Extreme precipitation can trigger deadly landslides. Satellite-based tools provide regional perspectives on landslide hazards, help assess risks in near-real time, and guide emergency responses.
Central America
Raising Central American Orography Improves Climate Simulation
Elevation of Central American orography significantly reduces the pervasive tropical rainfall bias by blocking the easterlies and consequently warming the northeastern tropical Pacific.
Torrential Rains and Poor Forecasts Sink Panama’s Infrastructure
Scientists are working to improve the forecasting of heavy rains in Panama following several events over the past decade that caused substantial flooding and damage.
The Evolution of Observed Hurricane Eyewall Shapes
The observational evidence of the wind field of Hurricane Michael using radar imagery showed an eyewall structure evolution with elliptical, triangular, and square shapes for the first time.
Scientists Support Local Activities to Rescue the Mesoamerican Reef
The reef’s report card analyzed 286 sites in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. Communities, scientists, and governments are working to improve coral and ecosystem resilience.
Microbial Influences on Subduction Zone Carbon Cycling
An innovative collaboration is investigating how geobiological processes alter fluxes of carbon and other materials between the deep Earth and the surface.
Eruption in El Salvador Was One of the Holocene’s Largest
Roughly 1,500 years ago, the Tierra Blanca Joven eruption blanketed Central America in ash and likely displaced Maya settlements, new research shows.
An Early Warning System for Landslide Danger
Advances in satellite imaging, mapping, and rainfall estimations have made it possible to implement a regional real-time assessment of landslide hazard threats across Central America.