Tom Coulthard
@tomcoulthard.bsky.social
Geomorphology - Modelling - non linear earth surface systems. Prof at Manchester Met, creator/curator of CAESAR-lisflood LEM, editor at Earth Surface Dynamics. Occasionally some 🛹 & 🧗♀️ content 😀
Pinned
Tom Coulthard
@tomcoulthard.bsky.social
· Jun 18
🚨 I’m moving jobs.. after 20 years it’s a sad goodbye to @uniofhull.bsky.social @eeiathull.bsky.social and a hello to @manmetuni.bsky.social Looking forward to new colleagues and opportunities.
👏 👋 to @nicolegasparini.bsky.social - well worth a follow
👋 I’m an earth scientist prof studying water 💦 & landscapes🏔️ & advocating for open source but I dig all science posts 🧬. I post on my science, dogs 🐕 , & struggles as a working mom , neurodivergence, and access and inclusion problem in science & academia🎓. Welcome & be kind. 🤗 my views only
August 24, 2025 at 6:26 PM
👏 👋 to @nicolegasparini.bsky.social - well worth a follow
This looks super interesting. Esp for folk at the intersection of science/humanities and water.
It's out! 🧪 "Lines in the landscape," on the under-appreciated importance of #ditches as diverse ecosystems: doi.org/10.1038/s432.... By @peatymike.bsky.social, @fluitans.bsky.social, @drtatariw.bsky.social, @timaukel.bsky.social, @jordannabergman.bsky.social, @juliecrabot.bsky.social, ...
Lines in the landscape - Communications Earth & Environment
Ditches have many overlooked environmental and societal roles, including impact on biodiversity and pollution, and management strategies to enhance their multifunctional landscape-scale benefits are n...
doi.org
August 23, 2025 at 8:36 AM
This looks super interesting. Esp for folk at the intersection of science/humanities and water.
Reposted by Tom Coulthard
A wave train entering into the North Sea, seen by #Sentinel1 on 12 August. I am guessing it's tidal-related, but I have never seen this kind of signal in this region in SAR data before, pretty cool 😎
@jowilliams.bsky.social
@jowilliams.bsky.social
August 21, 2025 at 12:02 PM
A wave train entering into the North Sea, seen by #Sentinel1 on 12 August. I am guessing it's tidal-related, but I have never seen this kind of signal in this region in SAR data before, pretty cool 😎
@jowilliams.bsky.social
@jowilliams.bsky.social
Reposted by Tom Coulthard
👀 There have been some exciting arrivals since I joined MMU Dept Natural Sciences: flume for the BiG Lab, LaVision PIV, Dr Lizzie Dingle and her very cool experiments, some feisty crayfish 🦞, & now, Prof. @tomcoulthard.bsky.social 🥳. Chuffed to bits that Tom is now a colleague. Exciting times ahead!
August 18, 2025 at 4:50 PM
👀 There have been some exciting arrivals since I joined MMU Dept Natural Sciences: flume for the BiG Lab, LaVision PIV, Dr Lizzie Dingle and her very cool experiments, some feisty crayfish 🦞, & now, Prof. @tomcoulthard.bsky.social 🥳. Chuffed to bits that Tom is now a colleague. Exciting times ahead!
Views from the new office @manmetuni.bsky.social
August 18, 2025 at 1:01 PM
Views from the new office @manmetuni.bsky.social
Sad news - and a lovely tribute. ges.uncg.edu/in-memoriam-...
In Memoriam: Dr. Sarah Praskievicz | Geography, Environment, & Sustainability Department
It is with deep sadness we share that Dr. Sarah Praskievicz, an associate professor in UNC Greensboro's Department of Geography, Environment, and Sustainability (GES), died on Aug. 11, 2025, at her ho...
ges.uncg.edu
August 15, 2025 at 7:58 PM
Sad news - and a lovely tribute. ges.uncg.edu/in-memoriam-...
Reposted by Tom Coulthard
I’m delighted to share that our latest research has just been published in HESS.
We developed an unsupervised workflow to estimate river surface velocities from videos. Testing on 11,000+ videos against 274 gauging measurements showed excellent agreement.
hess.copernicus.org/articles/29/...
We developed an unsupervised workflow to estimate river surface velocities from videos. Testing on 11,000+ videos against 274 gauging measurements showed excellent agreement.
hess.copernicus.org/articles/29/...
Unsupervised image velocimetry for automated computation of river flow velocities
Abstract. Accurate, long-term measurements of river flow are imperative for understanding and predicting a broad range of fluvial processes. Modern technological advances are enabling the development ...
hess.copernicus.org
August 14, 2025 at 8:38 AM
I’m delighted to share that our latest research has just been published in HESS.
We developed an unsupervised workflow to estimate river surface velocities from videos. Testing on 11,000+ videos against 274 gauging measurements showed excellent agreement.
hess.copernicus.org/articles/29/...
We developed an unsupervised workflow to estimate river surface velocities from videos. Testing on 11,000+ videos against 274 gauging measurements showed excellent agreement.
hess.copernicus.org/articles/29/...
First day in the new office 😀 @manmetuni.bsky.social
August 12, 2025 at 6:32 AM
First day in the new office 😀 @manmetuni.bsky.social
Reposted by Tom Coulthard
First cloud-free optical satellite imagery from @planet.com show the destruction of Dharali village in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand, India. Unfortunately the source area in the mountains is still obscured by cloud and so the ultimate cause is still speculative. 🧪⚒️
August 7, 2025 at 3:27 PM
First cloud-free optical satellite imagery from @planet.com show the destruction of Dharali village in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand, India. Unfortunately the source area in the mountains is still obscured by cloud and so the ultimate cause is still speculative. 🧪⚒️
I liked this from Chris @floodskinner.games (who for some reason never comes up on my Bs feed..) youtu.be/o79Ba8vqtY4?...
Terra Firma - A Game of Geomorphology
YouTube video by FloodSkinner
youtu.be
August 6, 2025 at 5:14 PM
I liked this from Chris @floodskinner.games (who for some reason never comes up on my Bs feed..) youtu.be/o79Ba8vqtY4?...
Reposted by Tom Coulthard
“the entire summit is affected by an ongoing geomorphological process, likely linked to permafrost degradation”
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...
Hundreds evacuated after series of rockfalls in Italy’s Brenta Dolomites
Experts say thawing of permafrost due to climate breakdown is causing increase in rock collapses across Alps
www.theguardian.com
July 30, 2025 at 2:52 PM
“the entire summit is affected by an ongoing geomorphological process, likely linked to permafrost degradation”
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...
Incredible story. Hg production fell to zero in 2020 but now rising (illegally it seems) to propel gold extraction in the Amazon financed and facilitated by Mexicos drug cartels… Horribly toxic - I thought mercury use had been nearly eliminated.
It is one of the deadliest chemicals on Earth – but even Mexico’s cartels can’t resist the lure of mercury
It is one of the deadliest chemicals on Earth – but even Mexico’s cartels can’t resist the lure of mercury
An undercover investigation reveals 200 tonnes of the deadly substance is being smuggled across South America, where it is poisoning rivers, soil and air
www.theguardian.com
July 24, 2025 at 7:09 PM
Incredible story. Hg production fell to zero in 2020 but now rising (illegally it seems) to propel gold extraction in the Amazon financed and facilitated by Mexicos drug cartels… Horribly toxic - I thought mercury use had been nearly eliminated.
Reposted by Tom Coulthard
New paper by Chelsea Volpano where she characterizes the role of landfast ice on coastal sediment transport. interesting nonmonotonic response in sediment transport with the termination depth, explaining much of the erosive vs protective debate of ice agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/...
Modeling the Influence of Grounded Landfast Ice on Nearshore Sediment Transport
XBeach was used to quantify sediment transport due to grounded landfast ice Conditions were identified where sediment transport was both amplified and reduced by ice Scour of the nearshore persi...
agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
July 24, 2025 at 6:23 PM
New paper by Chelsea Volpano where she characterizes the role of landfast ice on coastal sediment transport. interesting nonmonotonic response in sediment transport with the termination depth, explaining much of the erosive vs protective debate of ice agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/...
Reposted by Tom Coulthard
New PhD funding opportunity: Quantifying natural flood management through peatland restoration in the upland moorland environment (Physical Geography @exeter.ac.uk )
@dpanici.bsky.social @philipimetcalfe.bsky.social @uoe-creww.bsky.social
www.exeter.ac.uk/study/fundin...
@dpanici.bsky.social @philipimetcalfe.bsky.social @uoe-creww.bsky.social
www.exeter.ac.uk/study/fundin...
Quantifying NFM through peatland re | University of Exeter
The University’s Department of Geography invites applications for a PhD studentship funded by the Environment Agency and South West Water and the University of Exeter to commence as soon as possible t...
www.exeter.ac.uk
July 22, 2025 at 8:47 AM
New PhD funding opportunity: Quantifying natural flood management through peatland restoration in the upland moorland environment (Physical Geography @exeter.ac.uk )
@dpanici.bsky.social @philipimetcalfe.bsky.social @uoe-creww.bsky.social
www.exeter.ac.uk/study/fundin...
@dpanici.bsky.social @philipimetcalfe.bsky.social @uoe-creww.bsky.social
www.exeter.ac.uk/study/fundin...
Reposted by Tom Coulthard
Here's a fun anomaly for an inland flood risk map. It's genuinely very helpful in places: check-long-term-flood-risk.service.gov.uk/map But it's based on scans of the ground, & the processing gets confused sometimes. I think the 4-storey pitched roof of this hospital is probably safe from flooding!
July 21, 2025 at 3:04 PM
Here's a fun anomaly for an inland flood risk map. It's genuinely very helpful in places: check-long-term-flood-risk.service.gov.uk/map But it's based on scans of the ground, & the processing gets confused sometimes. I think the 4-storey pitched roof of this hospital is probably safe from flooding!
So the Cunliffe report is out today. Couple of first takes: 1. It seems comprehensive - lots of concise detail but 2. Nothing about flooding (that I can see) which in most urban areas is intrinsically linked to sewage systems and water utilities. assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/687d5c...
assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
July 21, 2025 at 6:14 AM
So the Cunliffe report is out today. Couple of first takes: 1. It seems comprehensive - lots of concise detail but 2. Nothing about flooding (that I can see) which in most urban areas is intrinsically linked to sewage systems and water utilities. assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/687d5c...
Reposted by Tom Coulthard
I see NERC is reverting to a policy from 15(??) or more years ago on resubmissions. I suspect it will be counter productive to NERC workload - as checking for this will not be easy, and building on this - it looks quite easy to game/work around. So - I’m left with why bother (with the new policy!)
Really disappointing new policy from NERC banning resubmissions of grant applications
Many of us, including me, have won grants on resubmission,
using the reviews to improve the application
This is is neither fair nor productive
www.ukri.org/councils/ner...
Many of us, including me, have won grants on resubmission,
using the reviews to improve the application
This is is neither fair nor productive
www.ukri.org/councils/ner...
NERC policy on resubmissions
This policy only applies to research grant applications.
www.ukri.org
July 18, 2025 at 8:01 PM
I see NERC is reverting to a policy from 15(??) or more years ago on resubmissions. I suspect it will be counter productive to NERC workload - as checking for this will not be easy, and building on this - it looks quite easy to game/work around. So - I’m left with why bother (with the new policy!)
Big news for the UK water industry - Cunliffe review to recommend OFWAT is abolished www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Ofwat to be abolished as ministers explore creating new water regulator
Exclusive: Watchdog has faced intense criticism over sewage spills, shareholder payouts and ballooning debts
www.theguardian.com
July 18, 2025 at 12:28 PM
Big news for the UK water industry - Cunliffe review to recommend OFWAT is abolished www.theguardian.com/business/202...
“Good geology hides alot of problems” www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘The place is bleached, a dead zone’: how the UK’s most beloved landscapes became biodiversity deserts
National parks, famous for their rich natural heritage, should be at the heart of efforts to protect habitats and wildlife. Instead, experts say they are declining – fast
www.theguardian.com
July 16, 2025 at 5:17 AM
“Good geology hides alot of problems” www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Interesting pic of Woodhead Reservoir (A628 Woodhead pass from Manc on left) showing a mix of former valley floor, sedimentation, re-working and mixing of what looks like AMD red from the left and clearer water from the top.
July 14, 2025 at 8:12 PM
Interesting pic of Woodhead Reservoir (A628 Woodhead pass from Manc on left) showing a mix of former valley floor, sedimentation, re-working and mixing of what looks like AMD red from the left and clearer water from the top.
Pleased to say there wasn’t an incident.. 🐈⬛ 💦
July 13, 2025 at 7:30 AM
Pleased to say there wasn’t an incident.. 🐈⬛ 💦
Interesting article that examines the inclusion or exclusion of properties from flood zones - in an unfortunately tragic context. Props to Mark Fonstad for the link. www.yahoo.com/news/fema-re...
FEMA removed dozens of Camp Mystic buildings from 100-year flood map before expansion, records show
Federal regulators repeatedly granted appeals to remove Camp Mystic's buildings from their 100-year flood map, loosening oversight as the camp operated and expanded in a dangerous flood plain in the y...
www.yahoo.com
July 13, 2025 at 7:14 AM
Interesting article that examines the inclusion or exclusion of properties from flood zones - in an unfortunately tragic context. Props to Mark Fonstad for the link. www.yahoo.com/news/fema-re...