Multi-Hazard Inundation With 0.5-m Sea Level Rise: Honolulu, Hawaii

Multi-hazard inundation around Honolulu, Hawaii resulting from future sea level rise. The study area includes the urban corridor stretching from Honolulu International Airport to Waikiki and Diamond Head along the south shore of Oahu. Shows inundation from the following three hazards:

1) Sea Level Rise Inundation: 0.5-m Scenario

Coastal flooding due to 0.5 meter of sea level rise. This scenario was derived using a National Geospatial Agency (NGA)-provided digital elevation model (DEM) based on LiDAR data of the Honolulu area collected in 2009. This "bare earth" DEM (vegetation and structures removed) was used to represent the current topography of the study area. The accuracy of the DEM was validated using a selection of 16 Tidal Benchmarks located within the study area. The single value tidal water surface of mean higher high water (MHHW) modeled at the Honolulu tide gauge was used to represent sea level for the purposes of this study. Water levels are shown as they would appear during the highest high tides (excluding wind-driven tides).

2) Tsunami Run-Up Inundation With 0.5-m Sea Level Rise

Computer model simulation of tsunami run-up inundation including half a meter of sea level rise at mean higher high water (MHHW) as its baseline water level. The model simulates maximum inundation based on five major historical tsunamis that have impacted Hawaii: 1) The 1946 Aleutian earthquake (8.2 Mw), 2) 1952 Kamchatka earthquake (9.0 Mw), 3) 1957 Aleutian earthquake (8.6 Mw), 4) 1960 Chile earthquake (9.5 Mw), and 5) the 1964 Alaska earthquake (9.2 Mw).

3) Hurricane Storm Surge Inundation With 0.5-m Sea Level Rise

Computer model simulation of hurricane storm surge inundation including half a meter of sea level rise at mean higher high water (MHHW) as its baseline water level. The model simulates a Category 4 hurricane, similar to Hurricane Iniki which devastated the island of Kauai in 1992, with a central pressure ranging from 910 to 970 mbar and maximum sustained winds ranging from 90 to 150 mph as it tracked from open ocean to land to open ocean again. The model result shows the Maximum of the Maximum Envelope of High Water (MEOW), or MOM, providing a worst-case snapshot for a particular storm category under "perfect" storm conditions.

Data produced in 2014 by Dr. Charles "Chip" Fletcher of the department of Geology & Geophysics (G&G) (1) and Dr. Kwok Fai Cheung of the department of Ocean and Resources Engineering (ORE) (2 & 3) in the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) of the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Supported in part by the NOAA Coastal Storms Program (CSP) and the University of Hawaii Sea Grant College Program. These data do not consider future changes in coastal geomorphology and natural processes such as erosion, subsidence, or future construction. These data do not specify timing of inundation depths and are not appropriate for conducting detailed spatial analysis. The entire risk associated with the results and performance of these data is assumed by the user. These data should be used strictly as a planning reference and not for navigation, permitting, or other legal purposes.

Tags: atmosphere, atmospheric phenomena, atmospheric/ocean indicators, central pacific ocean, climate indicators, coastal processes, continent, earth science, earth science services, hawaii, hawaiian islands, honolulu, human dimensions, hurricanes, inundation, models, natural hazards, north america, oahu, ocean, ocean general circulation models (ogcm)/regional ocean models, ocean waves, oceans, pacific islands ocean observing system, pacific ocean, pacioos, sea level rise, storm surge, tropical cyclones, tsunamis, united states of america, weather research/forecast models
Organization: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce