General Information

This NATO Advanced Study Institute (ASI)* will be held at the Ecoresort Le Sirene',
just south of Gallipoli (Italy) from 23 May to 3 June 2005.

IMPORTANT DATES:

• 15 January 2005 - Deadline for Application Form submission: NOW CLOSED
• 4 February 2005 - Notification of acceptance
• 22 May 2005 - Arrival and registration
• 23 May - 3 June 2005 - ASI takes place
• 3-4 June 2005 - Departure
• 4 June 2005 - ASI has very successfully taken place
• 6 July - Final Report made available (click on link to view/download the pdf file)

Organizing Committee:

• Dr Alberto Troccoli, Director (ECMWF)
• Dr Omar Baddour, Co-Director (Moroccan Met Service)
• Prof David Anderson (ECMWF)
• Dr Mike Harrison (UK Met Office)
• Dr Simon Mason (IRI)

The objective of this ASI is twofold. The first is to expose the four main components of seasonal to interannual climate forecasting systems along with several illustrative examples for each component:

A) Generation of initial conditions for dynamical model forecasts
B) Dynamical models and their coupling
C) Statistical modelling, calibration and model output assessment
D) Application of forecast products to specific users with emphasis on applications related to security.

The second is to offer a judgment of the limitations and prospects of seasonal to interannual climate forecasting systems. Ways to improve the communications between modellers, forecasters, and applications experts in order to more effectively obtain potential benefits for this emerging science will also be addressed.

* An ASI is a high-level teaching activity where a carefully defined subject is treated in depth by lecturers of international standing, and new advances in a subject, not taught elsewhere, are reported in tutorial form.