Climate change is here to stay, bringing with it changing weather patterns. According to current models, the northeastern United States can expect an increase in extreme rainfall events. The remnant of Hurricane Ida that hit New York City in the summer of 2021, dropping more than seven inches of rain in less than 24 hours and flooding the subway system, is an example of the impact these types of storms can have.
“In this part of the world, I think the effects of climate change are going to manifest themselves in hydrology – in flooding and things like that,” says , professor of earth and atmospheric sciences in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. “We’ll see this particularly along the coast. The storm sewers in New York City, for example, drain into the Hudson River and into Long Island Sound. As sea level rises, that water will build up, and we will have more of these events on the landscape where water coming off the pavement or coming down the river exacerbates the flooding.”
Jackie Swift is a freelance writer for the Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation.
