biostudies-literatureUnknown15(1)Teng JPredicting floodplain inundation under a changing climate is essential for adaptive management of water resources and ecosystems worldwide. This study presents a framework combining satellite observations and hydrological modeling to explore changes in floodplain inundation. We examine variability, trends, and frequency of inundation across the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB), Australia's largest river system, over the past 35 years (1988-2022). Our analysis shows that annual maximum 30-day runoff is a primary hydrological factor influencing floodplain inundation. Using this metric as a proxy, we found that floodplain inundation, if driven solely by hydroclimate conditions, would have been more frequent in the recent decades (1988-2022) compared to the century-long baseline (1900-2022), especiaScientific reports8917https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC11909220biostudies-literatureFloodplain inundation in the Murray-Darling Basin under current and future climate conditions.PMC11909220Chiew FHSMarvanek SVaze JTicehurst CPollino CZheng HYang APenton DJPost DATeng JKhanam FfalseFloodplain inundation in the Murray-Darling Basin under current and future climate conditions.Predicting floodplain inundation under a changing climate is essential for adaptive management of water resources and ecosystems worldwide. This study presents a framework combining satellite observations and hydrological modeling to explore changes in floodplain inundation. We examine variability, trends, and frequency of inundation across the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB), Australia's largest river system, over the past 35 years (1988-2022). Our analysis shows that annual maximum 30-day runoff is a primary hydrological factor influencing floodplain inundation. Using this metric as a proxy, we found that floodplain inundation, if driven solely by hydroclimate conditions, would have been more frequent in the recent decades (1988-2022) compared to the century-long baseline (1900-2022), especia2025-01-01T00:00:00Z2025 Mar2025-04-26T03:21:17.196Z2025-04-06T10:48:02.637ZS-EPMC119092204008748310.1038/s41598-025-93670-6