Using model simulations of the movement of tuna distributions across the tropical Pacific subject to projected ocean changes, the researchers found that without strong mitigation efforts, tuna distributions are likely to shift away from island fishing zones.
Drought is a major risk to Australia with extended periods of drought affecting our social, economic and environmental systems. The newly released report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change contains significant new assessments of the science and future projections of drought.
To better understand the implications of the latest climate science for Tasmania, this brief combines information from the IPCC AR6 WG1 report, with regional assessments that contributed to the UTAS Blueprint for a climate-positive Tasmania, and expertise from the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes (CLEX). The regional information is based on Tasmania-specific downscaled modelling undertaken by Climate Futures for Tasmania.
It has long been suggested in the literature, and discussed casually by meteorologists, that rainfall in Melbourne often occurs as lines of precipitation. However, this had yet to be quantified. CLEX researchers analysed 15 years of radar data from the Australian Radar Archive, using an objective method to identify and track these ‘linear systems’ based on radar reflectivity, size, and shape characteristics.
Climate Australia host Lee Constable is joined by the chief investigators in the Drought team of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes – Prof Nerilie Abram, Prof Jason Evans and Dr Andrea Taschetto. Along the way, Lee discovers why drought is such a tricky topic to explore for climate scientists and why understanding how droughts may change in the future is one of the wicked problems of climate change.
Climate Australia host Lee Constable is joined by CLEX Media and Communications Manager Alvin Stone; Research Fellow at Monash University and founder of Skeptical Science Dr John Cook; and Deputy Head of the UNSW School of Psychology Prof Ben Newell to explore the current research around communicating climate science
Our new media strategy following our mid-term review, which aims to reach out to stakeholders beyond academia, is already bearing fruit. And this new focus received a real boost with the release of the IPCC Working Group 1 report.
The past four months have seen our engagement with policymakers and industry accelerate. CLEX has been extremely active in briefing Federal and State policymakers, businesses and other stakeholders on the new IPCC report, growing our impact and influence well beyond academia.
At the time of writing, four of our five nodes are in lockdown. In the meantime, we have refreshed the researcher development program, postponed our winter school (again) but still created a range of engaging sessions and workshops for students and ECRs.
The Paris Agreement requires countries to commit to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions to ensure that the global average temperature remains well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C. But how likely are we to meet these targets?