Southampton - The School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences and Stony Brook Southampton will present a talk on Long Island's vulnerability to coastal flooding in its "Critical Issues Facing the World's Oceans" lecture series. The popular series regularly attracts 80 to 90 audience members.

Dr. Brian Colle, an Associate Professor in Stony Brook University's School of Marine and atmospheric Sciences, will discuss "Climatology and Modeling of Storm Surges in New York's Coastal Waters" on Friday, Dec. 5, at 7:30 p.m. in Stony Brook Southampton's Duke Lecture Hall. A reception
will follow. For further information, call 631-632-5046.

A large fraction of the New York metropolitan region and Long Island is vulnerable to coastal flooding during tropical and extra-tropical cyclones. This talk will explore our understanding of cyclone position, track and strength, and how that favors flooding in the New York region.

There have also been advances in high resolution atmospheric and storm-surge modeling of land-falling cyclones in our region. A few historic storms will be discussed, such as hurricane Gloria (1985), which will highlight the modern difficulties in forecasting storm surges and the implications for emergency response.