Wang et al. (2026) Unveiling the link between extreme precipitation events and flood disasters in China: from a 3D perspective

Identification

• Journal: Natural hazards and earth system sciences
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-08-27
• Authors: Jie Wang, Sixuan Li, Xiaodan Guan, Ashok Kumar Pokharel, Yongli He, Chenyu Cao, Lulu Lian, Lihui Zhang
• DOI: 10.5194/nhess-26-4153-2026

Research Groups

• Collaborative Innovation Center for Western Ecological Safety, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
• Key Laboratory of Urban Meteorology, China Meteorological Administration, Beijing, China
• China Meteorological Administration Hydro-Meteorology Key Laboratory, Beijing, China
• School of Atmospheric Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
• College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China

Short Summary

This study investigates the link between extreme precipitation events and flood disasters in China from a 3D perspective. The authors developed a 3D automatic recognition algorithm to analyze the characteristics of 632 flood-causing precipitation (FCP) events in China from 2000 to 2023.

Objective

• Investigate the relationship between extreme precipitation events and flood disasters in China.
• Analyze the characteristics of FCP events, including accumulated magnitude, affected area, centroid, lifespan, moving direction, and moving distance.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: National scale (China)
• Temporal Scale: 2000-2023

Methodology and Data

• Models used: GloFAS-ERA5 river discharge reanalysis product, ERA5 reanalysis precipitation and surface runoff data.
• Data sources: Global Flood Awareness System (GloFAS), European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) ERA5 reanalysis dataset.

Main Results

• The 3D characteristics of FCP events show insignificant increasing trends in China during 2000–2023.
• FCP events with larger accumulated magnitudes and affected areas are mainly distributed in the central Southern China (SC) and Northern China (NC).
• Correspondingly, the flood characteristics (i.e., surface runoff and river discharge) of these FCP events also exhibit increasing trends.

Contributions

• This study provides new insights into the characteristics of FCP events and their associated flood disasters from a 3D event-based perspective.
• The findings can help improve our understanding of how changes in extreme precipitation convert into flood impacts.

Funding

• Collaborative Innovation Center for Western Ecological Safety, Lanzhou University (China)
• National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC)

Citation

@article{Wang2026Unveiling,
  author = {Wang, Jie and Li, Sixuan and Guan, Xiaodan and Pokharel, Ashok Kumar and He, Yongli and Cao, Chenyu and Lian, Lulu and Zhang, Lihui},
  title = {Unveiling the link between extreme precipitation events and flood disasters in China: from a 3D perspective},
  journal = {Natural hazards and earth system sciences},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.5194/nhess-26-4153-2026},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-26-4153-2026}
}