Kenneth Kunkel – Climate Science in the National Climate Assessment |

Abstract – A National Climate Assessment is Congressionally-mandated to be performed every 4 years. The last comprehensive assessment was released in 2014. That report covered climate science as well as impacts, adaptation, and mitigation. In November 2017, an updated assessment of climate science was published. These assessments undergo extensive review, including by the National Academy of Sciences and by all of the federal government agencies that participate in the U.S. Global Change Research Program. As a result, the key findings are extensively vetted and refined during the reports’ development. This talk will cover the key climate science findings with an emphasis on extreme weather and climate conditions. A particular focus will be on extreme precipitation, both historical trends and potential future changes.

Brief Bio  – Dr. Kenneth E. Kunkel is Research Professor in the Marine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences Department of North Carolina State University and Lead Scientist for Assessments with the NOAA Cooperative Institute for Climate and Satellites. He holds a B.S. degree in Physics from Southern Illinois University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Meteorology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is a lead author on the recently released Climate Science Special Report and has published over 150 scientific journal articles and book chapters.