http://www.rmets.org/index.php The Royal Meteorological Society webmaster en http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=31 Contact: Dr Liz Bentley +44 (0) 118 956 8500 liz.bentley@rmets.org  Young meteorological scientists challenge the Secretary of State to do more to reach agreement in Copenhagen The future researchers in climate science feel that the Worlds’ governments are not doing enough to combat climate change. The postgraduate students and future climate researchers of the Royal Meteorological Society have today written to the Rt Hon Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate, expressing serious concern about how world politicians are dealing with climate issues ahead of setting the Copenhagen protocols. The letter states that the young meteorological scientists feel that not enough is being done to stay below the EU agreed target in globally-averaged temperature of 2⁰C.  They note “that even with this target we will see climate changes on a global scale, and worryingly we are likely to exceed it.  As today’s young researchers we and our children will inherit the consequences of the policies made in the Copenhagen process.” Comments from climate researchers from the Royal Meteorological Society: Prof. Sir Brian Hoskins CBE FRS, Director of Grantham Institute for climate change: “It is great to see the next generation of climate researchers making their views known in such strong terms.  Let’s hope they will be listened to!” Prof. Rowan Sutton, Director of Climate Research, National Centre for Atmospheric Science: "The younger generation of climate scientists are well placed to comment on the importance of the upcoming negotiations in Copenhagen.  They have seen at close hand the compelling evidence concerning anthropogenic interference with the climate system, and recognise the very serious consequences, for their generation and generations to come, should greenhouse emissions remain unmitigated.  I applaud their initiative in lending the weight of their collective voice to draw attention to this issue, at this key stage in the development of a global policy framework." Dann Mitchell, author of the letter to the Secretary of State and Chair of the Royal Meteorological Society’s postgraduate researchers, PhD student, University of Reading: “The ozone hole is an example of an environmental problem that is being fixed through policy decisions, so we’ve done it in the past, why not now with the climate change issue?  Although we do accept that the climate change issue is far more complex.” Flora MacTavish, PhD student, Imperial College London: “Climate change will probably have a severe impact on the developing world.  Areas of Africa and South America are likely to see an increase in water shortages and a decrease in crop yields, and areas of Asia including India and Bangladesh are particularly vulnerable to sea level rise.  All countries, particularly the developed world, have a responsibility to work together on mitigation and adaptation strategies.” Joe Daron, PhD student, London School of Economics: “Despite the significant political and ethical challenges that we face in reaching international agreement we must remind our leaders to be ambitious, as we only have one chance to get it right.” http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=30 Six Chief Executives from UK environmental institutions have come together to produce a communiqué on climate change. The communiqué calls for strong leadership and urgent action from all parties attending the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen during December, in agreeing a new framework for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.   The communiqué will be launched at a joint meeting between the Royal Society, Defra and the Royal Meteorological Society on ‘The Science of UK Climate Projections: UKCP09 and beyond’. The meeting will take place on Thursday 15th October at the Royal Society, Carlton House Terrace, London. The six professional and learned institutions include the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management (CIWM), the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM), the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (IEEM), the Institution of Agricultural Engineers (IAgrE), the Institution of Water Officers (IWO) and the Royal Meteorological Society (RMetS). They recognise the scale of this challenge and the difficult issues of national interest, but there is evidence that unless there is a significant reduction in emissions that nationally and globally we will face significant environmental impacts. Professor Paul Hardaker, Chief Executive of the Royal Meteorological Society, adds ‘ Our climate is changing and we know this will present us with some big challenges both globally and in the UK but we can’t hope to tackle these unless we are able to stop the increase in emissions of greenhouse gases. The longer we delay, the worse the problem will be. So we need all our politicians and government to fund a solution to this in Copenhagen.’ The six Chief Executives have called for: World leaders to demonstrate a high level of commitment and resolve to address climate change in a way that bridges political and cultural differences. Protectionism and self-interest to be set aside for the greater good of humankind and for the benefit of the most vulnerable people on the planet. A robust new agreement that will create the conditions for transformational change to a low-carbon future and deliver the economic signals that businesses need to invest billions in low-carbon products, services, technologies and infrastructure. Population growth and consumption to be placed at the heart of future action on climate change. The quest for low-carbon living lies in a sustainable population and smarter consumption. World leaders to fix a global emissions cap and a long-term reduction pathway for all greenhouse gases by 2050, with interim targets guided by high quality science. http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=29 African Monsoon - Joint Meeting of RMetS and EMS The African monsoon is an intensive rainy period that brings most of the annual precipitation in less than four months to a region where rain-fed agriculture is critical to the survival of millions of people. The analysis of data collected during the AMMA (African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analysis) programme has led to a better understanding of the mechanisms regulating the African monsoon and its societal impacts. On Wednesday 21st October the Royal Meteorological Society (RMetS) and European Meteorological Society (EMS) will be hosting a joint meeting on AMMA at the Zoological Society of London. The morning sessions will provide a review of AMMA and the operational environment of West Africa and during the afternoon the talks will look at science behind AMMA and the advances in understanding of the West African monsoon. Some findings that will be presented at the meeting include the progress made in weather and seasonal forecasting as well as the efforts made to ensure a better usage of these forecasts in order to reduce the vulnerability of agriculture to climate, improve water resources management and better take into account climatic factors in public health. The AMMA programme has also brought a better understanding of such fundamental processes as convection, land-atmosphere and ocean-atmosphere interactions as well as chemical and aerosols processes. This has allowed the scientific community to better understand the seasonal and intraseasonal variability of this monsoonal system. To find out more about the meeting and how to register for lunch, please visit the RMetS website at www.rmets.org.   Based on a French initiative, AMMA has been built up by an international scientific group and is currently financed by a large number of agencies, particularly from France, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Africa. It has received a major contribution from the European Community’s Sixth Research Framework Programme. Full details on the scientific coordination and financing are available from the AMMA International site at www.amma-international.org.  In January 2006, the main field campaign of the AMMA scientific programme started in Niamey, Niger. With more than 500 researchers positioned from the Gulf of Guinea to the Sahara, The AMMA programme deployed hundreds of instruments, on the ground, ships, aircraft and balloons. They simultaneously monitored the evolution of soils, cultures, vegetation, rivers, oceans and the atmosphere before, during and after the monsoon. An unprecedented observational dataset has been collected, complemented by data from the new generation satellites. The experimental AMMA phase was a success thanks to an international cooperation, bringing together teams from more than 30 nations of which there were 14 West African countries. The Royal Meteorological Society is the UK’s Professional and Learned Society for Weather and Climate. The Society was founded as the British Meteorological Society on 3 April 1850. It became the Royal Meteorological Society in 1883, when Her Majesty Queen Victoria granted the privilege of adding ‘Royal’ to the title. The Society is a registered charity, based in Reading, UK. The current President of the Society is Professor Julia Slingo OBE, the Chief Scientist at the UK Met Office; the Chief Executive of the Society is Professor Paul Hardaker; and the Head of Communications is Dr Liz Bentley. The Society is contactable via email at chiefexec@rmets.org or via telephone on 0118 956 8500. http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=28 Professor Sir John Houghton The 2009 “ALBERT EINSTEIN” World Award of Science will be presented to Professor Sir John Houghton, President of the John Ray Initiative. Sir Houghton was President of the Royal Meteorological Society from 1976 until 1978 Sir Houghton, who is an Honorary Member of the Royal Meteorological Society, played a pivotal role in the global research community, through his pioneering work on the remote sensing of the atmosphere from space, his leadership in climate research and monitoring, and his concern for the broader impact of climate on energy, transport and public well-being, not to mention his leading role as chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. THE ROYAL METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY The Royal Meteorological Society is the UK’s Professional and Learned Society for Weather and Climate. The Society is a registered charity, based in Reading, UK. The President of the Society is Professor Julia Slingo OBE, the Chief Scientist at the UK Met Office; the Chief Executive of the Society is Professor Paul Hardaker; and the Head of Communications is Dr Liz Bentley. The Society is contactable via email at chiefexec@rmets.org or via telephone on 0118 956 8500. Its website can be found at www.rmets.org. THE AWARDS The “Albert Einstein” World Award of Science was created as a means of recognition to those men and women who have accomplished scientific and technological achievements which have brought progress to science and ensuing benefit to mankind. The distinctive characteristic of the “Albert Einstein” World Award of Science lies in the fact that each year’s laureate is selected by the Interdisciplinary Committee of the Council, which is made up of highly acknowledged scientists from across the globe. The “Leonardo da Vinci” World Award of Arts is conferred upon a renowned artist, sculptor, writer, poet, cinematographer, photographer, architect, musician or other performing artist, whose work constitutes a significant contribution to the artistic legacy of the world. The qualifying jury for the "Leonardo da Vinci" World Award of Arts is composed of internationally renowned art connoisseurs, authorities and members of the World Cultural Council.  This year, the twenty-sixth Award Ceremony of the World Cultural Council will take place on Wednesday 25th November, at 16.00hrs, in the Academic Hall, Université de Liège, Belgium. http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=27 The Royal Meteorological Society 2009 Conference will be held at the University of Reading from 29th June to 3rd July. The conference will be on ‘Meteorological Science in time and space – from local weather to global climate’ and consists of three themes: · The Water Cycle · Predicting Hazards and Risk · Ecosystems, Atmospheric Composition, Weather and Climate. Each afternoon the conference will run both workshops and poster sessions related to one the three themes to encourage greater engagement from participants across the meteorological community. One aim for this conference is to reduce the amount of paper produced during the conference with information being accessible on-line or on notice boards during the conference. The conference brings together scientists from all the meteorological research groups in the UK and has overseas contributions from Australia, India, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, the USA and WMO. In support of the conference there is an excellent programme of invited speakers including: Professor Julia Slingo OBE, Met Office Chief Scientist Presidential Address – Understanding the interactions between radiation, clouds, dust and aerosols - a tribute to Anthony Slingo Professor Graeme Stephens, Department of Atmospheric Science, Colorado State University Prospects for advancing our understanding of the interactions between radiation, clouds, dust and aerosols. Professor Bob Watson, DEFRA Chief Scientific Advisor The challenges for meteorological science in the development of a post-Kyoto agreement to tackling climate change As well as the science programme, there is an exhibition area with representatives from different sectors across the meteorological community including the Met Office, Biral, Wiley-Blackwell and the Walker Institute. For more information about the conference go to http://www.rmets.org/events/conference/conference-2009.php http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=26 The Society is pleased to welcome the launch today by Hilary Benn, Secretary of Sate for the Environment,  Food and Rural Affairs, of a new set of climate change projections for the UK, known as UKCP09. The projections result from a seven year scientific project undertaken by the Met Office Hadley Centre, together with the Universities of East Anglia and Newcastle and Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory. They separately cover projections over land areas of the UK, and marine and coastal projections. Because of our incomplete understanding of the earth's climate system, and our inability to model it perfectly, all climate projections are uncertain - as shown by the very different projections at a local scale made by different international climate models. Scientists at the Met Office developed a new methodology which has allowed these uncertainties to be quantified, in the form of probabilistic projections. Users are given the relative probability of a range of climate outcomes, based on the strength of evidence for each part of the range, which more openly reflects the uncertain state of the science. So, for example, the projections for a certain area might say that there is a 90% probability that the change in temperature is greater than 2C and a 90% probability that it is less than 4C, with a central estimate of 3C. Probabilistic projections cover a range of variables (temperatures, precipitation, cloud, etc), are given for successive 30yr periods from 2010-2039 to 2070-2099, and are at a basic resolution of 25km, but also shown for administrative areas and river basins. Probabilistic projections were found to be not possible for wind speed and snowfall, largely because models show a very wide range of responses for these variables. A weather generator, developed by UEA and Newcastle, provides synthetic daily time series of several variables, for future time periods, consistent with the UKCP09 probabilistic projections. These can be used to look at changes in extremes, such as frequency of days above 30C, or in sequences, such as 5-day dry spells. Marine projections (changes sea level rise, storm surges, waves and sub-surface projections) are not given probabilistically. However, in the case of sea level rise and storm surges, projections do include a range of possible changes which incorporate results from a number of climate models, so do quantify uncertainties. http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=25 The Royal Meteorological Society, in collaboration with IBM, is launching a new innovation award entitled The IBM Award for Meteorological Innovation that Matters. The award will be based around innovation in meteorology, with a particular focus on business and/or public impact. It will recognise people, projects or programmes within the academic, scientific or business communities who have made significant contributions to educating, informing or motivating organisations in their response to meteorological challenges, for example climate change or significant weather events. Evidence of the significance to the environmental impact will be required and ideally the person/project should be able to offer examples of where other organisations have adopted or replicated this innovation. Materials and methods used should be innovative and audience appropriate. The IBM Award will be presented every two years at the Royal Meteorological Society Conference and 2009 sees the launch of this prestigious award. The successful candidate will be awarded with a plaque, certificate, IBM laptop and the unique opportunity to develop their ideas with an IBM Business Mentor. The closing date for nominations is Friday 29th May 2009 and the award will be presented at the Royal Meteorological Society Conference Dinner on Wednesday 1st July 2009. http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=24 Download Guidelines Automatic Weather Station Guide Automatic Weather Station Site Auditors' Guide Automatic Weather Station Site Manager's Guide Setting up a Weather Station Meteorological observations are increasingly important to key decision makers in many professions. They have never been more in demand, nor more widely available, especially via the internet. However there are growing concerns among both users and providers about the quality of these weather and climate observations. To help address these concerns the Royal Meteorological Society’s Special Interest Group on Observing Systems has organised an open meeting on Wednesday 14 th May 2008 at Imperial College, London. At this meeting the Royal Meteorological Society will present its new guidance on the installation and operation of meteorological sensors. Other presentations will cover how the Met Office and the CAA make meteorological observations, the grading of observing stations and the requirements of forensic meteorology and chemical hazard sites. Anyone with an interest in observations of weather and climate is encouraged to attend. Registration forms may be obtained by email from ‘susan.drew@rmets.org’ or downloaded from the Society’s meetings information at http://www.rmets.org/events/index.php or by writing to the Society at: Royal Meteorological Societ y 104, Oxford Road , Reading, Berks , RG1 7L L Notes and contact details: The Royal Meteorological Society is the UK’s Professional Body and Learned Society for Weather and Climate. The Society is a registered charity, based in Reading, UK. The President of the Society is Professor Geraint Vaughan, from the University of Manchester, the Chief Executive of the Society is Professor Paul Hardaker and the Head of Communications is Dr Liz Bentley. The Society’s Special Interest Group on Observing Systems is chaired by Jonathan Shanklin and the Secretary of the Group and contact point is John Prior (Email: john.prior@metoffice.gov.uk , Tel.: 01392 886206). The Meeting organiser is Mike Brettle, from Vaisala Ltd. http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=22 On Wednesday 7th November, the Society’s Special Interest Group on observing is holding a meeting at the University of Reading on ‘Climate Measurements for the Future’. This meeting will examine the challenges around detecting small changes in climate and maintaining continuity as measurement techniques improve, particularly as we automate more and more of what was traditionally undertaken by human observers. “When introducing a new observing system, it’s essential that internationally agreed climate monitoring principles are applied so that homogeneous climate records can be maintained”, said Matthew Palmer, from the Met Office’s Hadley Centre. The talks will include: The importance of homogeneity - Global Climate Observing System principles and their application, by Dr Matthew Palmer, Hadley Centre, Met Office. Matthew will discuss the guidelines for global observations of climate and how these are corrected for biases in order to make assessments of slow persistent changes in our climate. Men or machines - automation and its effect on data series, by Mike Molyneux, Surface Sensor Development, Met Office. Mike will describe some features of automatic measurements, where they are likely to be robust enough for use in climatological studies and how they mix with human observations. To change or not to change? (a new network for precipitation and temperature data), by Dr Ian Strangeways, TerraData Ltd. Ian will propose that our ability to measure past and present climate change is poorer than is generally realised. He will introduce for discussion the idea of immediate and widespread changes that he believes could improve observations of climate on land and at sea. The second part of the meeting will include some examples of how the observing community have coped with changes to recording of sunshine, soil temperature and, importantly for the work of the Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change, global observations of temperature. Notes and contact details: The Royal Meteorological Society is the UK’s Professional Body and Learned Society for Weather and Climate. The Society is a registered charity, based in Reading, UK.   The meeting organizer is John Prior, who is also the Secretary of the Special Interest Group on Meteorological Observing Systems. John is contactable either by email at john.prior@metoffice.gov.uk, or by telephone on 01392 886206. The President of the Society is Professor Geraint Vaughan, from the University of Manchester, the Chief Executive of the Society is Professor Paul Hardaker and the Head of Communications is Ms Virginia Robins.   The Society is contactable via email at ‘chiefexec@rmets.org’ or via telephone on 0118 956 8500. Its website can be found at ‘www.rmets.org’. http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=21 On 17th October the Society will be holding a meeting on ‘Observing and Detecting Climate Change’, at the meeting rooms of the Zoological Society of London. This will include the Society’s 2007 Margary Lecture entitled ‘Why monitor climate?’. The lecture will be given by Professor Simon Tett, from the University of Edinburgh, who is recognised as one of the world’s leading authorities on the quantitative analysis of models and observations of the earth’s climate. The supporting programme will have keynote talks on climate observing, detection and attribute from a range of leading experts and contributors to the IPCC’s Fourth Assessment Report, including: notable temperature changes over land and sea since 1850, how the heat content of our oceans are changing and how climate extremes have changes during the past centaury; the latest information on whether the trends in upper air temperature demonstrate the expected changes in climate; the contribution of the UK’s new National Centre for Earth Observing to the monitoring, detection and prediction of climate change; and the latest work from the Met Office’s Hadley Centre, post the IPCC’s fourth Assessment report, on the Attribution of observed changes in climate.   http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=23 Earlier this year the Royal Meteorological Society launched the first UK-wide competition for primary and secondary schools to make and deliver a weather forecast. Schools from across the country entered the competition, and according to the Society’s Chief Executive, Professor Paul Hardaker, “there were some very imaginative and entertaining entries – and clearly some budding meteorologists in the making”. After a difficult decision by the judges, the winners of the competition were King’s Oak Primary School, in Greenock and Abertillery Comprehensive School, in South Wales. The awards will be presented at the Society’s International Conference on Weather and Climate in Edinburgh on the afternoon of Thursday 6th September. Notes and contact details: 1. The Royal Meteorological Society is the UK’s Professional Body and Learned Society for Weather and Climate. The Society is a registered charity, based in Reading, UK. 2. The President of the Society is Professor Geraint Vaughan, from the University of Manchester, the Chief Executive of the Society is Professor Paul Hardaker and the Head of Communications is Ms Virginia Robins. 3. The Society is contactable via email at ‘chiefexec@rmets.org’ or via telephone on 0118 956 8500. Its website can be found at ‘www.rmets.org’. 4. The Society has an active education programme for primary and secondary schools (http://www.rmets.org/education/index.php). Schools can become members of the Society and are able to access a wide range of school resources and participate in the Society’s MetLink International project. MetLink (http://www.metlink.org) allows schools to place weather observations on-line and to share these with other schools across the globe. MetLink has over 1,000 registered participants from more than 50 countries. http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=20 Download as PDFEvery two years the Royal Meteorological Society holds its science conference on weather forecasting and climate change. The conference brings together the UK’s leading weather and climate scientists, with scientists from some 13 other countries, to discuss the latest developments across the field of meteorology. Professor Paul Hardaker, the Chief Executive of the Society said, “The UK is one of the world’s leaders in both its work in weather forecasting and in climate predictions. The Society’s conference never fails to provide an exciting opportunity for scientists to come together and to share their latest research. I am sure recent flooding events and the continuing advances in climate science will mean that this conference will be no exception.” The conference will have talks on: Advances in forecasting and use of weather observations, particularly relevant to the prediction of severe weather and heavy rainfall leading to flooding. Developments in our understanding of the physics, chemistry and composition of the atmosphere, reducing the uncertainty in weather and climate predictions. The latest developments in climate science, the impacts of a changing climate and the major science questions and challenges post the IPCC report. Professor Hardaker said, “This year presents a very exciting and timely science programme. I am particularly looking forward to the two scheduled debates at the conference on Climate Engineering and the development and value of Seasonal Forecasts for the UK.” The event will take place in the Conference Centre at Heriot-Watt University between Monday 3 September and Thursday 6 September 2007. Full details of the conference programme are available at ‘http://www.rmets.org/conf2007/’ or directly from the Society. Notes and contact details: 1. The Royal Meteorological Society is the UK’s Professional Body and Learned Society for weather and climate. The Society is a registered charity, based in Reading, UK. The President of the Society is Professor Geraint Vaughan, from the University of Manchester, the Chief Executive of the Society is Professor Paul Hardaker and the Head of Communications is Ms Virginia Robins. The Society is contactable via email at ‘chiefexec@rmets.org’ or via 0118 956 8500, and its website can be found at ‘www.rmets.org’. The Society’s conference is a biennial event that brings together the UK’s leading scientists working in the field of weather prediction and climate change. The conference also has a number of invited international experts from across the wider meteorological community. The conference also commemorates the 100th anniversary of the death of Alexander Buchan, one of the leading meteorologists of his time, who for 47 years was the Secretary of the Scottish Meteorological Society. He is accredited as being the first to use a map of weather patterns to produce weather forecasts, but perhaps is most famous for his Buchan Spells, which talk of the occurrence of warm and cold spells in the weather at certain times of the year. For press enquiries: Paul Hardaker: Chief Executive 0118 956 8500 Fiona Hewer: Interim Head of Meteorology 0118 956 8500 http://www.rmets.org/about/press_detail.php?ID=19 Press release 2 February 2007 The Royal Meteorological Society launches its climate challenge The Royal Meteorological Society’s Chief Executive, Professor Paul Hardaker, welcomed the publication today of the IPCC’s Working Group 1 report on the latest scientific thinking on climate change, saying that in his view “the report shows unequivocally that the climate is changing and that humans are contributing to this.” The report is based on research from over 3000 climate change scientists from over 130 countries. Many UK scientists have made a significant contribution to our understanding, from groups like the Met Office’s Hadley Centre, the Walker Institute and the Tyndall Centre, to name just a few. What is clear from the report is that there is still a job to do to understand what is happening at country and city levels, so that we can be clearer about how to prevent the effects of warming from becoming much worse and how to adapt effectively to the changes we are already seeing. Further, the scientists need the support and investment from Government to help them achieve this. Mark Hutchinson, Chief Executive at the Met Office said that “this report provides unequivocal evidence about climate change. The Met Office is working end-to-end on the IPCC findings: having contributed our science within the report we are now working with the UK Government and businesses to pinpoint who and where is affected, by how much, what they need to do and when they need to do.” The Society will be releasing its own statement commenting on the IPCC report next week, and is also laying down a challenge to the public and businesses everywhere to join the Society in reducing their emissions by 20% over the next 4 years to come in line with UK targets. Prof. Hardaker said “The world’s best climate scientists are telling us it’s time to do something about it”. He rejected claims that this is just a problem for big countries or big industries, saying “we can’t just leave it to technology to deliver all the solutions, we all need to play our part and we can make a difference. Just take a moment to think about: when we replace our next light bulb can we make it energy efficient or of lower wattage, could we walk or catch a bus into town instead of driving and can we have that meeting at work by video conference instead of getting on a plane”. He went on to say that “organizations like the UK Climate Impacts Programme, the Carbon Trust for businesses and the Energy Savings Trust for us individually can offer lots of help and support to those who want to tackle this issue and who are looking for inspiration and financial support to do so”. --- Ends -- Notes to the editor: 1. The Royal Meteorological Society is the UK’s professional body and learned society for weather and climate. The Society is a registered charity, based in Reading, UK. 2. The President of the Society is Professor Geraint Vaughan, from the University of Manchester, the Chief Executive of the Society is Professor Paul Hardaker and the Head of Communications is Ms Virginia Robins. 3. The Society is contactable via email at ‘chiefexec@rmets.org’ or via 0118 956 8500, and its website can be found at ‘www.rmets.org’. 4. The Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Working Group 1 report focuses on ‘The Physical Science Basis’. Later reports from Working Group 2 on ‘Impacts, adaptation and vulnerability’ and Working Group 3 on ‘Mitigation options’ are due to be released in April and May respectively. A later synthesis report is expected from the IPCC in October 2007.