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More than a fifth of the world is at risk of significant flooding as waters rise.
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But artificial intelligence models could help save lives as conditions worsen in the coming years.
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AI flood models study not only the weather, but also the nearby terrain and history.
Almost two billion people are at high risk of flooding amid the climate crisis – and experts expect the problem to only worsen with coastal flooding on the road to skyrocketing by 2100.
But as waters rise around the globe, scientists and researchers are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence to combat the growing problem, according to reports.
Flood monitoring firms from Iowa to Norway are using AI to combat flood damage by creating digital predictive models that could help save lives with early evacuation warnings and more accurate mapping data.
Cities around the world could see more than six feet of flooding by the turn of the century, and at least eight major American cities are at risk of disappearing almost entirely by 2100 including New Orleans, Miami, and New York City. -York, Business Insider previously reported. .
Low-lying coastal cities are especially vulnerable to flood damage from rising sea waters, leaving much of Florida at risk of destruction.
Model flood
Physics-based flood models that rely on standard computing power were standard practice in flood forecasting, according to the BBC.
But those models have a good chance of underestimating the real risk of incoming flooding, Northeastern Global News reported earlier this year, citing an incident in Waverly, Tennessee, in August 2021 in which 20 people died after meteorologists two or predict three inches of rain but wind up with. more than 20.
There were at least 77 flood deaths in the US in 2023, according to the National Weather Service.
Artificial intelligence models, however, study not only the weather forecast but the land and nearby rivers, drainage information about the area, and regional layout to create more comprehensive predictive models.
According to the BBC, AI also has better computing power, which means models can do the job much faster and with less human supervision.
One firm employing AI is 7Analytics, a Norway-based sustainability data platform that focuses on climate risk management. The company already uses its AI model to provide real-time flood forecasts to businesses and local authorities, highlighting areas at risk, according to the BBC.
Company founder Jonas Borland told the outlet that the model can predict up to seven days before a catastrophic weather event.
“All this data takes into account where the water will flow, and where it will cause problems,” he said. “We can tell you that in five days there will be 50 cm of water at your entrance, and we can tell you when it will go underground.”
Torland told the outlet that donations and funding for the model have increased recently as awareness of flood risks has become more common.
Big names
Neara, a London-based infrastructure modeling platform, uses AI to produce digital flood simulations that help electricity networks prepare for and respond to water damage, the BBC reported. Meanwhile, the University of Iowa also has an AI model called Flood AI.
Even Google has gotten into the AI game, providing river flood warnings across more than 80 countries with its Flood Hub platform, which launched in the UK and US earlier this year.
“Floods are one of the most devastating natural disasters, affecting hundreds of millions of people every year,” Yossi Matias, vice-president of engineering and research and head of crisis response at Google, told the BBC. we really want to inform people before floods. really hit them.”
The system uses satellite imagery to create pictures of rivers and nearby terrain, which AI then uses to predict how rivers might flood after rain.
Flood Hub researchers told the BBC that the system could send warnings anywhere from two to seven days in advance of catastrophic weather.
In 2021 alone, Google sent 115 million flood warning messages to 23 million people, the company wrote in an article sponsored by Bloomberg.
According to the BBC, AI models are particularly helpful in places with limited historical weather data.
“The nature of these global models is that they can learn from experiences that are happening in other rivers where you have more data and more historical experience, Matias told the BBC.
But AI models aren’t a perfect solution, Amy McGovern, a computer scientist at the University of Oklahoma School of Meteorology, told the outlet. They are only as good as the data they collect; places without a history of serious flooding remain at risk as artificial intelligence races to gather enough information to predict the outcome of the rare heavy rains there.
Read the original article on Business Insider
