Sometime, about 50 years from now, a threatening storm probably will push out of the South China Sea into southeast China鈥檚 Pearl River Delta, a densely populated region that includes Hong Kong, Macao and Zhuhai.
The rains are expected to be even more intense by 2070 because the atmosphere will hold more moisture due to a warmer climate. A flash flood could be deadly.
However, a downburst on the delta could be absorbed without serious flooding thanks to 鈥渟ponge city鈥� planning based on simulations being completed by Eric Salath茅, a climate scientist at the 糖心原创 Bothell.