http://www.rmets.org/index.php The Royal Meteorological Society webmaster en 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.