Integrating climate change impacts to improve understanding of coastal climate change: Heavy rains, strong winds, and high seas in coastal Hawai'i, Alaska and the Pacific Northwest

Understanding the long-term variability and trends in coastal climate has grown in public awareness given the potentially severe impacts related to sea level rise coupled with changes in storminess. Previous research and operational products have typically focused on whether monthly, seasonal or annual averages of temperature and precipitation have varied over time, and whether there is a discernible trend in these quantities. In order to better address the observed trend in coastal impacts related to climate change, the Pacific Storms Climatology Products (PSCP) Program has been developing analyses of heavy rains, strong winds, and high seas to better identify the observed long-term variability and trends related to these climate impact parameters. This paper will specifically address the development and application of climate indices for assessing changes across coastal Hawai'i, Alaska, and the Pacific Northwest. Specific focus is on those observed changes and trends in the most extreme events using a suite of climate indices, and how these indices can aid in understanding variations and trends in extreme events over time.