Links between bushfires in Victoria and floods in Queensland. This project will investigate connections between bushfires in Victoria and floods in Queensland under the framework that atmospheric blocking can be thought of as a common link. High resolution runs using the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change future projections of the energetics of high impact weather will improve climate forecasts in sensitive coastal areas of the country.
Tropical climate change, the Hadley and Walker Circulations, and Australian climate. Tropical climate systems, especially the overturning circulations and monsoons, have undergone change in recent decades and are expected to do so over the next century. However, a full understanding of these has proved elusive. The project will employ a suite of insightful diagnostics of these tropical circulations calculated from the latest, high-quality data and the results of modelling to isolate the key phys ....Tropical climate change, the Hadley and Walker Circulations, and Australian climate. Tropical climate systems, especially the overturning circulations and monsoons, have undergone change in recent decades and are expected to do so over the next century. However, a full understanding of these has proved elusive. The project will employ a suite of insightful diagnostics of these tropical circulations calculated from the latest, high-quality data and the results of modelling to isolate the key physical mechanisms at work. The research is significant in that tropical circulations determine the precipitation and temperature over large parts of the Earth’s surface, and particularly Australia. The physical underpinning of the changes will assist in forming outlooks for future climate for the ‘wet tropics’ and the ‘dry zones’.Read moreRead less
Southern Ocean aerosols: sources, sinks and impact on cloud properties. This project aims to provide fundamental process-level understanding of atmospheric aerosol processes over the Southern Ocean, a region that has a profound influence on the Australian and global climate and where climate models perform poorly. Comprehensive observations during 3 Southern Ocean voyages and land-based measurements will enhance our knowledge of aerosols and cloud formation in that region and provide much-needed ....Southern Ocean aerosols: sources, sinks and impact on cloud properties. This project aims to provide fundamental process-level understanding of atmospheric aerosol processes over the Southern Ocean, a region that has a profound influence on the Australian and global climate and where climate models perform poorly. Comprehensive observations during 3 Southern Ocean voyages and land-based measurements will enhance our knowledge of aerosols and cloud formation in that region and provide much-needed data for improving global climate models. Expected outcomes include more accurate seasonal and latitudinal representations of Southern Ocean aerosol populations, properties and sources. The main benefit includes improvements in weather forecasting and future climate projection for Australia and the Southern Hemisphere.Read moreRead less
Trends in polar sea ice and associated global atmospheric circulations. The project aims to analyse the trends in sea ice extent over the polar regions, and explain them in terms of changes in the local and remote atmospheric circulation. In recent decades, Arctic sea ice has decreased dramatically, while increasing in the Antarctic. The resolution of this paradox is a pressing issue in climate science, as is the broad question of how sea ice influences, and is influenced by, climate conditions ....Trends in polar sea ice and associated global atmospheric circulations. The project aims to analyse the trends in sea ice extent over the polar regions, and explain them in terms of changes in the local and remote atmospheric circulation. In recent decades, Arctic sea ice has decreased dramatically, while increasing in the Antarctic. The resolution of this paradox is a pressing issue in climate science, as is the broad question of how sea ice influences, and is influenced by, climate conditions in the mid-latitudes and tropics. Anticipated outcomes include a better understanding of the nature of links between Australian climate and Antarctic ice, and between United States climate extremes and Arctic ice.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140101305
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$394,921.00
Summary
Extratropical Cyclones and their Associated Precipitation: Understanding, Model Evaluation, and Future Projections. Storms and their associated frontal systems are responsible for producing most of the precipitation in mid-latitudes. This project will combine several powerful analysis techniques to answer some fundamental and currently unanswered questions on storm-related precipitation, including the extremes. State-of-the-art climate models, our main tool in projecting future climate changes, ....Extratropical Cyclones and their Associated Precipitation: Understanding, Model Evaluation, and Future Projections. Storms and their associated frontal systems are responsible for producing most of the precipitation in mid-latitudes. This project will combine several powerful analysis techniques to answer some fundamental and currently unanswered questions on storm-related precipitation, including the extremes. State-of-the-art climate models, our main tool in projecting future climate changes, will then be evaluated to ensure they are able to capture the essential processes of storm-related precipitation that have been elucidated. This is essential to increase confidence in the projection of storm changes and their related precipitation, thereby providing better information to water managers.Read moreRead less
Transforming our research capacity in the analysis of climate extremes. Given their devastating impacts, there is now a critical urgency to understand what drives extreme climate events and make timely predictions of their future risk. The analysis of comprehensive extremes datasets, comprising global observations and output of multi-model simulations, will greatly improve our ability to answer fundamental questions about the nature and variability of extreme climatic events. This project also e ....Transforming our research capacity in the analysis of climate extremes. Given their devastating impacts, there is now a critical urgency to understand what drives extreme climate events and make timely predictions of their future risk. The analysis of comprehensive extremes datasets, comprising global observations and output of multi-model simulations, will greatly improve our ability to answer fundamental questions about the nature and variability of extreme climatic events. This project also ensures the government's continued commitment to managing the risks associated with extreme events as an urgent national priority. It represents a landmark opportunity for Australian leadership of an international collaboration between some of the world's leading climate scientists and climate data and modelling centres.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE110100079
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$500,000.00
Summary
Experimental facility for extreme air/sea interaction studies. The level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere which cause global warming is greatly influenced by interactions at the air/sea interface. This infrastructure will allow in-depth studies of these interactions and contribute to much improved strategies to control greenhouse gases.
ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes. This Centre aims to transform understanding of past and present climate extremes and revolutionise Australia’s capability to predict them into the future. Climate extremes cost Australia up to $4 billion a year and will intensify over coming decades. This Centre’s blue-sky research will discover processes that explain the behaviour of present and future climate extremes. It will use its researchers, data, modelling, collaboration, graduate programme ....ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes. This Centre aims to transform understanding of past and present climate extremes and revolutionise Australia’s capability to predict them into the future. Climate extremes cost Australia up to $4 billion a year and will intensify over coming decades. This Centre’s blue-sky research will discover processes that explain the behaviour of present and future climate extremes. It will use its researchers, data, modelling, collaboration, graduate programme and early career researcher mentoring to transform Australia’s capacity to predict climate extremes. This research is expected to make Australia more resilient to climate extremes and minimise risks from climate extremes to the Australian environment, society and economy.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE170101191
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$360,000.00
Summary
The future intensity of extreme East Coast Lows. This project aims to determine the environmental factors controlling the intensity of extreme East Coast Lows and how their intensity responds to global warming conditions. East Coast Lows are responsible for much of the high-impact weather affecting the east coast of Australia. Understanding the causes behind future climate changes is critical to provide confidence in future projections. This project will use high-resolution climate models that c ....The future intensity of extreme East Coast Lows. This project aims to determine the environmental factors controlling the intensity of extreme East Coast Lows and how their intensity responds to global warming conditions. East Coast Lows are responsible for much of the high-impact weather affecting the east coast of Australia. Understanding the causes behind future climate changes is critical to provide confidence in future projections. This project will use high-resolution climate models that can realistically simulate all the key dynamic processes including atmosphere-ocean interactions. Expected outcomes are adaptation strategies to mitigate the future effect of East Coast Lows on coastal fresh water resources, flooding and erosion.Read moreRead less
The dynamics of subtropical anticyclones and the connection to drought, heatwaves and bushfires in southern Australia. The aim of the project is to understand the dynamics of anticyclones (high pressure systems) in the region of southern Australia. The study of anticyclones in the region is important because of their very strong connection to rainfall in the winter, and heatwaves and bushfires in the summer, and because so little work has been done on understanding what is the defining feature o ....The dynamics of subtropical anticyclones and the connection to drought, heatwaves and bushfires in southern Australia. The aim of the project is to understand the dynamics of anticyclones (high pressure systems) in the region of southern Australia. The study of anticyclones in the region is important because of their very strong connection to rainfall in the winter, and heatwaves and bushfires in the summer, and because so little work has been done on understanding what is the defining feature of the climate of southern Australia. Understanding what controls the location and strength of these features will go a long way to explaining how the climate of southern Australia will change in a warmer world.Read moreRead less