Dartmouth Flood Observatory

Global Active Archive of Large Flood Events

The information presented in this Archive is derived from a wide variety of news, governmental, instrumental, and remote sensing source. It is presented in order to facilitate research into the causes of extreme flood events, provide international warning of such floods, and improve widespread access to satellite-based measurements and mapping. The archive is "active" because current events are added immediately. Analysis using remote sensing data is also presently underway on past events; such additional information is added to this archive as it becomes available.

Each entry in the table and related map represents a discrete flood event. However, repeat flooding in some regions is a complex phenomenon and we strive for a compromise between aggregating and dividing such events. The listing is comprehensive and global in scope. Deaths and damage estimates for tropical storms are totals from all causes, but tropical storms without significant river flooding are not included.

Many floods have now been imaged by satellite or airborne sensors and translated by Dartmouth Flood Observatory staff into maps of inundation extents. To view these maps, follow the links for a specific event on one of the yearly tables. Beginning in early 2003, all prior-year innundation maps are being removed to save web site space, but end-users can order the GIS innundation vectors and as identified in the appropriate active archive entry. Prior-year innundation extents are also shown on the World Atlas of Flooded Lands

Excel xml listing of all floods, 1985-present

Area-affected MapInfo export-format GIS files for all floods, 1985-present (two files needed)

New: Master Index of DFO Rapid Response Inundation Maps.

New: Animated GIF movie of global flood maps from 1985 to 2007.

New: Regional Animated GIF movies of floods from 1985 to 2007:

South Asia and Australia GIF movie

Europe GIF movie

You can visualize an Interactive Map of the Global Flood Events 1985 -2002. (If the map does not appear, you might download the Flash player (for free) on the Macromedia web site).

For additional information concerning how these maps and tables are created, please review the Archive Notes.

This work is made possible by data obtained by NASA, JAXA, ESA, and other space agencies, and by funding support from the Earth Surface and Interior Focus Area and the Applied Sciences Program, Science Mission Directorate, NASA, and from the European Commission, through the GDACS project, Joint Research Centre, Ispra, Italy.