Polar Forecasting in a Melting World.
LOCATION
Whiteknights, Reading RG6 6AH
SPEAKER | Dr Jonny Day, ECMWF
ABSTRACT | Recent decades have seen a dramatic decrease in snow and ice cover in polar regions as the climate has warmed. Changes in the far north have been particularly striking, with the Arctic’s permanent sea ice cover decreasing by an area the size of Europe. As well as being newsworthy indicators of climate change these changes have opened up opportunities for shipping and tourism as well as impacting weather patterns at lower latitudes. This has driven demand for accurate prediction of the polar environments on timescales from days to decades. I will present an overview of the challenges and opportunities in this rapidly developing field, including the recent inclusion of dynamical sea ice in medium range forecasts at ECMWF.
SPEAKER | Dr Jonny Day, ECMWF
ABSTRACT | Recent decades have seen a dramatic decrease in snow and ice cover in polar regions as the climate has warmed. Changes in the far north have been particularly striking, with the Arctic’s permanent sea ice cover decreasing by an area the size of Europe. As well as being newsworthy indicators of climate change these changes have opened up opportunities for shipping and tourism as well as impacting weather patterns at lower latitudes. This has driven demand for accurate prediction of the polar environments on timescales from days to decades. I will present an overview of the challenges and opportunities in this rapidly developing field, including the recent inclusion of dynamical sea ice in medium range forecasts at ECMWF.