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Uneven Land Sinking Across New Orleans Increasing Flood Risk
Parts of New Orleans and its surrounding wetlands are gradually sinking, and while most of the city remains stable, a new study suggests that sections of the region’s $15 billion post-Katrina flood protection system may need regular upgrades to outpace long-term land subsidence.
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NIST Releases Extensive Video Update on Champlain Towers South Investigation
NIST has released an extensive video update on its investigation into the June 2021 partial collapse of the Champlain Towers South building in Surfside, Florida.
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Hurricane Helene Set Up Future Disasters, from Landslides to Flooding -- Cascading Hazards Like These Are Now Upending Risk Models
Hurricane Helene lasted only a few days in September 2024, but it altered the landscape of the Southeastern U.S. in profound ways that will affect the hazards local residents face far into the future.
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BOOM! LIGHTS OUT
Power generation is the center of gravity for space capabilities, and it is vulnerable to the effects of explosive ordnance, for example, drone delivered bombs.
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New Tool Could Help Florida Homeowners Weather Flood Risks, Lower Insurance Costs
With flood risks increasing from extreme weather events like hurricanes and even routine plumbing issues, researchers are helping Florida homeowners make smarter choices about building materials and interior finishes that better protect their homes and potentially save on their insurance premiums.
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Technology to Reduce the Impact of Used Nuclear Fuel
Transmutation technologies can significantly reduce the mass, volume, activity and lifespan of commercial used nuclear fuel (UNF) by converting long-living hazardous isotopes into materials that decay more quickly.
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Huge Groundwater Losses Along Colorado River
New research highlights the groundwater issues complicating the Colorado River’s already strained water supply.
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Trump’s Second Term Is Creating ‘a Limbo Moment’ for U.S. Battery Recyclers
Since January, President Donald Trump has taken a sledgehammer to the Biden administration’s efforts to grow America’s clean energy industry. At the same time, citing economic and national security reasons, Trump has sought to advance efforts to produce more critical minerals like lithium in the United States. That is exactly what the emerging lithium-ion battery recycling industry seeks to do, which is why some industry insiders are optimistic about their future under Trump.
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Hardening the Grid: Research Team Focuses on Quake Proofing Transformer Bushings
During an earthquake, the place where a large, high-voltage power transformer is most vulnerable is its bushings – hollow electrical insulators that safely guide current between a transformer’s internal windings and external power lines.
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Overshadowed by Border Dispute, India-Pakistan Water Security Risks Grow
Glacial meltwater accounts for a significant portion of annual flows in the Indus River Basin, but as glaciers retreat due to climate change, this flow is decreasing, leading to water scarcity. Pakistan is particularly vulnerable to reduction in Indus River Basin flows: it relies on the Indus River for more than 90 percent of its water, and is already grappling with severe water shortages.
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Virtual Models Paving the Way for Advanced Nuclear Reactors
Computer models predict how reactors will behave, helping operators make decisions in real time. The digital twin technology using graph-neural networks may boost nuclear reactor efficiency and reliability.
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10-story Steel-Framed Building to be Put to the Test on UC San Diego Earthquake Simulator
A10-story cold-formed steel-framed building will soon be put to the test on an earthquake simulator at the University of California San Diego to see how well it can withstand earthquakes.
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Flood Risk is Increasing in Pacific Northwest
The next great earthquake isn’t the only threat to the Pacific Northwest. A powerful earthquake, combined with rising sea levels, could significantly increase flood risks in the Pacific Northwest, impacting thousands of residents and properties in Northern California, Oregon, and Washington.
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Helping the Grid Keep Pace with a Power-Hungry Economy
After remaining nearly flat for almost two decades, America’s demand for electricity is growing, driven by data centers for AI, electric vehicles, production of electrofuels, and other factors. This rising demand is one of many reasons the U.S. needs to dramatically ramp up the grid’s capacity to move electricity.
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As the Rio Grande Runs Dry, South Texas Leaders Look to New Water Supplies to Sustain Growth
The tension between water supply and demand has been an issue for decades. And now, city and county leaders throughout the Valley believe the problem has come to a head.
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The long view
Data Centers’ Insatiable Demand for Electricity Will Change the Entire Energy Sector
When the first large language models were unleashed, it triggered a headache for authorities around the world as they tried to figure out how to satisfy data centers’ endless demand for electricity.
Will Texas Actually Run Out of Water?
You asked our AI chatbot about Texas’ water supply. We answered some of the questions that it couldn’t.