Snowflakes take many routes from cloud to ground. Large, soft flakes swirl and tumble gently from above. Sharp, painful bits of ice get spit from the sky in a sideways burst. Mushy, wet snow falls in clumps. The ways in which snow travels through the air seem nothing short of complicated. But a new study […]
precipitation
Posted inEditors' Vox
The Complexity of Clouds, Circulation, and Climate
A new book explores the significant influence of clouds on climate via radiation, circulation, and precipitation.
Posted inNews
Postfire Debris Flows Strike in a Puzzling Pattern
California geologists are improving their understanding and forecasting of which slopes in wildfire-burned areas might fail during heavy rainstorms.
Posted inNews
Ostrich Eggshells Trace Namaqualand’s Ancient Rain
The plant-based nitrogen eaten by ostriches and stored in their eggshells was measured by researchers 20,000 years later.
Posted inNews
Weather and Watershed Forecasting Make for Dam Smart Water Use
Using weather forecasts in reservoir management improves decisions about water supplies. Now researchers are studying the hydrology around reservoirs to help apply this strategy nationwide.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Carbon Dioxide’s Effect on Mountain Climate Systems
Greenhouse gases are rising in the atmosphere. But how will precipitation patterns change as climate systems rise over mountain chains?
Posted inThe Landslide Blog
Brienz/Brinzauls: Controls on rockfalls in high mountain environments
The Landslide Blog is written by Dave Petley, who is widely recognized as a world leader in the study and management of landslides. The availability of high temporal and spatial resolution monitoring technologies, most notably terretrial laser scanning (Lidar) and doppler radar, has transformed our ability to understand rockfalls. These systems can be deployed to […]
Posted inThe Landslide Blog
Planet Labs images of the landslides at Franschhoek in South Africa
The Landslide Blog is written by Dave Petley, who is widely recognized as a world leader in the study and management of landslides. Last week, I featured a set of landslides that were triggered by heavy rainfall at Franschhoek in South Africa on 23 – 24 September 2023. My good and very kind friends at […]
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Meteorological Uncertainty Shapes Global Hydrological Modeling
A new study examines the effects of spatiotemporal precipitation uncertainty on key hydrologic processes, including runoff and soil moisture, in a comprehensive sample of 289 cryosphere regions.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Exploring Just How Extreme Future Storms Could Get
A novel approach to storm simulations could help prepare for increasingly heavy precipitation events.