Tim Raupach

A reminder that I maintain a starter pack of scientists on Bluesky who are working on extreme weather and climate. If I'm missing you (or someone else) please let me know! go.bsky.app/8PWHjpx

08-rl reflected light

Image is CC-BY-NC 4.0 (www.flickr.com/photos/uq-ha...)

This is great - hundreds of spectacular cross-section photos and linked 3D models for hailstones in Australia, from the UQ Hail Library www.flickr.com/people/uq-ha.... Thanks @joshuasoderholm.bsky.social for making this library and making it open access!

GitHub - traupach/plotmap: Functions to aid in plotting maps with matplotlib and cartopy Functions to aid in plotting maps with matplotlib and cartopy - traupach/plotmap

Over years I've honed some python functions to flexibly plot spatial data from xarray using cartopy and matplotlib. I've now uploaded this code and a demo notebook to GitHub under CC-BY-NC-4.0: github.com/traupach/plo...

Great to be in sunny Hobart in lutruwita/Tasmania for the @amosupdates.bsky.social 2026 meeting. Here’s the gorgeous view from kunanyi/Mt Wellington yesterday. The very apt #AMOS2026 conference theme is “southern skies, southern oceans: science on the edge”.

Entomology departments should offer degrees in pure moths.

Trump repealing the endangerment finding that greenhouse gas emissions pose a risk to human health is like saying that smoking does not cause cancer. It's a short-sighted decision that openly values corporate wealth over the health and wellbeing of the people of the world.

Concept Papers from the World Climate Research Programme: The Future of Climate Research This collection of journal articles reflects the diverse and comprehensive landscape of contemporary climate science and looks into the future of the subject. Ranging from the historical foundations t...

Frontiers ebook "Concept Papers from the World Climate Research Programme: The Future of Climate Research". A collection of forward-looking papers on a variety of climate topics, including our article, led by @janasillmann.bsky.social, on climate extremes & risks.
www.frontiersin.org/research-top...

Climate change made January heatwave five times more likely New analysis finds climate change made Australia’s heatwave five times more likely, added 1.6°C, and could make events biennial without rapid emissions cuts.

It's been a hot January in Australia. A fast attribution study shows that heatwaves like that of 5-10 January have been made 5x more likely by anthropogenic climate change. A "total transformation of the Australian summer" says @sarahinscience.bsky.social www.21centuryweather.org.au/climate-chan...

Fossil fuels are doomed – and Trump can’t save them Yes, climate change is worsening and action is uneven. But the shift away from fossil fuels is beginning.

UNSW ICRR's @wesmorgan.bsky.social provides this useful summary of where the world stands in the phase out of fossil fuels. Renewable power overtook coal power globally last year. The transition to electric options has momentum, despite US resistance. theconversation.com/fossil-fuels...

A map of the world showing the modeled trend of large hail between 1950 and 2023.

Is damaging hail getting worse? An ESSL-led study published in Nature Geoscience finds that very large hail is modelled to occur most frequently in South America, the United States, and South Africa, but Europe shows the strongest increase in very large hail frequency. doi.org/10.1038/s415...

Final call! Abstract submissions for #EGU26 close on 15 January at 13h CET. Our interdisciplinary session on complex climate risks is looking for contributions on physical climate science and decision making, storyline approaches, impact-based forecasting, and more! www.egu26.eu/session/57683

As a climate scientist, I know heatwaves in Australia will only get worse. We need to start preparing now | Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick During black summer, my daughters were too young to know what was happening. Now, amid another Australian heatwave, they deserve answers

As a climate scientist, I know heatwaves in Australia will only get worse. We need to start preparing now | Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick #Climate

Is "blocking" causing the incoming heatwave in Australia? Australia is set to scorch this week, with the majority of southern Australia under heatwave conditions.

If you're wondering what is causing the extreme heat over SE Australia at the moment, don't miss @weathermanbarnes.bsky.social's excellent explainer on substack. weathermanbarnes.substack.com/p/is-blockin...

Trump Pulls Out of Global Climate Treaty

Trump will pull the US from the UNFCCC and IPCC, amongst many other important treaties. Hopefully, like with the Paris agreement, no other countries will follow suit. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/07/c...

If you're in the business of doing inter-disciplinary climate work related to extreme weather, and especially if you're looking at bridging the gap between science and decision making, please don't forget to submit your abstract to our #EGU26 session! Details below, deadline is 15 January.

Trump team plans to break up ‘global mothership’ of climate science Much of the National Center for Atmospheric Research’s non-climate portfolio will be dispersed, the White House says.

Scientists around the world use science and models developed at @ncar-ucar.bsky.social to understand the climate, forecast the weather, and protect people from climate/weather extremes. A lot of people are safer because of NCAR. It would be a tragedy for it to be gone. www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Australia’s supercomputers are falling behind – and it’s hurting our ability to adapt to climate change When the Gadi supercomputer opened in 2020, it was ranked 24th in the world. It’s now dropped to 179th.

Excellent context on why we need more supercomputing to keep Australia at the forefront of climate research. Current funding is slipping in real terms, meaning the science is slipping and slowing too.
Thanks Christian Jakob and @21stcenturyweather.bsky.social

theconversation.com/australias-s...

Something I've been thinking about recently is how well ChatGPT understandings tone in writing, and how weird it is that we're using machines to predict how other humans will react to what we write. Does it do it better or is it just easier than asking a real person to be a sounding board?

David Byrne: Tiny Desk Concert YouTube video by NPR Music

David Byrne (and a big band) plays a Tiny Desk Concert. What a joy! www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNmc...

Trump Returns to Gasoline as Fuel of Choice for Cars, Gutting Biden’s Climate Policy

Want to make this about affordability? Instead of talking about miles per gallon, start talking about miles per dollar. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/03/c...

How should decision-makers address extreme weather hazards when considering complex climate risks? At #EGU26, Ben Newell, @vitusbenson.bsky.social, @janasillmann.bsky.social and I are convening a session on interdisciplinary approaches. Abstract deadline 15 Jan! www.egu26.eu/session/57683

'Unusually active': Ten giant hail warnings for SEQ this storm season The region has been hit by another round of storms which brought large and even giant hailstones. Is this the new normal?

Queensland’s had a rough run of storms with giant hail recently - I talked with ABC news about them. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11...

90,000 households still without power after giant hail and fierce winds About 90,000 households remain without power after giant hailstones, destructive winds and intense lightning lashed south-east Queensland, with more extreme weather on the way.

More big hail across SE Queensland yesterday, with hailstones up to 14 cm. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11...

We’re coming to the end of a big week
of storm science as #ECSS2025 wraps up. Here Boris Blanc presents his work on interannual variability in hailstorms in Australian cities. Boris is doing a PhD with me at UNSW. An impressive audience present for the last session!

Australia has dropped its bid to host the COP31 climate talks. Here’s what happened – and what’s next After a three-year push to host the 2026 climate talks with the Pacific, Australia has backed down. The news is disappointing – but there’s a small silver lining.

Australia will walk away from hosting #COP31 in a compromise in which Australia takes the presidency role and the Pacific hosts a pre-COP event. @wesmorgan.bsky.social explains what happened, the broader context, and what comes next. This is an important read. theconversation.com/australia-ha...

Tanya Patel presents a poster

A poster hall with people discussing their work

Had a great poster session at #ECSS2025 with plenty of fruitful discussions. Tanya Patel, who I’m supervising for a PhD, presented her work on land-ocean lightning contrast in the Australian tropics. I showed downscaling-based hail size projections for Australian cities.

I’m very happy to be in Utrecht, The Netherlands, for the 12th European Conference on Severe Storms #ECSS2025 run by @essl-ecss.bsky.social and supported by @knmi.nl and @eumetsat.int. Here, @pietergroenemeijer.bsky.social opens the conference. Lots of exciting science to discuss this week!

A large storm cloud over a bay

Storm development over Sydney yesterday

Creepy for sure, but I'd be more concerned if it was the "world's largest spider's web" instead