Two University of Reading scientists were present at a Paris meeting to help put together the latest report on climate change. The report, by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), was published on 2 February 2007, and the Reading scientists made particular contributions in the following areas:
- how much greenhouse gases are warming the climate
- how ice sheets contribute to rising sea levels
- how El Niño and monsoons could change
On the subject of climate activity, snow showers are due to hit Reading tomorrow (I guess that, these days, snow can be considered unseasonal, given the mild winters of recent years). Expect transport difficulties. Or stay at home!
Matt Brady on February 7th 2007 in Climate
Reading residents this morning woke up to a winter wonderland. An overnight flurry left the town buried under a thin crust of snow, most of it sadly gone by midday.
On my way home from work, I snapped a giant snowball (the kind you see in cartoons, rolling down a mountain) nestling next to a bin. An impressive effort - but on a school and work day, who found the time to produce it?
Matt Brady on January 24th 2007 in Climate
Scientists from the University of Reading’s Walker Institute say that the temperature of continents could grow 40-80% faster than oceans by 2050.
Dr Rowan Sutton, lead author of the climate science study, said:
The fact that warming over land is more rapid than over sea is clearly important for climate impacts, since people live on land. Excessively high temperatures can cause a range of problems such as disruptions to train services due to rails buckling in the heat. In very hot weather people’s health can also suffer
With climate models showing that London (and Reading) summer temperatures could reach 40+ celsius by the middle of this century, imagine the temperature extremes in cities such as Madrid and Dubai, where 40 is currently the norm!
Forget terrorism (or the perceived threat of it), climate change is real, it is happening now, and we should be concerned about its impact.
Matt Brady on January 21st 2007 in Climate
I’ve often said that Reading has extraordinary sunsets. I don’t know why this is. Maybe the local Met Office can give me an answer?
I took the dramatic picture seen here with my humble cameraphone. The sky with red cloud looked like a blood-splattered surgical gown. The silhouetted tower is, of course, the local town hall (but does it not look like the Charles Bridge tower in Prague?).
Find a nice spot with a loved one, perhaps by the river, or the Walkabout terrace and, during those minutes of crimson glory, Reading is an undeniably romantic place.
Matt Brady on August 30th 2006 in Climate
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