• Geoscientific Model Development
• DOI 10.5194/gmd-19-7415-2026
• 13 August 2026

The Rapid Evaluation Framework (REF) is a community-driven platform for benchmarking and performance assessment of Earth system models. Built upon four disparate community evaluation tools, the REF is designed to provide model-data comparisons for the Assessment Fast Track for the Seventh Phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project. The REF will be run at the Earth System Grid Federation to enable model devleopers and scientists to quickly identify model biases and performance issues.

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• Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences
• DOI 10.5194/nhess-26-3723-2026
• 10 August 2026

We present a framework linking projected rainfall with hydro-mechanical processes to assess landslide occurrences in a Mediterranean area, under RCP4.5 and RCP8.5. Despite generally drier soils, landslide frequency rises because shifts in the timing and intensity of rainfall, altering antecedent soil moisture during triggering events. This counterintuitive result highlights the importance of rainfall patterns in slope stability and informs climate-risk assessment and adaptation planning.

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• Geoscientific Model Development
• DOI 10.5194/gmd-19-6909-2026
• 29 July 2026

In this paper, we present a global high-resolution hydrological model to investigate how water may have once flowed and accumulated on Mars. Using detailed topography, the model tracks how lakes and seas form, grow, merge, overflow, and dry out over time. It reveals how a vast northern ocean could emerge from smaller bodies of water. This approach links surface landforms to past climates, offering new perspectives on Mars' watery history and its potential habitability.

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• Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences
• DOI 10.5194/nhess-26-3443-2026
• 28 July 2026

Gas production from the Groningen gas field caused felt earthquakes, resulting in field closure in 2023. Despite this, earthquakes are expected to continue for years to come. This study models whether gas injection may be used to reduce earthquakes. The results suggest that, under continued zero-production scenarios, gas injection would decrease the number of earthquakes and the associated seismic risk compared to a no-injection scenario, offering a potential avenue for active mitigation.

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• Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences
• DOI 10.5194/nhess-26-3345-2026
• 22 July 2026

Climate extremes like floods, heatwaves, droughts, and wildfires are disrupting Europe’s transport. This study combines a review of past events and future projections to assess current losses and the future exposure of transport infrastructure. Exposure to extremes is projected to rise, but lower emissions can reduce it. Urgent action is needed to reduce emissions and adapt the Trans-European Transport Network to a changing climate.

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• Hydrology and Earth System Sciences
• DOI 10.5194/hess-30-4367-2026
• 15 July 2026

Large wildfires are reshaping California’s water-supply forests. Using 40 years of satellite and river data, we found that severe fires greatly reduce vegetation water use, sometimes increasing runoff during dry years. Recovery varies widely across basins and can take many years. The work shows that wildfire can disturb the entire water budget and highlights the need to include fire effects when planning for future water resources.

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• Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences
• DOI 10.5194/nhess-26-3231-2026
• 13 July 2026

Flooding is a growing risk for communities around Puget Sound, where rising seas and changing rainfall patterns combine with rivers and tides. We used advanced computer models to simulate decades of water levels and river flows to better understand how often and how severely flooding may occur in the future. Our results show that climate change will increase both the frequency and extent of flooding, highlighting the urgent need for adaptation planning.

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• Hydrology and Earth System Sciences
• DOI 10.5194/hess-30-3979-2026
• 30 June 2026

Iceland relies heavily on hydropower, making it important to understand changes in streamflow. Rivers reflect a warming, wetter climate, with rainfall increasingly replacing snowfall. Annual streamflow has generally increased, most notably during the cool season, while summer flows have declined in some non-glacial rivers. Glacial rivers show increasing melt-season flows over 1973–2023 but declining trends over 1993–2023, reflecting glacier retreat and recent North Atlantic sea surface cooling.

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• Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences
• DOI 10.5194/nhess-26-2673-2026
• 10 June 2026

Pluvial (flash) floods, caused by intense local rainfall, result in surface runoff and overland flow, making them different from fluvial floods. A new Pluvial Flood Index (PFI) combines precipitation, hydrological, and hydrodynamic processes to assess surface flooding hazards. The PFI, based on flood hazard areas, helps forecast flash floods and supports real-time warning systems, aiding municipal decision-making, preparedness, and planning.

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• Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences
• DOI 10.5194/nhess-26-2609-2026
• 4 June 2026

Climate extremes threaten society and ecosystems, making impact understanding critical. Wikimpacts 1.0 provides an automated pipeline processing Wikipedia texts with underexploited information on climate impacts, yielding comprehensive socio-economic impact data for 2726 climate events from 1034–2024. It offers broader storm-related impacts and finer spatial resolution than established databases, showcasing natural language processing's potential to advance climate impact data.

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