Mission: Enhance understanding and predict the evolution of oceanic and atmospheric systems, including pollutant dispersion in these environments.

Aims:

1. Develop models to represent and predict oceanic and atmospheric processes.

2. Understand human impacts on oceanic and atmospheric systems and their influence on air and water quality.

3.  Investigate the role of the ocean and atmosphere in global change, including interactions with temperature patterns, ocean acidification, rising sea levels, extreme weather events, and air quality and pollutant transport.

4. Assess vulnerabilities of coastal regions to climate change, including the potential impacts of changing atmospheric and marine conditions on heat waves and cold spells, air and water quality, flooding, erosion/accretion budgets and coastline retreat, and developing adaptation and mitigation strategies by integrating oceanic, atmospheric, and air/water quality modeling.

5. Improve understanding of biogeochemical processes in the ocean and atmosphere compartments, including their interaction.

6. Translate modelling results into sustainable policy-making.

The research within the Ocean and Atmospheric Modelling research group (RG3) aligns with the urgent need to advance Earth system understanding and address climate change impacts, as highlighted in initiatives like the IPCC assessments, the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, the WMO’s Integrated Global Observing System, and related EU strategies on climate adaptation and pollution reduction. The modelling approach is strongly aligned with these initiatives’ emphasis on data-driven science.

RG3 directly supports:

TL1 – Climate Change, Adaptation & Mitigation: Climate modelling elucidates climate drivers and extreme events, informing adaptation and mitigation. Integrated modeling of coastal regions supports holistic climate change adaptation and resilience planning.

TL2 – Environmental Management, Pollution & Modelling: Ocean and atmosphere models analyze pollutant sources, pathways, and impacts for pollution control and risk reduction. Research on air quality-climate interactions aids in identifying emerging pollution risks and targeted mitigation.