Extreme weather in Montreal
Extreme weather - hurricanes, tornados, scorching drought, and the like - not something we in Canada have to worry about? Hardly. Extreme weather events are defined in terms of the danger and actual costs they cause human populations. The $400 million Calgary hailstorm in 1991, the $1 billion Saguenay flood in 1996, and the $2 billion/25 dead ice storm of 1998 are vivid examples of what extreme weather can do in our own back yards. And there are serious hypotheses that the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events may change as the result of global warming.
In order to help advance scientists聮 ability to forecast such events in Canada, the Meteorology Service of Canada (MSC) of Environment Canada, the Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Sciences (CFCAS), the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction (ICLR), the Network for Computer and Mathematical Modeling (ncm2), and the 捆绑SM社区 Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences are providing funding for four new major research initiatives in Montreal on extreme weather. Journalists are invited to a public symposium on extreme weather and a news conference to launch the four initiatives and the new 捆绑SM社区 Chair in Extreme Weather, as follows:
Date:
Thursday, December 6, 2001
Time:
08:45 - 11: 45 Public Symposium
12:00 - 12:30 Launch and Announcement
Place:
捆绑SM社区 Faculty Club Ballroom
3450 McTavish Street, Montreal
Metro 捆绑SM社区 or Peel
Program:
Public lectures
09:00 - 09:30
Nowcasting and Climatology of Extreme Weather
Isztar Zawadzki
Director, Marshall Radar Observatory and
Professor, Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, 捆绑SM社区
09:30 - 10:00
Dangerous Weather - What Canadians Need to Know
Gordon McBean
Research Chair, Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction and
Chair, Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Sciences (CFCAS)
10:00 - 10:30
Affronter le temps extr锚me聽: faits saillants de la nouvelle loi sur la s茅curit茅 civile et ses d茅fis
Georges Beauchemin
Coordinateur Interminist茅riel, Minist猫re de la S茅curit茅 Publique, Gouvernement de Qu茅bec
Coffee Break
1:00 - 11:45
Global Weather Services in 2025: an Update
1Richard Anthes
President, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR), Colorado
Launch of research initiatives and Chair
12:00 - 12:45
Officials from MSC, CFCAS, ICLR, RCM2 (R茅seau de calcul et de mod茅lisation math茅matiques) and 捆绑SM社区 will describe the four major initiatives on extreme weather research and the new 捆绑SM社区 Chair in Extreme Weather. Research leaders from the organizations involved will be available for media interviews.
