Climate Science from 1800 to 2050: Past Discoveries and Future Directions

Abstract
 
Climate change remains a key question closely related to the future of our civilisation. Since antiquity, people have been worried about the causes of extreme geophysical events which have often be attributed to divinity before more rationale explanations were presented. Since the early 1800s, the concept of greenhouse effect has been introduced, highlighting the important role of carbon dioxide, of other radiatively active atmospheric gases and of aerosols. 
 
The speaker will review how knowledge has been acquired in the last centuries and particularly how climate science has developed since the early 1800’s. He will highlight what we current know and what remains to be discovered. He will conclude by presenting directions for future research while our planet will be experiencing acute climate changes. The need to develop an interdisciplinary vision for climate science will also be highlighted.

About the Speaker

Prof. Guy P. BRASSEUR earned two engineering degrees: one in physics (1971) and one in telecommunications and electronics (1974) and obtained his Ph.D. at the Free University of Brussels, Belgium. He then worked at the Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy, where he developed advanced models of photochemistry and transport in the middle atmosphere.

In 1990, Prof. Brasseur became the Director of the Atmospheric Chemistry Division of NSF NCAR. During 1994-2001, he became the Chair of the International Atmospheric Chemistry Project of the International Geosphere-Biosphere Program (IGBP). From July 2009 to June 2014, he was the founding Director of the Climate Service Center (CSC) in Hamburg, Germany and is an External Member of the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology. He has become the first Distinguished Scholar of NSF NCAR in July 2011. Since June 2014, he is affiliated with the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology as a Senior Scientist and Group Leader. He is a member of the Academy of Sciences of Hamburg, an associate member of the Royal Academy of Belgium (Class: Technology and Society), and a foreign member of the Norwegian Academy of Sciences. He is also a member of the Academia Europea.

Prof. Brasseur’s scientific interests cover questions related to global change, climate variability, chemistry-climate relations, biosphere-atmosphere interactions, climate change, stratospheric ozone depletion, global air pollution including tropospheric ozone, and solar-terrestrial relations. He has become increasingly interested in issues related to climate communication and knowledge dissemination. 

For Attendees' Attention

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