Senior Researcher · Institute for Global Water Security
Dr. Benjamin Poschlod
Climate & Hydrology Extremes · Compound Events · Urban Flood Risk
- Address
-
Hamburg University of Technology
Institute for Global Water Security
Harburger Schloßstraße 22a, 21079 Hamburg
- Office
- Building HS22a, Room 1012
- Phone
- +49 40 30601 2371
- benjamin.poschlod(at)tuhh.de
- Profiles
Research
My research focuses on how climate change reshapes hydrometeorological extremes —
from floods and droughts to compound events — and what this means for cities,
ecosystems, and risk management. I combine statistical climatology, hydrological
modelling, and large-ensemble climate simulations to quantify and understand rare
and severe events, assess their future trajectories, and support applied risk assessment.
Open to Collaboration — I welcome new scientific collaborations, open data sets, or co-authorship on topics within my research themes.
Beyond academia, I already work with public authorities in the water and climate sector, insurers, and consultancies —
and I am happy to discuss applied projects or advisory roles.
At a glance
Research Themes
Precipitation Extremes & Return Levels
Estimating the frequency and severity of extreme rainfall events — and how they intensify under climate change — using high-resolution regional climate models and statistical extreme value theory. Results can inform engineering standards and catastrophe risk models.
Compound Events
Understanding when multiple hazards co-occur or cascade — concurrent heat and drought, combined storm surge and heavy rainfall — and how their joint probability changes with warming. Contributing to the international CompoundNET community (formerly EU COST Action DAMOCLES).
Urban Water Risks & Adaptation
Mapping urban pluvial flood risk at high resolution, combining hazard data with exposure and social vulnerability indicators. Exploring governance barriers and adaptation pathways for cities, with Hamburg as a primary case study (CLICCS C1 and Trans4Heat [funded by the Helmholtz Institute for Climate Service Science]).
Hydrological Extremes — Floods & Droughts
Using large hydrological model ensembles to separate climate-change signals from internal variability in river floods and low-flow events, with a focus on Bavarian catchments and broader European river systems.
Methods & Tools
Regional Climate Model Large Ensembles (SMILEs) Convection-Permitting Models Extreme Value Statistics Copula-based Compound Event Analysis Hydrological Modelling High-resolution Risk Mapping Temporal Disaggregation Crop Suitability Modelling
Awards, Recognition & Community Engagement
Publications
2026
- Rischmuller, A. L.; Poschlod, B.; Sillmann, J. (2026): Bayesian hierarchical modelling of intensity-duration-frequency curves using a climate model large ensemble, Advances in Statistical Climatology, Meteorology and Oceanography, 12, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.5194/ascmo-12-1-2026
- Poschlod, B.; Sailer, L.; Sasse, A.; Vogelbacher, A.; Ludwig, R. (2026): Climate change effects on river droughts in Bavaria using a hydrological large ensemble, Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 30, 1165–1188. https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-30-1165-2026
- Tiggeloven, T.; Raymond, C.; De Ruiter, M. C.; Sillmann, J.; Thieken, A. H.; Buijs, S. L.; Ciurean, R.; Cordier, E.; Crummy, J. M.; Cumiskey, L.; De Polt, K.; Duncan, M.; Ferrario, D. M.; Jäger, W. S.; Koks, E. E.; Van Maanen, N.; Murdock, H. J.; Mysiak, J.; Nirandjan, S.; Poschlod, B.; Priesmeier, P.; Sairam, N.; Schweizer, P.; Stolte, T. R.; Zenker, M.; Daniell, J. E.; Fekete, A.; Geiß, C. M.; Van Den Homberg, M. J. C.; Juhola, S. K.; Kuhlicke, C.; Lebek, K.; Šakić Trogrlić, R.; Schneiderbauer, S.; Torresan, S.; Van Westen, C. J.; Claassen, J. N.; Khazai, B.; Murray, V.; Schlumberger, J.; Ward, P. J. (2026): Multi-hazard risk assessment and management: pathways for the Sendai Framework and beyond, Geoscience Communication, 9, 185–221. https://doi.org/10.5194/gc-9-185-2026
2025
- Zabel, F.; Knüttel, M.; Poschlod, B. (2025): CropSuite v1.0 – a comprehensive open-source crop suitability model considering climate variability for climate impact assessment, Geoscientific Model Development, 18, 1067–1087. https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-1067-2025
- Brunner, L.; Poschlod, B.; Dutra, E.; Fischer, E. M.; Martius, O.; Sillmann, J. (2025): A global perspective on the spatial representation of climate extremes from km-scale models, Environmental Research Letters, 20, 074054. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ade1ef
- Hanf, F. S.; Ament, F.; Boettcher, M.; Burgemeister, F.; Gaslikova, L.; Hoffmann, P.; Knieling, J.; Matthias, V.; Meier, L.; Pein, J.; Poschlod, B.; Quante, M.; Ratzke, L.; Rudolph, E.; Scheffran, J.; Schlünzen, K. H.; Shokri, N.; Sillmann, J.; Vogelbacher, A.; Von Szombathely, M.; Wickel, M. (2025): Towards a socio-ecological system understanding of urban flood risk and barriers to climate change adaptation using causal loop diagrams, International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development, 17, 69–102. https://doi.org/10.1080/19463138.2025.2474399
2024
- Lang, A.; Poschlod, B. (2024): Updating catastrophe models to today’s climate – An application of a large ensemble approach to extreme rainfall, Climate Risk Management, 44, 100594. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crm.2024.100594
- Maroschek, M.; Seidl, R.; Poschlod, B.; Senf, C. (2024): Quantifying patch size distributions of forest disturbances in protected areas across the European Alps, Journal of Biogeography, 51, 368–381. https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.14760
- Poschlod, B.; Koh, J. (2024): Convection‐Permitting Climate Models Can Support Observations to Generate Rainfall Return Levels, Water Resources Research, 60, e2023WR035159. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023WR035159
- Orlov, A.; Jägermeyr, J.; Müller, C.; Daloz, A. S.; Zabel, F.; Minoli, S.; Liu, W.; Lin, T.; Jain, A. K.; Folberth, C.; Okada, M.; Poschlod, B.; Smerald, A.; Schneider, J. M.; Sillmann, J. (2024): Human heat stress could offset potential economic benefits of CO2 fertilization in crop production under a high-emissions scenario, One Earth, 7, 1250–1265. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2024.06.012
- Poschlod, B.; Daloz, A. S. (2024): Snow depth in high-resolution regional climate model simulations over southern Germany – suitable for extremes and impact-related research?, The Cryosphere, 18, 1959–1981. https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1959-2024
- Felsche, E.; Böhnisch, A.; Poschlod, B.; Ludwig, R. (2024): European hot and dry summers are projected to become more frequent and expand northwards, Communications Earth & Environment, 5, 410. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-024-01575-5
2023
- Zabel, F.; Poschlod, B. (2023): The Teddy tool v1.1: temporal disaggregation of daily climate model data for climate impact analysis, Geoscientific Model Development, 16, 5383–5399. https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-5383-2023
2022
- Cantonati, M.; Lichtenwöhrer, K.; Leonhardt, G.; Seifert, L.; Mustoni, A.; Hotzy, R.; Schubert, E.; Blattner, L.; Bilous, O.; Lotz, A.; Poschlod, B.; Gerecke, R. (2022): Using Springs as Sentinels of Climate Change in Nature Parks North and South of the Alps: A Critical Evaluation of Methodological Aspects and Recommendations for Long-Term Monitoring, Water, 14, 2843. https://doi.org/10.3390/w14182843
- Poschlod, B. (2022): Attributing heavy rainfall event in Berchtesgadener Land to recent climate change – Further rainfall intensification projected for the future, Weather and Climate Extremes, 38, 100492. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wace.2022.100492
2021
- Poschlod, B.; Ludwig, R.; Sillmann, J. (2021): Ten-year return levels of sub-daily extreme precipitation over Europe, Earth System Science Data, 13, 983–1003. https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-13-983-2021
- Poschlod, B. (2021): Using high-resolution regional climate models to estimate return levels of daily extreme precipitation over Bavaria, Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, 21, 3573–3598. https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-21-3573-2021
- Santos, V. M.; Casas-Prat, M.; Poschlod, B.; Ragno, E.; Van Den Hurk, B.; Hao, Z.; Kalmár, T.; Zhu, L.; Najafi, H. (2021): Statistical modelling and climate variability of compound surge and precipitation events in a managed water system: a case study in the Netherlands, Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 25, 3595–3615. https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3595-2021
- Poschlod, B.; Ludwig, R. (2021): Internal variability and temperature scaling of future sub-daily rainfall return levels over Europe, Environmental Research Letters, 16, 064097. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ac0849
2020
- Bueche, T.; Wenk, M.; Poschlod, B.; Giadrossich, F.; Pirastru, M.; Vetter, M. (2020): glmGUI v1.0: an R-based graphical user interface and toolbox for GLM (General Lake Model) simulations, Geoscientific Model Development, 13, 565–580. https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-13-565-2020
- Poschlod, B.; Zscheischler, J.; Sillmann, J.; Wood, R. R.; Ludwig, R. (2020): Climate change effects on hydrometeorological compound events over southern Norway, Weather and Climate Extremes, 28, 100253. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wace.2020.100253
- Poschlod, B.; Willkofer, F.; Ludwig, R. (2020): Impact of Climate Change on the Hydrological Regimes in Bavaria, Water, 12, 1599. https://doi.org/10.3390/w12061599
- Willkofer, F.; Wood, R. R.; Von Trentini, F.; Weismüller, J.; Poschlod, B.; Ludwig, R. (2020): A Holistic Modelling Approach for the Estimation of Return Levels of Peak Flows in Bavaria, Water, 12, 2349. https://doi.org/10.3390/w12092349
2018
- Poschlod, B.; Hodnebrog, Ø.; Wood, R. R.; Alterskjær, K.; Ludwig, R.; Myhre, G.; Sillmann, J. (2018): Comparison and Evaluation of Statistical Rainfall Disaggregation and High-Resolution Dynamical Downscaling over Complex Terrain, Journal of Hydrometeorology, 19, 1973–1982. https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM-D-18-0132.1
