SWEMniCS: a software toolbox for modeling coastal ocean circulation, storm surges, inland, and compound flooding

Abstract

Flooding from storm surges, rainfall-runoff, and their interaction into compounding events are major natural hazards in coastal regions. To assess risks of damages to life and properties alike, numerical models are needed to guide emergency responses and future assessments. Numerical models, such as ADCIRC have over many decades shown their usefulness in such assessments. However, these models have a high threshold in terms of new user engagement as development and compilation is not trivial for users trained in compiled programming languages. Here, we develop a new open-source finite element solver for the numerical simulation of flooding. The numerical solution of the underlying PDEs is developed using the finite element framework FEniCSx. The goal is a framework where new methods can be rapidly tested before time-consuming development into codes like ADCIRC. We validate the framework on several test cases, including large-scale computations in the Gulf of Mexico for Hurricane Ike (2008).