Estimating the Effects of Weather Variations on Corn Yields using Geographically Weighted Panel Regression

Through a geographically weighted panel regression analysis, we demonstrate the spatially varying relationship between weather and corn yields. A balanced panel data of 958 U.S. corn production counties for the period 2002-2006 is used. The results indicate that the relationship between weather and corn yield has large spatial variability. In specific, temperature tends to have negative marginal effects on corn yield in warmer regions, and positive effects in cooler regions. The spatial pattern of precipitation effects is more complicated since it is expected to be largely affected by local irrigation systems.