335 Borlaug Hall
The 23rd Kuehnast Lecture in the Fields of Meteorology and Climatology
The Story of Climate Data
Dr. Thomas Peterson, President, World Meteorological Organization Commission for Climatology
Abstract
From the first instrumental climate observations in 1697 up to the likely global temperature record being set this year (2015), professional climate scientists owe a debt of gratitude to the millions of observations taken by volunteers around the world. In addition to describing how average global temperatures are determined and their implications, this presentation will highlight the results of a new NOAA study released this summer (Dr. Peterson was a co-author) that explained why the so called global warming hiatus was largely an artifact of biases in the data. In addition, Dr. Peterson will explain why this summer's passage of World Meteorological Organization's Resolution 60 (putting essentially all countries within the U.N. system on record as supporting free and unrestricted access to climate data) does not alleviate all the concerns about sharing climate data and data integrity. The presentation will end with recommendations about what we can do to improve the global climate record.
Speaker
The speaker is Dr. Thomas Peterson, recently retired from the NOAA's National Center for Environmental Information (NCEI) and Center for Weather and Climate (CWC), Asheville, NC. Dr. Peterson is also the current President of the World Meteorological Organization's Commission for Climatology and was a lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 4th Assessment Report.
Reception
A reception with refreshments will follow the lecture. All those interested in climate science as well as climate change and its implications are invited to attend.