A 2000 year long seasonal record of floods in the southern European Alps

• Published in: Geophysical Research Letters
• Main Authors: Wirth, Stefanie B., Gilli, Adrian, Simonneau, Anaëlle, Ariztegui, Daniel, Vannière, Boris, Glur, Lukas, Chapron, Emmanuel, Magny, Michel, Anselmetti, Flavio S.
• Other Authors: Geological Institute, Institut des Sciences de la Terre d'Orléans - UMR7327 (ISTO), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université d'Orléans (UO)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Observatoire des Sciences de l'Univers en région Centre (OSUC), Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Observatoire de Paris, Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université d'Orléans (UO)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Observatoire de Paris, Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université d'Orléans (UO)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Bureau de Recherches Géologiques et Minières (BRGM) (BRGM), Géographie de l'environnement (GEODE), Université Toulouse - Jean Jaurès (UT2J)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences Geneva, University of Geneva Switzerland, Laboratoire Chrono-environnement - CNRS - UBFC (UMR 6249) (LCE), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université de Franche-Comté (UFC), Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté COMUE (UBFC)-Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté COMUE (UBFC), Swiss Federal Insitute of Aquatic Science and Technology Dübendorf (EAWAG), Institute of Geological Sciences Bern, University of Bern, Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF) (grant 200021-121909)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2013
• Subjects: Alps; floods; lake sediments; seasonality; natural hazard; solar variability; [SDU.ENVI]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Continental interfaces; environment; [SDE.MCG]Environmental Sciences/Global Changes; North Atlantic; North Atlantic oscillation
• Online Access: https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00876012; https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00876012/document; https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00876012/file/grl50741.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1002/grl.50741

International audience Knowledge of past natural flood variability and controlling climate factors is of high value since it can be useful to refine projections of the future flood behavior under climate warming. In this context, we present a seasonally resolved 2000 year long flood frequency and intensity reconstruction from the southern Alpine slope (North Italy) using annually laminated (varved) lake sediments. Floods occurred predominantly during summer and autumn, whereas winter and spring events were rare. The all-season flood frequency and, particularly, the occurrence of summer events increased during solar minima, suggesting solar-induced circulation changes resembling negative conditions of the North Atlantic Oscillation as controlling atmospheric mechanism. Furthermore, the most extreme autumn events occurred during a period of warm Mediterranean sea surface temperature. Interpreting these results in regard to present climate change, our data set proposes for a warming scenario, a decrease in summer floods, but an increase in the intensity of autumn floods at the South-Alpine slope.