Geography Seminar Jacky Croke - Australia’s past and present climate of extremes: are we looking at a continent on the edge?

Prof Jacky Croke UCD
Thursday, March 14, 2019 - 16:00 to 17:30
Rocque Lab, Rhetoric House

Australia’s past and present climate of extremes: are we looking at a continent on the edge?

This seminar by Prof Jacky Croke, Head of the UCD School of Geography looks back over several decades of research in past and present climate in the Australian Continent. Australia is the driest inhabited continent n earth with approximately 70% of the area classified as arid or semi-arid. Austria is well-recognize d as a landscape dominated by extremes with documented evidence for extreme flooding and droughts. Over the past decade, the country has witnessed significant extreme events including some of the largest floods and droughts on record and wildfires that at first glance appear ‘unprecedented. This talk briefly reviews some of the paleoclimate records for floods and droughts, with particular attention on the state of Queensland. Current ICPP predictions for this state indicate it may experience some of the most severe changes in climate under future climate changes. This is discussed here in the context of how we as geographers and earth scientists contribute to helping to address this problem and encouraging industries and government to be proactive is seeking solutions.
  Geography - Seminar - Jacky Croke -Australia’s past and present climate of extremes: are we looking at a continent on the edge?

Details of our the Geography Seminar Series are available here  Geography Seminar Series 2018-2019 v12