At RPI, we have worked with international expert scientists to conduct insightful natural hazards research for over 20 years. Since 2012, we have further driven the applicability of the science through our development of datasets, mapping and code deliverables. Read about recent selected projects and analytical tools below.
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At a 2015 RPI Workshop, researchers Prof. Robert Hart of Floridastate University and Dr. Dan Chavas of Purdue University discussed some pitfalls in how we assess hurricane intensity with RPI Program Manager Dr. Mark Guishard. The results of that initial conversation led to a publication entitled, “The Arbitrary Definition of the Current Atlantic Major Hurricane Landfall Drought” in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. In the paper, the authors concluded that our threshold for the definition of ‘major’ hurricanes (category 3 or greater storms) is highly sensitive to the metric of intensity used, and does not account for well-documented uncertainties in hurricane wind or pressure measurements. Read the article here.
The research RPI supports often yields applications and datasets that may be used in analyses, by those interested in risks from natural hazards. In this study, RPI researchers Prof. James Elsner and Dr. Thomas Jagger, along with their colleagues at Florida State University, focus on tornado risk in the US Midwest. Their open statistical models are available to risk analysts interested in exploring the influences on tornado outbreaks in seasonal and climate timescales of variability. Read their article, “Statistical Models for Tornado Climatology: Long and Short-Term Views” and download the code for the long-term view here and the short-term view here.
Collaborations with researchers Prof. David Schultz, Dr. Bogdan Antonescu and colleagues at the University of Manchester led to RPI funding a project to assess the risk from severe convective storms, tornadoes and hail in Europe from a historical perspective. Their investigation, using data from as far back as 1019 AD and covering impacts as well as meteorological parameters, resulted in a number of publications and insights for the risk transfer industry.
Read their summary article, “Tornadoes in Europe: An Underestimated Threat.” here in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society
Climate change is a topic for which there is growing interest in the risk transfer industry, especially as it pertains to coastal risk and sea level rise. In this RPI-supported study by Drs. Scott Kulp and Ben Strauss of Climate Central, populations and housing stock at risk from seawater inundations are examined for the coastlines of the USA, using highly granular coastal topography and detailed census data. The outcomes of the investigation expose an alarming historical increase in coastal property and people at risk from the rising ocean. Read more and see the data for yourself in their paper, “Rapid escalation of coastal flood exposure in US municipalities from sea level rise” here.
Locations of all analyzed cities and water level stations. Dot colors indicate the lowest RCP scenario (if any) under which expected annual population flood exposure growth rate exceeds the threshold of 0.25% per year during the twenty-first century.