Synchrony of river flooding

When rivers flood, surrounding rivers often flood at the same time. This synchronization of floods amplifies their impacts. Our research shows that the distance over which multiple rivers flood near synchronously varies strongly across Europe, and these distances have grown by about in recent decades. Risk finance, flood forecasting, and interpretations of flood trends can be improved by accounting for how flood risks extend beyond the borders of individual drainage basins.

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Berghuijs, W. R., Allen, S. T., Harrigan, S., & Kirchner, J. W. (2019). Growing spatial scales of synchronous river flooding in Europe. Geophysical Research Letters, 46. external page https://doi.org/10.1029/2018GL081883

Berghuijs, W. R., Slater, L., Harrigan, S., Molnar, P, & Kirchner, J. W. (2019). The relative importance of different flood-generating mechanisms across Europe. Water Resources Research.  https://doi.org/10.1029/2019WR024841