-
The Risk of Drinking Contaminated Water During Flooding
In addition to causing property damage and psychological impacts, flooding can pose a significant health risk, particularly due to contamination of drinking water sources. Researchers are a decision-making tool to estimate the risk of water contamination in flooded areas.
-
-
Groundwater Depletion Causes California Farmland to Sink
A new study simulates 65 years of land subsidence, or sinking, caused by groundwater depletion in California’s San Joaquin Valley. The results suggest significant sinking may continue for centuries after water levels stop declining but could slow within a few years if aquifers recover.
-
-
Keeping Communities Safe from Chemical Hazards During Hurricane
Extreme weather from hurricanes and tropical storms can devastate communities along the Atlantic, Gulf and Pacific coasts, and the threat of subsequent hazard chemical releases can be just as deadly.
-
-
The Wall of Wind Can Blow Away Buildings at Category 5 Hurricane Strength to Help Engineers Design Safer Homes – but Even That Isn’t Powerful Enough
When engineers built the Wall of Wind test facility 10 years ago at Florida International University, it was inspired by Hurricane Andrew, a monster of a storm that devastated South Florida in 1992. Tropical storms are ramping up in intensity as the climate changes and ocean and air temperatures rise. Designing homes and infrastructure to withstand future storms will require new test facilities that go well beyond today’s capabilities.
-
-
Mitigating Flood Disasters
Engineers have proposed a flood control measure which recommends designing permeable pavements to specifically suit local rainfall and soil conditions and reduce flood impacts.
-
-
When Hurricanes Strike, Social Media Can Save Lives
Social media can be a powerful tool for cities to communicate and to collect information to deploy emergency resources where needed most.
-
-
Challenges to Tidal Flats Pose Risks to 41M Americans Living in Coastal Counties
About 29 percent of the United States’ population live in coastline counties – more than 41 million are in Atlantic counties. This high population density poses a critical challenge to sustainable developments in coastal areas.
-
-
Diminishing Snowmelt to Make Colorado, Utah, Wyoming Resemble the Arid Southwest
New research predicts that changes in mountain snowmelt will shift peak stream flows to much earlier in the year for the vast Colorado River Basin, altering reservoir management and irrigation across the entire region. As a result, upper basin in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming may more closely resemble the arid Southwest.
-
-
Does Drought-Prone California Need Another Reservoir?
For a century, California and the West have grappled with the job of storing water. The first half of the 20th century was the heyday of western dams; now many of them are aging; they were designed for the needs and values of another era. Is California “dammed out?” Or could increasing reservoir capacity help the state ride out the new era of aridification?
-
-
Droughts Self-Propagate, Just Like Wildfires
Unlike other weather extremes such as hurricanes or winter storms, droughts affect humans in most climatic zones around the world; from the arid steppes of the Sahel to the humid rainforests of Amazonia. Moreover, droughts are expected to intensify in many regions following global warming.
-
-
Scientists Identify the Most Extreme Heatwaves Ever Recorded Globally
Heatwaves are one of the most devastating extreme weather events. The western North America heatwave was the deadliest weather event ever in Canada, resulting in hundreds of fatalities. The associated raging wildfires also led to extensive infrastructure damage and loss of crops.
-
-
Wildfires Are Still Catching Us Off-Guard. Congress’ Plan to Fix That Isn’t Going Anywhere.
Last year, during a Congressional hearing on the state of wildfire research, researchers and fire managers said that coordination among federal agencies to improve wildfire research would be tremendously helpful to prepare for future fires. But the proposal to connect federal research agencies and improve wildfire research crashed and burned.
-
-
Boosting Efforts to Predict Harmful Solar Weather Events
When big blasts of energy from the sun envelop the Earth, they can very strong: a 2015 event so weakened Earth’s protective magnetic field that it penetrated to the atmosphere, posing a threat to everything from circling space station astronauts to delicate electronics and communication systems.
-
-
Guidance for Holistic Home and Community Wildfire Protection
Once they have a foothold, severe wildfires can quickly overwhelm a community, particularly one that is densely packed. To shield houses against such a fierce threat, a thorough defense is key.
-
-
How Our Bushfire-Proof House Design Could Help People Flee Rather Than Risk Fighting the Flames
Building houses better at withstanding the impacts of climate change is one way we can protect ourselves in the face of future catastrophic conditions. I’m part of a research team that developed a novel, bushfire-resistant house design, which won an international award last month.
-
The long view
Machine Learning Could Predict Rare Disastrous Events Like Earthquakes or Pandemics
Researchers suggest how scientists can circumvent the need for massive data sets to forecast extreme events with the combination of an advanced machine learning system and sequential sampling techniques.
Americans Are Flocking to Wildfire
People are trading hurricane zones for wildfire areas, says national study of migration, natural disasters, and climate change.
Insurance for a Changing Climate
Among the many facets of the economy being challenged and changed by warming global temperatures is the insurance industry. Damaging extreme events such as wildfires, hurricanes, and floods are happening with greater frequency and intensity, which leaves insurance companies facing larger financial risks and paying out more in claims — and it also leaves policy holders paying higher prices to insure their homes and businesses.