1. EXTREMES AND CEOP

2. Extremes … Background: A fundamental aspect of the water and energy cycle is the occurrence of extremes. Big Issues: 1. How can we improve our understanding and prediction of extremes? 2. To what extent will the types, distributions, and impacts of extremes change in a world with an altered climate? We envision Extremes addressing both of these issues: It will address extremes within the present climate system This foundation will allow us to contribute to assessments of their future occurrence

3. Extremes and CEOP … Overall objective … To advance our understanding of hydro- extremes including their occurrence, characteristics, evolution and inter- connections for prediction and for addressing societal concerns

4. The Focus of Extremes During CEOP Extremes of Interest Drought Floods and heavy precipitation … And, in some instances Inter-meshing of extremes

5. SIMPLE UPDATE Who is carrying out some type of extremes research? What aspect of extremes? What needs to be done? How we move forward? …

6. WIDE INTEREST RHPs or regional projects that are addressing extremes include: drought: CPPA, DRI, LPB, MDB... heavy precipitation/flooding: CPPA, DRI, LPB, BALTEX, MAHASRI, NEESPI...

7. MDB and Drought Through Helen Cleugh … A substantial amount of research on drought in SE Australia as well as other regions Over SE Australia, the recent drought exhibited a spatial and temporal structure which varied in space and time: - decline in late autumn and early winter further south and west - is more late summer early autumn farther North and East. Forcing mechanisms are likely to differ from one region of SE Australia to another …

8. BALTEX and Extremes From Hans-Joerg Isemer and Ole Christiensen BACC Climate Change Assessment has extreme events included Several critical parameters Temperature, precipitation, wind …

9. TRENDS IN PRECIPITATION EVENTS

10. Others CPPA LPB MAHASRI AMMA …

11. DROUGHTS and CANADA ‘case study’ of an extreme event 1999-2005 30+ investigators

12. The Canadian Prairies

13. Drought Occurrence – Southern Prairies (1915-2002) SPIPDSI

14. DRI (Canadian Prairie drought) 500 km 2001/02

15. BIG ISSUES Given the 1999-2005 drought, some key issues include: 1. What maintained it over multiple years? 2. What governed its actual structure? 3. Why did it end? And, what was the role of the cold season … a natural Canadian focus 4. What did prediction systems 'miss‘ and why? 5. Given this progress, how can we better cope with drought?

16. LARGE SCALE ACTUAL PATTERNS 1999 2004 2002 Summer 500 mb

17. PRECIPITATION

18. DRI (flooding at the end of the drought) St. Jean de Baptiste, Manitoba July 2005

19. SEASONAL PREDICTIONS Summer of 2005 PREDICTION OBSERVATION Above Normal Below Normal

20. PARTNERS AFFECTED BY DROUGHT Some of our current partners are: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development Alberta Environment Canadian Forestry Service Environment Canada (several components) Health Canada Manitoba Hydro Manitoba Water Stewardship Natural Resources Canada Saskatchewan Research Council SaskWater Saskatchewan Watershed Authority … and others

21. EXTREMES IN CEOP T

22. OTHER EXTREME FEATURES

23. WORKSHOP Objective: To advance our extremes activity Key issues will be: review the precise objectives of the Extremes activity update the extremes work being carried out in CEOP, GEWEX and (hopefully) WCRP synthesize progress to better address overall objectives chart next steps Timing: week of May 19, 2008 (tentative) Location: Vancouver

24. LINKAGES Within CEOP many activities are within RHPs Within GEWEX collaboration on data and models for extremes Within WCRP a key issue Beyond … GEO …

25. IN SUMMARY … Hydrometeorological extremes are of critical importance Within CEOP, we are addressing some of the key issues associated with these extremes

26. And … thank you for your attention