Climate: into the 21st Century

Hardback  240 pages 50 half-tones 25 tables 350 colour figs  ISBN 0521792029      £25.00

"There are remarkably few books that provide a bridge between the weather we experience and the scary predictions for future climates. Climate fills the gap. It explains, in coffee-table-book-sized chunks, the world's climate system and provides an excellent analysis of the growing climatic variability of the 20th century, before heading into the future. There is probably no more complete, single popular volume on where we are with our weather."
Fred Pearce, New Scientist

Climate: Into the 21st Century features an unrivalled collection of essays by the world€s leading meteorological experts. Compiled by an international team formed under the auspices of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), these fully integrated contributions provide a perspective of the global climate system across the 20th century. The most arresting and extreme climatic events are described. In addition, the book traces the development of our capabilities to observe and monitor the climate system, and outlines our understanding of the predictability of climate on many time-scales. Lavishly illustrated in colour and written in an accessible and engaging style, this book provides a very readable account of the challenges that climate poses at the start of the 21st Century. It will captivate the general reader interested in climate issues, as well as forming a valuable teaching resource.

Contents

Acknowledgements; Foreword; Preface; 1. Our perceptions of climate; 2. The climate system; 3. Impacts of varying climate; 4. Climate for a better society; 5. The century ahead; Appendices; Picture credits; Maps; Glossary; Acronyms; Chemical symbols, conversion factors and units; Index.