Similar to its prediction made earlier this month, the Nation Weather Service’s Quad Cities bureau is anticipating below normal spring flood risks. Tim Gross, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said the risk for severe flooding on the Mississippi River this spring is currently 5 to 10 percent.

As part of sweeping cuts across a broad swath of U.S. departments and agencies, $35 million in federal grants and contracts headed to the University of Iowa’s 105-year-old IIHR-Hydroscience & Engineering center have been placed on hold.

Amid an uncertain situation surrounding federal funding, representatives from the Iowa Flood Center and Iowa Geological Survey mingled with Iowa lawmakers Tuesday to make their case for increasing state allocations.

Logan Mahoney graduated this December with a master's degree in civil and environmental engineering (CEE) and has secured a position as a Graduate Water Resources Engineer at ISG, a respected engineering consulting firm in her home state of Minnesota. As a graduate research assistant at IIHR—Hydroscience and Engineering, Mahoney's research focused on flood mitigation strategies in the Cedar River Watershed.

As a child growing up in Colombia, Humberto Vergara dreamed of becoming a scientist and an inventor. Now, remembering his boyhood ambition, he says, “I do feel like that dream came true.”

Many engineers say they started taking things apart and putting them back together (or trying to) at a very young age. For Priscilla Williams, it was a little different.

The Iowa Institute for Hydraulic Research’s work can be seen around the world, but its biggest impact is felt closer to home. What started as a small lab at the University of Iowa has grown into a leader in the world of hydroscience and a multidisciplinary hub that is recognized internationally. Its team of researchers and engineers are called upon for projects related to fluid mechanics, hydraulics, water, air and resource conservation.

In the traditionally hard science realms of conservation and ecology, opportunities for intersection with the arts and humanities are rare. However, BlueGAP (Blue Green Action Platform) is breaking down these boundaries and achieving remarkable success by embracing this unique fusion

Vanessa Robledo, a second-year PhD student in civil and environmental engineering, is helping improve the Iowa Flood Center’s abilities to better forecast flash flood events. Building on her master's studies in meteorology from Medellin, Colombia, her research focuses on improving methods for predicting weather patterns to enhance flood forecasting.

Iowa researchers are working to solve some of our state’s most significant environmental challenges. That includes experts from the UI College of Engineering who are using a living laboratory to conduct innovative sustainability research and scientists who have deployed a vast network of climate sensors to prepare for the growing impact of extreme weather events.