The Coastal and Inland Flooding Observation and Warning (CI-FLOW) Project

The Coastal and Inland Flooding Observation and Warning (CI-FLOW) project is a multi-organizational, inter-disciplinary research and development effort focused on improving NOAA's monitoring and prediction of total water level within tidally influenced watersheds. A real-time coupled model system that captures the total water level (tides + waves + storm surge + runoff) was developed through the CI-FLOW project. The modeling system couples precipitation estimates, a distributed hydrologic model ensemble, a coastal circulation model, and a wave model to obtain flood inundation extents and significant wave heights. The system is utilized in the Tar-Pamlico and Neuse basins in North Carolina, the areas hit hardest by Hurricanes Dennis and Floyd in 1999. NOAA's National Weather Service, National Ocean Service, and Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research are synchronizing forecast capabilities to develop a national operational water forecast system. CI-FLOW researchers are communicating research results learned throughout the history of the CI-FLOW project to inform strategic planning for coupled river modeling. This talk will provide an overview of the evolution of the project as well as past and ongoing research results.