GCOS Climate Observation Conference
Abstract Submission deadline: 1 June 2022.
Climate observations are of fundamental importance for reconstructing, monitoring, understanding, attributing, predicting, projecting, mitigating, and adapting to climate change. They are instrumental for assessments and policy implementations, such as the IPCC and the 2015 Paris Agreement. The need for systematic climate observations is increasing with the growing urgency for adaptation and mitigation measures that can require high resolution information. It is therefore crucial to make further progress towards achieving a fully implemented and sustainable global observing system for climate applications.
The second GCOS Climate Observation Conference (17-19 October 2022, Darmstadt, Germany) will focus on activities and solutions that help to achieve a fully implemented, sustainable, and fit for purpose global observing system for climate. The Conference will also provide the occasion to celebrate GCOS 30th Anniversary and take stock of the progress achieved by the global observing community in the last three decades.
Provisional Programme
The 2nd Climate Observation Conference will be built around topics such as:
- How do global climate observations support climate policies?
- How well do current climate observations support the understanding of climate change and variability?
- Networks and systems – what improvements are needed to better meet user needs?
- Data processing, archiving and stewardship.
The Conference will also be the occasion to celebrate the 30th anniversary of GCOS programme.
A more detailed programme will be available soon on the conference website, stay tuned!
Abstract Submission
The Scientific Committee invites the submission of abstracts on the following six themes (other relevant papers may also be considered):
- Space and in situ-based networks and observing systems – how to address improvements to better meet user needs?
- How can climate observations enhance further the understanding of climate change, extreme events and tipping points?
- How can global climate observations better support national and international climate policies?
- Data processing, archiving, access, and stewardship - how can new technologies help address existing challenges?
- Climate Data Records: what do we need to do to make this information more reliable?
- GCOS 2050: Shaping the future Global Climate Observing System.
Abstract Submission deadline: 1 June 2022.
Registration deadline: 23 September 2022.
Global Climate Observing System (GCOS)
Since 1992, GCOS has been a responsible program to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) providing guidance for a sustained, long-term and reliable system for monitoring the global climate. GCOS defines Essential Climate Variables (ECVs), knowledge of which is critical to our understanding of the climate: GCOS provides requirements for each ECV, monitors how well they are observed and proposes solutions to any issue identified. Space and in situ-based observations are major contributors to global climate observations. Long time series with historical observation data well distributed across the globe are needed. A wide range of organisations monitor the climate in different ways covering different groups of variables and regions. Overall, this calls for substantial efforts and collaboration at all levels including international organisations, national agencies, and scientific communities with a variety of components covering the atmosphere, oceans, land, cryosphere and biosphere. GCOS does not make observations per se, but responds to the information needs from different stakeholders: policy makers (e.g. UNFCCC, nations and adaptation and mitigation planners), scientific assessments (e.g. IPCC, academia and WCRP), networks and coordinating bodies (e.g. WMO, NMHS, GOOS).
Substantial progress has been made in many areas of the Earth's climate observing system after the release of the 2016 GCOS Implementation Plan. This progress was assessed and described in the 2021 GCOS Status Report. GCOS has now developed a number of strategic priority areas for activities in the coming years, and these form the thematic basis of the new GCOS Implementation Plan (2022) which is now being drafted. The GCOS Implementation Plan will undergo public review in May 2022 and will be finalised in July 2022.
Organised by:
Cover image by NASA.
