Professor Phil Jones, Research Director at the Climatic Research Unit at the University of East Anglia and a leading scientist in the field of climate change, will be discussing his research at the University of Bath on Wednesday 9 November.
Professor Jones will explore the various factors that will influence our climate, both within the next decade and over a longer timescale.
The talk will outline the robustness of the global temperature record and compare the four official datasets that exist. There has been much debate and discussion as to which dataset best represents changes in global temperature and Professor Jones will pay particular attention to uncertainties in these records.
Land only makes up a third of the Earth’s surface, so Professor Jones will combine marine and land data to form a more accurate average global temperature.
Much is made in the media of recent temperature extremes, particularly the last two winters in Europe and eastern North America, and about the influence of urbanisation on land temperature trends. The latter will be shown to be relatively unimportant, while the global-scale warmth of recent winters will be illustrated.
Finally, Professor Jones will discuss causes for the long-term increase in global average temperatures using climate model simulations, both with and without changes in the amount of human influence on the atmosphere through the use of greenhouse gases and sulphate aerosols.
The talk will conclude with projections for the future for the UK’s climate.
The talk will take place in University Hall at the University of Bath, starting at 4:15pm. Please be aware that this is a FREE public lecture and no ticketing policy is in place. Therefore please arrive with time to spare to avoid disappointment and allow time to be seated.