University of Southampton
University of Southampton is a university that is part of the pulse of the water sector. Here we bring together everything it publishes on Smart Water Magazine: its news, its blogs and the events it takes part in.
Scientists analyse record storm surges to help predict future flooding
Researchers at the University of Southampton have conducted the most detailed spatial analysis to date of storm surges along the coast of the UK and Ireland. The oceanographers found coastlines in the north of the Irish Sea experience the longest and largest surges, while those occurring around the southwest coast of England have the smallest […]
Crucial shift in River Nile’s evolution during ancient Egypt discovered
Researchers have explored how the River Nile evolved over the past 11,500 years and how changes in its geography could have helped shape the fortunes of ancient Egyptian civilisation. Research published in Nature Geoscience reveals a major shift in the Nile around four thousand years ago, after which the floodplain in the Nile Valley around […]
Shift to ‘flash droughts’ as climate warms
‘Flash droughts’ have become more frequent due to human-caused climate change and this trend is predicted to accelerate in a warmer future, according to new research involving the University of Southampton. The research published in Science shows that flash droughts, which start and develop rapidly, are becoming ‘the new normal’ for droughts, making forecasting and preparing for […]
Unsustainable sand mining is threatening lives along the Mekong River in Cambodia
It’s a resource used in global construction and mined from rivers and coasts across the world. Now new research, as part of a project led by University of Southampton, has shown sand mining is causing river beds to lower, leading to riverbank instability and increasing the likelihood of dangerous river bank collapse, damaging infrastructure and […]
DNA tests of UK waters could help catch invasive species early
A team of scientists from the University of Southampton, Bangor University and the National Oceanography Centre have discovered several artificially introduced species in the coastal waters of southern England, using a technique that could help the early detection of non-native species if adopted more widely. Among the species identified during the study was Cephalothrix simula, […]
Using big data to help manage global natural assets
Research led by the University of Southampton is helping to tackle one of the biggest sustainability challenges – looking after and nurturing the natural resources in the world around us. The study outlines a new approach for using environmental ‘big data’ to understand where different approaches to managing our ‘natural capital’ (e.g. forests, lakes, soils) […]
Salmon populations may adapt their eggs to survive in degraded rivers
A University of Southampton study suggests that the membrane of salmon eggs may evolve to cope with reduced oxygen levels in rivers, thereby helping their embryos to incubate successfully.