Flash Flood Webinar Series: Sign up now!
Posted on: 2014-02-22

Join the COMET Program of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) for our first "pay-as-you-go" webinar series. The topic is flash flooding and the webinars will be offered on March 19-20, 2014. Led by flood expert Matt Kelsch, this series is designed to increase your knowledge and interest about these dangerous and fascinating natural phenomena. The two webinars will look at different aspects of flash floods:

1. Flash Flood I: Meteorology
   10:00 - 11:00 AM Mountain Daylight Time, Wednesday, 19 March 2014 This webinar will examine the physical processes leading to intense rainfall and how meteorologists recognize these patterns via atmospheric indicators, observation platforms, and numerical models. You will learn about tools used to analyze rainfall accumulation in real time.
2. Flash Flood II: Hydrology
   10:00 -11:00 AM Mountain Daylight Time, Thursday, 20 March 2014 This webinar will explore where the water goes once it hits the ground. We will explore the influences of intense rainfall on runoff and stream response, including soil types, land use, watershed characteristics, and soil saturation.

Intended audience: These webinars are designed for those with some background in basic meteorology. The content is presented at the beginning undergraduate level. You do not have to be a college student to attend as the content is of interest to a wide audience. Although the content has global application, the case examples with be focused on flash flood events within the contiguous United States.

Duration: Each webinar is one hour long, which includes time for questions.

Registration and fees: Online registration will run from 24 February 2014 until the day of the webinar. The webinars cost $79 each, or register for both for $129. Select a title to register:

• Flash Flood I: Meteorology
• Flash Flood II: Hydrology

We will use Citrix GotoWebinar to broadcast these events. You will be prompted to register on the Citrix site after paying your registration fee.

Instructor: Matt Kelsch is a hydrometeorologist who has worked with development of meteorological and hydrologic training materials for more than 20 years. Over the years he has worked with many other experts and will synthesize their experiences and work into these presentations.

A Certificate of Participation will be provided to each registered participant.

Hardware and software requirements: You will need a computer capable of running the Citrix GoToWebinar software with speakers and a broadband internet connection. Please ensure that you have the latest version of GoToWebinar. To download and test the GoTo software, follow the instructions here: http://support.citrixonline.com/en_US/gotomeeting/help_files/GTM140010 We strongly advise against using cell phones and other mobile devices to attend the webinar. If you have multiple people attending from your location, we advise projecting the webinar onto a large screen for better viewing.

Important links during presentations:

• Satellite-derived rainfall from GOES:  http://www.ospo.noaa.gov/Products/atmosphere/ghe/index.html
• Satellite derived rainfall, microwave: http://www.ospo.noaa.gov/Products/atmosphere/brr/index.html
• Multi-radar, multi-sensor system QPE: http://nmq.ou.edu/
• Satellite based precipitable water products (2 links): http://tropic.ssec.wisc.edu/real-time/mimic-tpw/global/main.html http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/psd/psd2/coastal/satres/data/html/wx_cl.html
• Anomaly products: http://eyewall.met.psu.edu/
• PW climatology USA and southern Canada: http://www.crh.noaa.gov/unr/?n=pw

For questions contact: webinars@comet.ucar.edu