Research briefs

As Typhoon Hagupit approached the Philippines in December 2014, over half a million people were evacuated. Still recovering from Typhoon Haiyan a year earlier, the country prepared for the worst. Despite this, thousands chose not to flee and 18 people were killed. Research conducted in the aftermath provides new insights for future disaster risk reduction strategies.

The US Geological Survey predicts that more than 2.5 million people will die from earthquakes this century. Landslides and other mass movements, such as rockfalls, are an important cause of earthquake fatalities. Research now shows deforestation may inadvertently increase rockfall hazard by removing the natural vegetative barrier that previously impeded boulder travel.

Objective measures of storm intensity show that North Atlantic hurricanes have grown more destructive. But residents' views depend more on gender, belief in climate change and recent experience with hurricanes, according to a new study. Understanding how people perceive the threat of hurricanes is crucial for preparedness and policies to make communities more resilient.

Strained by drought in recent years, California desperately needs more resilient water supplies. An affordable solution that provides a wide range of benefits is within reach, according to new Stanford research. The study examines the "managed aquifer recharge" process, which can incorporate benefits such as flood control, improved water quality, and wetland habitat protection.

International research led by The Australian National University (ANU) has found how plants, such as rice and wheat, sense and respond to extreme drought stress, in a breakthrough that could lead to the development of next-generation drought-proof crops. Drought-tolerant crops are crucial for global food security and reducing the impact of drought on the national economy.

Not only have seawalls in certain areas repeatedly failed when tested, but they pose a threat to the delicate ecosystems associated with wetlands and intertidal areas by reflecting energy generated by wind and waves back into the water. Emerging research suggests that in some areas, biological barriers better protect against coastal hazards.

Sub-continent farmers in India are experts in monsoonal climate. To reduce floodwater on the surface and secure groundwater stores, vertical pipes, or holiyas, are inserted into the ground and drain water down the pipe into the aquifer below. While cheap and effective, they are not widely used: the findings from a 2015 assessment are published as an IWMI-Tata Highlight.

Cities face harsher, more concentrated rainfall as climate change not only intensifies storms, but draws them into narrower bands of more intense downpours, UNSW engineers have found. This has major implications for existing stormwater infrastructure, particularly in large cities, which face higher risks of flash flooding.

A new study finds that there will be a rise in tornado deaths if local and federal government in the United States continue to rely on old fashioned warning systems. The article suggests several recommendations to improve the current mechanism.

Research published in the May 6 edition of Science indicates that slow-motion earthquakes or “slow-slip events” can rupture the shallow portion of a fault that also moves in large, tsunami-generating earthquakes. The finding has important implications for assessing tsunami hazards.