Hurricane storm surge data needs improvement

Terra Daily via UPI: The maps used to predict the critical rise of storm surge during recent hurricanes on the U.S. Gulf Coast contained different data, researchers say. The differences complicated emergency planning during Hurricanes Gustav and Ike and pointed out the need for accelerated scientific research into the phenomenon, The (New Orleans) Times-Picayune reported Sunday.

"We are 20 years behind where we want to be," said Robert Twilley, who oversees the surge-modeling program at Louisiana State University….

Storm surge flooding at Horseshoe Beach, Florida, associated with Tropical Storm Alberto, June 2006. NOAA, Wikimedia Commons