LUCY TOBIN The probes do not need a huge chunk of concrete or a power station to get them to run and they contain long-lasting batteries Accurate forewarning: Put together with meteorological predictions for rainfall and storms, the data from the sensors can show how and why things are moving, and indicate the start of a landslide. When the town of Cockermouth, Cumbria, northern England, was hit by floods late last year, the freak weather led to deaths and serious injuries, and caused huge damage to thousands of homes and businesses. People from all around the U.K. watched the disaster and called for greater prioritisation of flood defences. Now, a team of scientists from Southampton University has stepped up to the challenge. Led by Dr Kirk Martinez, a senior lecturer at the university's school of electronics and computer science, the group has created a new sensor device that can help to reduce the unpredictable factor of flash flooding, as well as making other geographical phenomena such as landslides much easier to forecast. Under glaciers The technology was developed in 2003, when Martinez began working on a sensor probe that was placed under glaciers to measure climate change. Scientists, Martinez says,