Go Back
  • For Business
  • |
  • Warnings
  • Data Suite
  • Newsletters
  • Advertising
  • Superior Accuracy™
A week after deadly Texas flooding, hope fades but resilience grows. Chevron right
Recovery teams, displaced residents in Texas face brutal heat. Chevron right

Columbus, OH

74°F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Columbus

Ohio

74°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Columbus, OH Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

For Business

Warnings

Data Suite

Newsletters

Advertising

Superior Accuracy™

Video

Winter Center

AccuWeather Early Hurricane Center Top Stories Trending Today Astronomy Heat Climate Health Recreation In Memoriam Case Studies Blogs & Webinars

Weather Blogs / Global climate change

Rising sea levels and the risks of moderate and severe coastal flooding

By Brett Anderson, AccuWeather senior meteorologist

Published Jun 8, 2017 6:40 PM EDT | Updated Jun 8, 2017 6:40 PM EDT

Copied

A new study from Princeton and Rutgers has found that areas along the Southeast U.S. coast, where severe flooding due to hurricanes and tropical storms is relatively frequent, may see an increase in moderate, rather than severe flooding due to sea-level rise.

On the other hand, coastal areas near Seattle, Washington, and in Southern California that normally experience very little severe flooding are likely to experience an uptick in severe and possibly historically unprecedented floods in the future due to sea-level rise.

<u>The beige and yellow colors mean little amplification of existing flooding episodes, while blue and purple colors mean hundreds to thousands of times more floods. Image courtesy of Maya Buchanan, Princeton University.</u>
<img src="https://vortex.accuweather.com/adc2004/pub/includes/columns/climatewx/2017/590x156_06080021_coasts.jpg"/>

On average, coastal flooding along the East and Gulf coasts already costs an average of 27 billion dollars annually.

This particular study, which can be found in the journal Environmental Research Letters, looked at a combination of historical data on flood heights collected at tide gauges with estimates of local sea-level changes developed earlier by Professor Robert Kopp (Rutgers), who is a co-author of this study.

<img src="https://vortex.accuweather.com/adc2004/pub/includes/columns/climatewx/2017/590x377_06080029_nj-shoreline-following-sandy-courtesy-us-dept-of-transportation---nccos.jpg"/>

Key excerpts from the study, via <a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-06/pu-rsl060717.php" target=n>EurekAlert.....</a>

<em>The researchers calculated the "amplification factor" -- the amount by which a given rise in sea level drives the increase in the number of floods -- for numerous locations around the country. "The amount of sea-level rise that occurs will change the number of both moderate and severe floods," Buchanan said. "Climate change-driven sea-level rise is usually thought of as slow and steady, but actually a relatively small amount of increase in sea level can amplify the flood level significantly."</em>

<em>Based on the current rate increase of carbon emissions, by 2050 a moderate flood of the size that historically has occurred approximately every ten years would recur 173 times more often in Charleston but only 36 times more often in Seattle. A severe flood, defined as occurring about once every 500 years, would happen six times as often in Charleston but 273 times as often in Seattle.</em>

Report a Typo

Weather News

Weather News

A week after deadly Texas flooding, hope fades but resilience grows

Jul. 10, 2025
Severe Weather

Rounds of severe storms to rattle, drench central US

Jul. 10, 2025
video

Abandoned cars submerged by severe flooding in North Carolina

Jul. 10, 2025
video

Before-and-after pictures show devastation caused by Texas floods

Jul. 9, 2025
Severe Weather

Severe weather to rumble in the central US through the holiday weekend

Jul. 6, 2025
Weather News

Record sargassum seaweed piles up on Caribbean islands, Gulf

Jul. 2, 2025
Weather News

Alabama teen in ICU after lightning strike hits boat, causing burns an...

Jul. 2, 2025
Show more Show less Chevron down

Topics

AccuWeather Early

Hurricane Center

Top Stories

Trending Today

Astronomy

Heat

Climate

Health

Recreation

In Memoriam

Case Studies

Blogs & Webinars

ABOUT THIS BLOG
Global climate change
Brett Anderson
Brett Anderson discusses and analyzes the latest research and commentary by experts with various points of view.
  • Astronomy
    with Dave Samuhel
  • Canadian weather
    with Brett Anderson
  • Global climate change
    with Brett Anderson
  • Global weather
    with Jason Nicholls
  • Northeast US weather
    with Elliot Abrams
  • Plume Labs on Air Quality
    with Tyler Knowlton
  • RealImpact of weather
    with Dr. Joel N. Myers
  • WeatherMatrix
    with Jesse Ferrell
  • Western US weather
    with Brian Thompson

Featured Stories

Health

How can families handle new anxieties around summer camp?

11 hours ago

AccuWeather Ready

Floodwater rising in your house? Do this

2 days ago

Weather News

Orcas are bringing humans gifts of food – but why?

11 hours ago

Weather News

Earthquake swarm detected at Mount Rainier, biggest since 2009

16 hours ago

Weather News

The US has a plan to breed millions of flies and drop them from planes

11 hours ago

AccuWeather Weather Blogs Rising sea levels and the risks of moderate and severe coastal flooding
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
© 2025 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | About Your Privacy Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

...

...

...