SSA SA Branch June Meeting: What goes into a global temperature number?

Date: 19 June 2024

Time: 6:00pm ACST

Venue: Online (see Zoom link below)

Speaker: Blair Trewin, Senior Research Scientist, Bureau of Meteorology

Title: What goes into a global temperature number?

Abstract

In recent times, we regularly hear that the world has had its hottest year on record, or that it is approaching the Paris Agreement targets of 1.5 C above the pre-industrial period. In this talk I will discuss the data and methods that go into producing long-term global temperature assessments, and the many challenges involved. These include sourcing suitable data, methods of handling geographically sparse data in many parts of the world, and addressing systematic biases such as those which can arise from issues such as changes in instrumentation, site moves, and urbanisation.

Speaker biography

Blair Trewin is a Senior Research Scientist at the Bureau of Meteorology specialising in long-term instrumental data sets. He led the assessment of observed global temperature changes in the recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report and is the high-impact events lead for the annual World Meteorological Organization State of the Climate Reports.  

Zoom link

Join from a PC, Mac, iOS or Android: https://unisa.zoom.us/j/82332580246?pwd=zZlWyoa84Bd34quYrPNrOYsRa08F2f.1

Password: 844667