Extreme events

HydroTalks: Prof. Thom Bogaard on Water and Landslides, Early Warning Systems, and IAHS-HELPING Decade

Thiruni Thirimanne and Archita Bhattacharyya July 9, 2026

For episode 11 of HydroTalks, we welcomed Prof. Thom Bogaard of Delft Technical University and visiting professor at Kasetsart University, Bangkok. His research explores the intersection of hydrology, geomorphology, ecology, and natural hazards. We discussed his work on understanding how water triggers landslides, improving regional early warning systems, and developing practical solutions that re ...[Read More]

HydroTalks podcast: Introducing Ilias Pechlivanidis, the HS Division President-elect

Archita Bhattacharyya June 11, 2026

For this episode of HydroTalks, we’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Ilias Pechlivanidis, Senior Researcher and Associate Professor (Docent) in hydrology and water resources at the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI), and Visiting Researcher at Uppsala University. He is currently the Vice President of the EGU Hydrological Sciences Division and will serve as Division President for th ...[Read More]

Doing flood frequency hydrology in a non-stationary climate

Sergiy Vorogushyn April 3, 2026

Design values for hundred kilometers of flood protection dikes require reassessment considering future climate change. A dike along the Elbe River near the City of Hamburg. Image credit: Sergiy Vorogushyn.

A robust estimation of probabilities of extreme floods is the Holy Grail in flood hydrology in view of limited available observations, variability of climate, and complexity of flood generation processes in catchments. Flood frequency hydrology, spearheaded in the past decades by Ralf Merz and Günter Blöschl, offers a powerful toolbox to enhance the reliability of flood probability estimates by co ...[Read More]

Communicating and Managing Residual Risk with Perfect Storms and Other Counterfactual Stories

Bruno Merz March 26, 2026

The aim of risk management is to prepare society in order to limit loss and damage when an extreme event occurs and to restore the functioning of society afterwards . While current risk management practices are helpful in many regards, they fall short when it comes to unprecedented events. An analysis of event pairs and recent disasters show that societies often fail to cope with events that are l ...[Read More]