There will be some big improvements in how hurricane storm surge is predicted for the upcoming 2023 hurricane season.
Storm surge, the water pushed onto shore by the winds swirling around the hurricane, can wipe out entire communities in a matter of hours.
NOAA has upgraded its storm surge forecasting model that uses probabilistic techniques to assess a range of likely storm surge possibilities.
The P-surge storm surge model includes new forecasts for surges, tides and waves for Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.
Another critical upgrade will be the ability to run the model simultaneously for two storms.
This capability can help during two landfalling storms impacting the CONUS, or one storm impacting the CONUS and one impacting Puerto Rico and/or the US Virgin Islands.
Version 3.0 improves model calculations of friction over different types of land surfaces, which helps more accurately compute the extent of water inundation along the coast.