the University of Arkansas and his team have been taking cores from the trees that show the rings, the Austin American-Statesman reported Tuesday. Each ring represents a year in the tree's life, with thin ones being years of drought and thicker ones those when rainfall was more plentiful.

"The tree rings give you a perspective you can't get in any other way", Cleaveland said.

The baldcypress has two big advantages: the wood is soft so cores are relatively easy to obtain and the trees live for hundreds of years. The coring does not harm the tree.

In the 1940s and 1950s, the region had a 10-year drought that has become the standard for water management. Cleaveland's research, still in its early stages, has found many longer droughts, like one in the 16th century that endured for 40 years.

Todd Votteler, project manager for the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority, said a 40-year drought is something the state is not ready for.

 BREAKING STORIES

Hormone hikes cotton yields in droughts

Apparent cause determined for Texas quakes

New types of bandages and wraps developed

Cadets honor 155-mile march in Texas

Conservation measures due for Bush center

Seismologists tie well to DFW earthquakes

Whole genome sequencing diagnosis achieved

Veteran accused of violating probation

NASA extends Johnson safety contract

Two people hurt during bull's escape

Twitter key tie to world, astronauts say

Obama touts green jobs as key to recovery

Cystoscopy suffices for bladder cancer

Fruit juice not linked to teen weight gain

Woman to pay $40,000 for downloaded songs

Physicists create new form of matter

Distraction help kids overcome needle fear

Blockbuster launches rent-to-own policy

Unnecessary PET imaging on the rise

Husband with guilty conscience gets life