Supervisors: Miguel Rico-Ramirez (UoB), Jeff Neal (UoB), Paul Bates (UoB), Giulia Giani (Gallagher Re)
Contact email: M.A.Rico-Ramirez@bristol.ac.uk
Location: Bristol
Project Rational: With rapid claims payment and low administrative costs Parametric Flood Insurance can provide an effective form of alternative risk protection for many developing nations in the world where traditional insurance is unaffordable to homeowners. Working in close collaboration with industry partners including Gallagher Re and its clients, including resilience risk pools such as SEADRIF (South East Asian Disaster Risk Insurance Facility based in Singapore), this research project will explore the efficacy of using alternative available remote sensing datasets (satellite optical / radar/ drones but possible social media too) and hydrological methods to establish when pluvial and fluvial flood levels have impacted vulnerable populations in Lao PDR and the Southeast Asian region (including the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam and other neighbouring countries).
Methodology: Flood inundation models provide simulations of flood dynamics, depths and inundation extent, which is key for the management of pluvial/fluvial floods in urban areas. However, these models are computationally expensive to run and require high-resolution data sets that may not be available for real-time applications especially in data-scarce regions. Advances in satellite remote sensing has enabled the near-real-time monitoring of flood events on a global scale. Some of the freely available satellite products for flood mapping include SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) (Sentinel-1) and optical sensors (Sentinel-2, Landsat-8/9). SAR sensors can penetrate clouds making them suitable for flood monitoring in any conditions (dry/wet, day/night), whereas optical sensors detect visible/infrared light and therefore limited by cloud cover. Both sensors have their own spatial/temporal resolutions (e.g. Sentinel-1 is 10m/6-12days) suitable for near-real-time flood mapping. This project will investigate how suitable are the above satellite products for flood mapping in the Southeast Asia. A model will be developed to merge the different satellite products to estimate flood extent and flood depths (with additional satellite DEM data). Flood losses will be computed using depth-damage functions. A flood inundation model (driven by satellite rainfall) will be implemented for specific flood cases to validate the results.
Background Reading:
- Matheswaran, K., Alahacoon, N., Pandey, R., & Amarnath, G. (2018). Flood risk assessment in South Asia to prioritize flood index insurance applications in Bihar, India. Geomatics, Natural Hazards and Risk, 10(1), 26–48. https://doi.org/10.1080/19475705.2018.1500495
- Tellman, B., Lall, U., Islam, A.K.M.S.,& Bhuyan, M. A. (2022). Regional index insurance using satellite-based fractional flooded area. Earth's Future,10, e2021EF002418. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021EF002418
- Olcese, G., Bates, P. D., Neal, J. C.,Sampson, C. C., Wing, O. E. J., Quinn, N.,et al. (2024). Developing a fluvial and pluvial stochastic flood model of Southeast Asia. Water Resources Research, 60,e2023WR036580. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023WR036580
FLOOD-CDT
This PhD is being advertised as part of the Centre for Doctoral Training for Resilient Flood Futures (FLOOD-CDT). Further details about FLOOD-CDT can be seen here https://flood-cdt.ac.uk. Please note, that your application will be assessed upon: (1) Motivation and Career Aspirations; (2) Potential & Intellectual Excellence; (3) Suitability for specific project and (4) Fit to FLOOD-CDT. So please familiarise yourselves with FLOOD-CDT before applying. During the application process candidates will need to upload:
• a 1 page statement of your research interests in flooding and FLOOD-CDT and your rationale for your choice of project;
• a curriculum vitae giving details of your academic record and stating your research interests;
• name two current academic referees together with an institutional email addresses; on submission of your online application your referees will be automatically emailed requesting they send a reference to us directly by email;
• academic transcripts and degree certificates (translated if not in English) - if you have completed both a BSc & an MSc, we require both; and
• a IELTS/TOEFL certificate, if applicable.
Please upload all documents in PDF format. You are encouraged to contact potential supervisors by email to discuss project-specific aspects of the proposed prior to submitting your application. If you have any general questions please contact floodcdt@soton.ac.uk.
Apply
Apply for this PhD here: https://www.bristol.ac.uk/geography/courses/postgraduate/physphd.html
