Articles | Volume 28, issue 16
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-3755-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-3755-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| Highlight paper
| 
20 Aug 2024
Research article | Highlight paper |
| 20 Aug 2024
| 20 Aug 2024
An increase in the spatial extent of European floods over the last 70 years
Department of Compound Environmental Risks, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Permoserstr. 15, 04318 Leipzig, Germany
Emanuele Bevacqua
Department of Compound Environmental Risks, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Permoserstr. 15, 04318 Leipzig, Germany
Oldrich Rakovec
Department of Computational Hydrosystems, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Permoserstr. 15, 04318 Leipzig, Germany
Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague-Suchdol 16500, Czech Republic
Jakob Zscheischler
Department of Compound Environmental Risks, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Permoserstr. 15, 04318 Leipzig, Germany
Department of Hydro Sciences, TUD Dresden University of Technology, Dresden, Germany
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Saved (final revised paper)
Latest update: 21 Jul 2026
Editorial statement
The topic is of interest to a wide audience. The authors have developed a new approach to assess changes in the spatial extent of flooding.
The topic is of interest to a wide audience. The authors have developed a new approach to assess...
Short summary
We use grid-based runoff from a hydrological model to identify large spatiotemporally connected flood events in Europe, assess extent trends over the last 70 years, and attribute the trends to different drivers. Our findings reveal a general increase in flood extent, with regional variations driven by diverse factors. The study not only enables a thorough examination of flood events across multiple basins but also highlights the potential challenges arising from changing flood extents.
We use grid-based runoff from a hydrological model to identify large spatiotemporally connected...
