Obituary
BAMOS Dec 2024
25
The atmospheric model was a single level barotropic model over the Australian region with the level chosen to represent a good approximation to the vertically averaged wind field . The paper outlines the difficulties in the use of this very early computer , such as installing the operating system , using paper tape as input , stepping through the code to ensure that the answers were correct , and the frustrations of errors arising from the operation of the nuclear particle accelerators in the adjacent Physics laboratory .
An article that appeared in The Sun newspaper in 1958 and a listing of the code can be seen in Museum Victoria ' s online collection .
Dick Jenssen ’ s studies demonstrated that NWP was a distinct possibility for the Australian region and warranted ongoing effort and focus .
Bill notes that “ the quality of the Jenssen and Radok predictions is impressive viewed from sixty years later . This use of ‘ correct boundary conditions ’ foreshadowed the eventual and routine coupling of a regional area model with a larger scale hemispheric model , such as became operational in the Bureau of Meteorology in the early 1970s ."
“ The present author has been particularly impressed with the high scientific quality and great flair that Dick Jenssen showed in his 1959 thesis in the face of non-trivial scientific and technical challenges . His studies defined the commencement of NWP in Australia and highlighted its potential for the Australian meteorological community .”
Obituary for Barrie Pittock
Kevin Hennessy and Dr Kathy McInnes , CSIRO Environment
Barrie Pittock passed away on 4 October 2024 . He was a kind and generous man , and a brilliant scientist who had a remarkable career in CSIRO .
Barrie completed a PhD thesis on atmospheric ozone in the Physics Department at the University of Melbourne in 1963 . He then undertook a two-year Fulbright Scholarship at the newly established National Center for Atmospheric Research ( NCAR ) in Boulder , Colorado , working with the leading Swiss ozone researcher Dr Hans Dütsch .
He started work at CSIRO Division of Meteorological Physics in Aspendale , Victoria , in 1965 . Barrie Pittock set up the first ozonesonde-based stratospheric ozone monitoring program in Australia at Aspendale in 1966 , and this activity is continued in 2024 by the Bureau of Meteorology from their site at Broadmeadows as well as elsewhere .
During his 35 years at CSIRO , his research interests included atmospheric ozone , circulation of the stratosphere , effects of solar variations on weather , surface climate variability , the El Niño Southern Oscillation , the possible climatic effects of nuclear war , and climate change .
Barrie was a great communicator . He published over 270 scientific papers and reports . Based on his reputation , he was an invited speaker at national and international conferences , and a member of various working groups . He was often interviewed by the media regarding climate change . From 1990 to 2007 , he was a Contributing Author or Lead Author of four reports published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ( IPCC ).
Barrie ’ s work has been recognized in various awards . He received a Certificate of Commendation from the U . S . Federal Aviation Administration for his services on the Scientific Advisory Committee to its High Altitude Pollution Program from 1978 to 1982 . He contributed to recognition of CSIRO Division of Atmospheric Research by UNEP in its " Global 500 Award ". He was awarded a Public Service Medal in 1999 . His CSIRO Climate Impact Group received the Sherman Eureka Prize for Environmental Research in 2003 . As a Lead Author of the Fourth Assessment Report , he shared in the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the IPCC in 2007 . In 2019 , he was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia .
Barrie was willing and able to undertake leadership roles that could influence public awareness and policy . For example :
• In 1975 , he was chief organiser for the Australian Branch of the Royal Meteorological Society and the Australian Academy of Science of an international conference on Climate and Climatic Change , and chief editor of the resulting book Climatic Change and Variability : A Southern Perspective , published by Cambridge University Press ( 1978 ).
• In 1986 , he was lead author of Volume I of the report Environmental Consequences of Nuclear War published by the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment ( SCOPE ) of the International Council of Scientific Unions ( ICSU ).
• In 1987 , he wrote the book Beyond Darkness : Nuclear Winter in Australia and New Zealand .