Prominent science groups have a request for the next Presidential administration: take a more aggressive approach to climate science and weather prediction. The American Geophysical Union, the American Meteorological Society and the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR), recently released their recommendations, after talking with the Clinton, Obama and McCain campaigns.
They want a big increase in federal climate funding. How much? $9 billion above the $10 billion five-year budget projection for the multi-agency Climate Change Science Program.
A portion of the funding would help with basic science needs, including an increase in the computing power available to run climate models and the restoration of climate satellites and ground-based monitoring instruments cut from research programs at NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Also important is the need for the federal government to undertake research that will help Congress and state and local officials plan for weather-related disasters and adapt to climate change.
The best models available today can predict what will happen to North America, but they can't provide specific information about sea level rise or temperature changes in San Diego, Seattle or any other coastal city.
"When the Bush administration came in, their first comment was, 'We don't know if climate change is anthropogenic, and any projections what exist at a regional scale are too uncertain," said Moss, who served under both Clinton and Bush. "We basically took a step back."
Is doubling the federal climate research budget a realistic goal?
"We all recognize that the federal budget is quite tight, but from our perspective, this is a question of priorities and leadership," said Jack Fellows of UCAR. "We spend billions in Iraq every day. That will have to continue for a while. But both candidates, Obama and McCain, talk about the importance of climate change. We think there will be support there." | 
