The second half of the year is here, and with it comes hurricane season, insights from forecasting in ungauged basins, and a fresh set of industry data on where hydropower stands globally. We've been busy publishing resources to help you make sense of it all. Plus, a major partnership announcement with NOAA.
The latest news & events
Hurricane season is underway — are you prepared?
The Atlantic hurricane season officially kicked off June 1. Forecasters are calling for a below-normal Atlantic season driven largely by a developing El Niño expected to drive above-normal wind shear across the tropical Atlantic. NOAA puts a 55% probability on below-normal activity, with 8–14 named storms and 3–6 hurricanes expected, while still emphasizing that early preparation is essential to staying safe all season.
The first named storm, Tropical Storm Arthur, formed on June 17 and made landfall near Galveston as a minimal tropical storm. That said, a quieter season doesn't mean an operationally smooth one. It only takes one storm making landfall to create significant disruption for hydro operators.
Our hurricane resources are built around supporting exactly that scenario:
- When hurricanes move inland
- Lessons from Helene: Predicting the unprecedented requires early warnings and resilient technology
What the 2026 World Hydropower Outlook tells us about the operational challenge ahead
IHA's 2026 World Hydropower Outlook is out, and the data reinforces what many operators are already feeling: the pressure to do more with variable water. Our team digs into what the report signals for forecasting and operations going forward. Read more →
Forecasting in ungauged basins
Many of the basins that matter most to operators aren't actively monitored. Our foundational piece on ungauged basin forecasting covers how HydroForecast extends reliable streamflow predictions to unmonitored locations — and what that unlocks for operations and planning. Explore more →
We also published a piece in NHA's POWERHOUSE on what this means specifically for hydropower.
Scalable forecast deployment in months, not years
Hydrologic modeling is often treated as a basin-by-basin effort — one that can take years to set up, requires significant local data and expertise, and is difficult to scale. HydroForecast's foundational model changes that equation. Pre-trained across hundreds of diverse basins using global meteorological, satellite, geospatial, and in situ data, the core model is already in place — which means our standard forecast offerings can be deployed in under 90 days. Learn more →
Upstream Tech partners with NOAA's Office of Water Prediction
We're excited to share that Upstream Tech has signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with NOAA's Office of Water Prediction (OWP). This milestone marks a new chapter for AI-based water prediction in the United States. HydroForecast will be deployed at priority locations across all 13 NOAA River Forecast Center regions to demonstrate how AI-based streamflow forecasting can expand capabilities and improve forecast accuracy.
Explore our full list of HydroForecast resources and sign up for our newsletter to get the latest updates directly in your inbox.
Cheers,
The HydroForecast Team
