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Items 2007 NSSL helps improve flood and flash flood warnings in China and Taiwan
Torrential rainfall and the resulting flash flood and debris flows are major threats in China and Taiwan. These natural disasters risk human lives, personal property, and the stability and sustainability of their societies.
Collaborating with other countries to improve flood and flash flood warnings is one important focus of NSSL’s Hydrometeorology Research Group. Since floods and flash floods kill more people in the U.S. each year than any other weather-related event, this relationship benefits U.S. efforts as well. Working together to develop better forecasting tools will save lives and property world-wide.
China’s complex climatic and varied geological conditions result in virtually every type of known natural hazard, including floods, flash floods, and debris flows. Millions of people in China are affected by these hazards each year and great economic losses are suffered. The ongoing program with China’s Institute of Heavy Rain of the China Meteorological Administration includes the exchange of visiting scientists, joint scientific workshops and academic lectures. Through this exchange, scientists from both the USA and China gain a better understanding of the scientific and operational challenges of flood warnings and water resource management. The collaboration also facilitates scientific contributions in the development and refinement of the National Mosaic and Quantitative Precipitation Estimation (QPE) system.
Taiwan is extremely vulnerable to natural disasters. Over two-thirds of the island is covered by slopelands and high mountains; continuous seasonal heavy rains or typhoons easily trigger landslides and debris flows. NSSL’s work with Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau (CWB) and Water Resources Agency (WRA), along with NOAA’s Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL) has resulted in the development of high-resolution QPE and QPF (HRQ2) system for Taiwan. The collaboration has been ongoing since 2002, with the goal of improving Taiwan’s capabilities to issue flash flood and flood warnings and to improve river and reservoir water management. The HRQ2 system has been running in real-time at the CWB and more than ten other government agencies, and continues to undergo development and enhancement.
These international partnerships foster the exchange of valuable knowledge about floods and flash floods that will reduce the loss of lives and property around the world.
1/23/07