New report seeks to improve climate forecasts
Friday, September 10, 2010 - 09:21
in Earth & Climate
From farmers to government officials in charge of efficiently managing Earth's precious water and energy resources, people all over the world rely on accurate short-term climate forecasts on timescales ranging from a few weeks to a few years to make more informed decisions. But today's climate forecast systems have limited ability to operate on such timescales. That's because it's difficult to realistically represent the complex interactions between Earth's ocean, atmosphere and land surface in the climate models from which forecasts are developed. A new report by the National Academy of Sciences looks at the current state of these climate predictions and recommends strategies and best practices for improving them.