In the year since Hurricane Katrina struck the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida, scientists and engineers have examined the full breadth of the storm's aftermath--from levee failures and ecosystem damage to weather predictions and human responses in the midst of catastrophe.
According to a FEMA report, more than 1,300 people lost their lives in Louisiana and Mississippi alone; 450,000 were displaced. Total economic losses exceeded an estimated $125 billion, including homes, universities, bridges and other infrastructure--and some 350,000 vehicles and 2,400 ships.
Some researchers arrived on the scene immediately to collect critical clues before they were lost to rescue and clean-up operations--and time. Other research took place in distant laboratories, where investigators plugged numbers into computer models or built search robots. The scientists and engineers all sought to understand exactly how the destruction happened, if and when it could happen again, and especially, how to prevent such carnage in the future.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) supported many of the studies under its Small Grants for Exploratory Research (SGER) program. Although the program was created to support small-scale, exploratory, high-risk research of all kinds, it has proved to be especially well-suited for rapid-response situations because SGER requests can be processed and approved more quickly than other research proposals. Indeed, NSF has previously used the SGER program to field research teams in the aftermaths of both the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
Investigators supported under the SGER program often join other NSF-supported investigators who have been in the field for some time.
Selected projects from the past year are highlighted below.
NSF Announces "Rapid Response" Awards to Learn the Lessons of Katrina
NSF Announces New Awards to Study the Impact of Katrina on People and Social Systems
NSF's Response to the Hurricanes
Researchers Release Draft Final Report on New Orleans Levees
Hurricane Katrina: Scientists Fly Into Eye of the Storm
Number of Category 4 and 5 Hurricanes Has Doubled Over the Past 35 Years
Seeing Into the Eye of Hurricane Rita
Gulf Warm-Water Eddies Intensify Hurricane Changes
Small, Unmanned Aircraft Search for Survivors in Katrina Wreckage
Robotics Researchers Return to Examine Katrina Devastation With Small Unmanned Helicopters
Large Centrifuge Helps Researchers Mimic Effects of Katrina on Levees
Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 21 Feb 2009
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