International Association of Hydrological Sciences

The Extremes of the Extremes:
Extraordinary Floods

edited by Árni Snorasson, Helga P. Finnsdóttir & Marshall E. Moss

IAHS Publication no. 271 (published March 2002) in the IAHS Series of Proceedings and Reports
ISBN 1-901502-66-X; 394 + xiv pp.;  price £60.00

Extreme floods are among the most destructive forces of nature; there is a perception that they are occurring with higher frequency now than in the past. This is a cause for international concern and calls for an understanding of the circumstances that might generate such disastrous events.

This was the motive for the Reykjavík symposium on extraordinary floods, the Extremes of the Extremes, co-convened by the International Association of Hydrological Sciences (IAHS) and the Hydrological Service in Iceland; this publication is an outcome of that meeting.

The main focus of the papers included in this volume is the geophysical processes related to floods, but the statistical and mathematical aspects of flood analysis and forecasting are also addressed, and the issues of flooding and flood abatement are put into economic, social and ethical perspective. The 60 papers in this volume have been grouped under the following themes:


 

Alphabetical list of Authors
Key word index
Contents


     
  1. Physical Processes Related to Floods
     
     
  2. Prehistoric and Historic Floods
     
     
  3. Floods: Case Studies
     
     
  4. Geomorphological and Environmental Questions Related to Floods
     
     
  5. Statistical Analysis of Floods
     
     
  6. Statistical Analysis and Forecasting
     
     
  7. The Predictability and Abatement of Floods