Climate science is a complex field encompassing disciplines such as mathematics, atmospheric science, oceanography, and physics. It also intersects with other areas like geology, chemistry, biology, soil science, data analysis, and hydrology.
For decision-makers, encountering unfamiliar terminology can feel overwhelming. Briefing notes are invaluable tools that simplify complex climate science concepts by translating scientific research into plain English. They offer concise, accessible explanations of scientific findings.
In collaboration with researchers and decision-makers, the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes produced 51 briefing notes on topics ranging from urban climate to the fundamentals of climate models during its tenure. These briefing notes were widely distributed and recognised by government, industry, and media, setting a benchmark for others to follow.
Below is the complete list of briefing notes published by the Centre.
Does global warming cause droughts, drying or increased aridity?September 20, 2019
In an hour-long talk to a business forum, Andy Pitman said: “there is no link between climate change and drought”. Given the audience were not climate scientists, or interested in the physics of the climate, this statement was one word too brief. View briefing note
Global crop yields are strongly affected by extreme climate conditionsAugust 14, 2019
The ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes has contributed to a new scientific study that reveals that extremely hot and cold temperatures, drought and heavy rainfall strongly affect the year-to-year variation in the total global yield of four important crops. View briefing note
Recent El Niño behaviour is unprecedented in the last 400 yearsJune 5, 2019
In a world first, CLEX researchers have produced a 400-year-long record of El Nino activity. This gives us an entirely new insight into the behaviour of these high impact events and reveals unprecedented changes over the past 30 years. View briefing note
The extreme rainfall in northern Queensland during January and February 2019June 5, 2019
Large areas of northern Queensland experienced extreme rainfall and severe flooding in late January and February 2019. This briefing note examines the impacts and some of the likely causes of the event. View briefing note
Heatwaves in the ocean threaten marine ecosystems across the worldMarch 29, 2019
Marine heatwaves are becoming longer and more frequent. A global assessment of marine heatwaves has concluded that they have “the capacity to restructure entire ecosystems and disrupt the provision of ecological goods and services in the coming decades". View briefing note