Tornedos Do Not Immediately Weaken Upon Making Landfall: Movement Speed Determines and Maintain Tornedo Intensity

A research group led by Hiroki Sato (then a doctoral student at the Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University; currently a researcher at Nagoya University) and Professor Tetsuya Takemi (Disaster Prevention Research Institute, Kyoto University) used computer simulations to elucidate the mechanisms behind changes in the intensity and shape of waterspouts after they move onto land. This study reveals that the impact of ground friction on a tornado varies according to the tornado’s speed of movement.
The results of this research “Numerical Simulations of Tornado-Like Vortices Translating toward Rough Surfaces” were published online on 29 July 2026, at 11:00 AM (U.S. Eastern Time) in the Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, an international academic journal of the American Meteorological Society.

Disaster Survey Report on the 2026 Kumamoto Earthquake

We express our deepest condolences to those who have lost loved ones in the 7.1 magnitude 2026 Kumamoto Earthquake on 28 July 2026. Our thoughts and prayers are with the individuals and families who continue to await the swift rescue of their missing relatives.
We have released an initial report containing data such as the characteristics of the ground motion. We plan to publish further survey results as they become available.

Published Paper on “Assessment of Future Nonstationary Changes in Extreme Sea Levels Considering Climate Change for Southeast Asia Using High-Resolution Climate Forcing”

A research team led by graduate student Calvin Sandi, Assistant Professor Takuya Miyashita, Associate Professor Tomoya Shimura, and Professor Nobuhito Mori investigates the projected nonstationary behavior of extreme total water levels (ETWL) and extreme coastal water levels (ECWL) along the Southeast Asian coastline under the high-emission climate scenario. Using a high-resolution seamless projection data set of storm surge and ocean waves forced by MRI-AGCM3.2, combined with regional sea level anomaly, and tide data, we applied a nonstationary extreme value analysis (NEVA) framework to estimate future changes in magnitude, frequency, and component contributions. (except from the Abstract)
These research results were published online in the international academic journal “Earth’s Future”, Advancing Earth and Space Sciences (AGU) on 16 July 2026.

Ceremony for the11th and 12th DPRI Awards

The Ceremony to honor the recipients of the 11th and 12th DPRI Awards was held at the Kihada Hall, Disaster Prevention Research Institute (DPRI), Kyoto University, Uji Campus, Japan on 18 March 2026.
Dr. Irasema Alcántara-Ayala, Professor at the Institute of Geography, National Autonomous University of Mexico, was presented with the 11th DPRI Award (FY2024) Research and Education Achievement Award
Dr. Charles Scawthorn, Professor Emeritus at the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Centre, University of California, Berkeley, USA was presented with the 12th DPRI Award (FY2025) Research Collaboration Contribution Award.
Both recipients were also conferred with the lifetime title of DPRI Fellow.

Memorandum of Understanding Signed with JICA for the Nation’s First ‘JICA Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (Science and Technology Cooperation Volunteers)’

The Disaster Prevention Research Institute (DPRI), Kyoto University and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) concluded a Memorandum of Understanding at Kyoto University’s Yoshida Campus regarding the dispatch of the nation’s first ‘JICA Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (Science and Technology Cooperation Volunteers)’ on 12 March 2026.

Event Report

An Agreement of Cooperation Concluded with Kagoshima City

An Agreement of Cooperation was signed between the Disaster Prevention Research Institute (DPRI), Kyoto University, and the Kagoshima City on 7 October 2025. The agreement aims to promote mutual cooperation; and the exchange of personnel, human, intellectual, and material resources in various fields such as disaster prevention research, disaster prevention education, and disaster response.

Research Reports

Publication of Paper on “Less Is More: Short-Term Window Calibration Improves Seasonal Shoreline Prediction in Modeling”

A collaborative research team consisting of Professor Nobuhito Mori of the Disaster Prevention Research Institute (DPRI), Kyoto University; Senior Researcher Xinyu Chen, and Group Leader Masayuki Banno, both from the Port and Airport Research Institute, Yokosuka, Japan has announced a groundbreaking method for predicting seasonal changes in shorelines. It demonstrates that training with short-term data (just two years) significantly improves prediction accuracy compared to the conventional approach of optimizing numerical models using long-term data. The “finding demonstrate that short-window calibration substantially enhances model capability for capturing wave-driven seasonal shoreline changes, offering a practical solution for coastal risk assessment using limited observational data. This approach is particularly valuable given increasing availability of satellite-derived shoreline data and the need for accurate seasonal predictions under changing climate conditions.” (excerpt from Abstract)

Media Coverage

Published Article on “A new statistical method of rapid event attribution for probability of extreme events: applications to heatwave events in Japan”

An article on “A new statistical method of rapid event attribution for probability of extreme events: applications to heatwave events in Japan” by Associate Professor Tomohiro Tanaka, Disaster Prevention Research Institute (DPRI), Kyoto University, in collaboration with Project Assistant Professor Chiaki Takahashi and Associate Professor Yukiko Imada of the Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, the University of Tokyo, and Director Hiroaki Kawase of the Meteorological Research Institute, Japan Meteorological Agency, was published. In the abstract they “confirmed that this approach can successfully estimate the probability of several past extreme temperature events in Japan under the factual and counterfactual climate conditions which is comparable to the estimation of conventional LE method. This new rapid EA method will be applicable to other types of extreme events and to events all over the world.”

Media Coverage

Article on Ultra-Dense Observation of Earthquakes without the Use of Seismometers: The Mechanism of Earthquakes in Southern Kyoto Prefecture Captured by Fiber-Optic Sensing Technology

A research group consisting of doctoral student Yuki Funabiki at the Graduate School of Science, and Prof. Masatoshi Miyazawa at the Disaster Prevention Research Institute (DPRI), Kyoto University, captured an earthquake that occurred in Southern Kyoto Prefecture using data from a novel fiber-optic sensing technique called distributed acoustic sensing (DAS), demonstrating the effectiveness of next-generation earthquake observation.
For further details, refer to the full article – Estimating Focal Mechanism of Small Earthquakes Using S/P Amplitude Ratios of Distributed Acoustic Sensing Records published online in the International academic Journal Geophysical Research Letters on 3 May 2025.

International Exchange

Opening ceremony for the on-site satellite laboratory “International Laboratory for Earthquake and Tsunami Disaster Prevention Studies” (iLETs) held at the National University of El Salvador

The opening ceremony for the on-site satellite laboratory “International Laboratory for Earthquake and Tsunami Disaster Prevention Studies” (iLETs) was held at the National University of El Salvador on 12 may 2025. It will be positioned as a satellite laboratory of iLETs which opened at the National Autonomous University of Mexico in 2024, and will conduct research activities in collaboration with the SATREPS (Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development) under Disaster Prevention and Mitigation for “Compound Disaster Risk Reduction associated with Large Earthquakes and Tsunamis” ​​ implemented in Mexico and El Salvador.

Research

Global Alliance of Disaster Research Institutes (GADRI)

This page captures the DPRI research activities at a glance.
　GADRI WebSite Link: [　https://gadri.net　] 　One outcome was the establishment of the "Global Alliance of Disaster Research Institutes (GADRI)." GADRI is a forum for sharing knowledge and promoting collaboration on topics related to disaster risk reduction and resilience to disasters.

Research

Disaster Prevention Research Institute Research launches site for "Our research activities at a glance" (Japanese only)

This page captures the DPRI research activities at a glance.
The site is easily navigated, though only in Japanese, and expressed in easy to understand words.
Come and visit us!