UNSW 06: Spatially correlated extreme events in Australia over the past 30-40 years

This student project will focus on spatially correlated events in Australia that occurred in the past 30 to 40 years. Using observations over this time period the student will catalogue past compound events; assess possible trends in their occurrence; check for preferred spatial correlation patterns; and assess if these were accurately reproduced in reanalysis products (e.g. BARRA, ERA-5 and/or ERA-Interim).

Supervisors:

Dr Nina Nadine Ridder (n.ridder@unsw.edu.au)
Prof Andy Pitman (a.pitman@unsw.edu.au)

Many weather and climate extremes are combinations of multiple hazards, which act together and tend to exacerbate the socio-economic impact of an event. Events that are the result of multiple hazards acting together are known as Compound Events. One type of Compound Events are spatially correlated events. These events consist of extremes taking place at several geographic locations simultaneously (or in one season) and are of particular importance for emergency services who need to manage their resources and the dispatchment of forces.

This student project will focus on spatially correlated events in Australia that occurred in the past 30 to 40 years. Using observations over this time period the student will

catalogue past compound events, and
assess possible trends in their occurrence.

Depending on student interest possible hazards to assess include extreme precipitation, extreme temperatures/heatwaves, bushfires, wind storms, and/or droughts.

Requirements: Some prior programming experience (e.g. Python, MATLAB, R, etc.) or a willingness to learn.