Hydrology @ Soton

Welcome to Hydrology @ Southampton

Apps and Datasets

Welcome to the hydrology.soton.ac.uk website, the online home of the Hydrology @ Soton research group at the University of Southampton led by Professor Justin Sheffield. The group specializes in large-scale hydrology, climate variability, and understanding the complex environmental and societal impacts of weather extremes. The platform serves as a central hub for the group's scientific research, publications, and interactive applications. Visitors can access a variety of comprehensive global datasets, such as the 70-year Princeton Global Forcing (PGF) dataset, the Global PDSI drought index, and the Global Flood and Drought Catalogue. Additionally, the site hosts interactive Apps and tools, including real-time Flood and Drought Monitors for numerous African countries (such as Zimbabwe, Mozambique, South Africa, and Malawi) and the SMAP-HB 30m high-resolution soil moisture tracker for the United States.

Here are further details highlighting the different areas of research conducted by the group:

Extreme Temperatures and Public Health (The ETHOS Project)

A major research focus is the ETHOS project (Extreme Temperature and Health Outcomes), a 4-year UKRI/NERC-funded initiative. This multidisciplinary project investigates the evolving health risks of extreme heatwaves and cold snaps, specifically targeting highly vulnerable populations such as older adults and individuals with multi-morbidities or neurological conditions like multiple sclerosis. By merging multi-scale climate and landscape data, the researchers create highly precise risk maps that downscale urban temperatures to the street and building level. The goal of ETHOS is to identify and co-produce actionable environmental solutions—like optimizing urban green spaces or improving building retrofits—to mitigate temperature-related health risks and inform local public health policy.

Hydrological Extremes and Climate Change

The group extensively researches the dynamics of floods and droughts in a warming world. Through analyzing decades of global data, their publications shed light on the changing nature of hydrological hazards, such as a growing global transition to rapid-onset "flash droughts." They investigate the spatio-temporal drivers of meteorological droughts and floods across diverse regions, from the Volta Basin in West Africa to the Yellow River Basin in China. By utilizing advanced multi-sensor remote sensing data (like SMAP and Landsat), the group develops advanced flood inundation assessments and predictive tools to better understand multi-scale spatial variability and extreme hazard risks.

Agricultural Hydrology and Food Security

Addressing the challenges of food security and sustainable agriculture is another crucial pillar of the group's research. The team frequently works to improve crop simulation models (such as FAO-AquaCrop and APSIM) by assimilating high-resolution satellite inputs like soil moisture, canopy cover, and CubeSat imagery. Their work heavily focuses on dryland and developing environments, mapping crop-specific exposures to extreme temperature and moisture. Recent studies have explored crop yield variability, the impacts of multi-source remote sensing on smallholder fields in Malawi, and the relationship between social capital typologies and household access to food.

Water Resources Management and Multi-Sector Infrastructure

Hydrology @ Soton also explores the intersection of physical hydrology with socio-economics, infrastructure, and renewable energy. Researchers design multicriteria land cover and renewable energy systems by coupling hydrologic data with multi-sector water management models. They also investigate the cooperative, adaptive management of critical transboundary water systems—such as the Nile River infrastructure—to ensure that climate change uncertainties, socio-economic developments, and multi-sector performance are properly balanced in future policy negotiations.

Coming soon... (last updated June 2026)

Global PET dataset - comming soon...

Global runoff to the oceans - coming soon...

Mexican Evapotranspiration based on ISCCP surface radiation - coming soon...

Flood and Drought Monitors