Terms of Reference for WMO CCl Expert Teams
Commission for Climatology (CCl)
OPACE 1: Climate Data Management
Expert Team on Climate Database Management Systems (ET-CDMS)
(a) Assess the current WMO Climate Database Management Systems (CDMS)
since their first evaluation in 2001 and the development of new
systems;
(b) Work in collaboration with the WMO WIS project office on using
inter-operable systems to integrate and exchange NMHSs climate data
and data from other sources such as remote sensing data, Geographic
Information Systems, and data from applications sectors;
(c) Keep technology watch on software and the capability of data
transfer through various means including mobile phones; and develop
guidance and advice to the Members on the most practical, secure,
reliable and affordable technologies in this domain;
(d) Develop and implement a monitoring mechanism for a continued
updating of the CDMSs;
(e) Liaise with CBS, CHy, JCOMM and CAgM and the space programme on
the any relevant issues related to climate data management and
related systems;
(f) Assess the success of past and current capacity building
activities in implementing new CDMSs operationally in replacement of
CLICOM, and revise them as necessary;
(g) Submit reports in accordance with timetables established by the
OPACE 1 co-chairs.
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
Expert Team Data Rescue (ET-DARE)
1. To establish and record, through contact with interested parties
including data users and data centres, general and specific needs
for the rescue of historic observational data and metadata records;
2. To assess regional needs for data rescue projects and to
investigate associated synergies across different region, WMO
programmes and commissions and other international Climate Data
Recovery initiatives such as the Atmospheric Circulation
Reconstructions over the Earth (ACRE) Project, the Mediterranean
Data Rescue Initiative (MEDARE), and similar initiatives in other
regions;
3. To explore, document and make recommendations for addressing the
needs for workshops, conferences and training events pertinent to
this topic;
4. To set up an International Data Rescue web portal (I-DARE);
5. To submit reports to the OPACE-1 Co-chairs; and
6. Task team lead to inform the OPACE co-chairs that the task is
finished and that the team can be dissolved.
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
OPACE 2: Climate Monitoring and Assessment
Joint CCl/CLIVAR/JCOMM Expert Team on Climate Change Detection
and Indices (ET-CCDI)
(a) Provide international coordination and help organize
collaboration on climate change detection and indices;
(b) Further develop and publicize indices and indicators of climate
variability and change and related methodologies, from the surface
and subsurface ocean to the stratosphere, with international
consensus;
(c) Encourage the comparison of modeled data and observations,
perhaps via the development of indices appropriate for both sources
of information;
(d) Coordinate these and other relevant activities the ET chooses to
engage in with other appropriate working bodies including of those
affiliated under CCl, WCRP and JCOMM as well as others such as GCOS,
CBS, CIMO, CAgM, CHy, IPCC and START; and regional associations;
(e) Explore, document and make recommendations for addressing the
needs for capacity-building in each region, pertinent to this topic;
(f) Submit reports in accordance with timetables established by the
OPACE 2 co-chairs.
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
Rapporteur on World Records of Weather and Climate Extremes (R-WRWCE)
(a) Work with the OPACE 2 to create guidelines and appropriate
mechanism (e.g. ad-hoc Assessment Committee) on verification of
national, regional and global extremes;
(b) Work on the creation, verification and documentation of a
database of national, regional and global extremes;
(c) Take the lead in creating and maintaining a database of extreme
records, and in documenting such events, e.g. in peer-reviewed
scientific papers;
(d) Develop guidelines and recommendations for continuing this
record of extremes beyond the fourteenth intersessional CCl period;
(e) Promote quality management system in the work of the rapporteur
including the provision of the guidelines and reports;
(f) Submit reports in accordance with timetables established by the
OPACE 2 co-chairs;
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
Task Team on National Climate Monitoring Products (TT-NCMP)
1. Consider the existing national climate monitoring products and
determine which of these products are most important from a
scientific perspective as well as which products generate the most
interest among the general public within those countries;
2. Consider the existing capabilities within developing countries to
potentially produce the climate monitoring products documented in
(1) above
3. Develop a list of from two to six national climate monitoring
products that the team recommends Members produce;
4. Precisely document the construction of this priority list of
national climate monitoring products in a publication intended to be
an addition to the WCDMP publications;
5. Determine if it would be helpful to develop software to calculate
these products and, if so, what language would be appropriate for
the software;
6. Should software be deemed appropriate, either create the software
or recommend that such software be created;
7. Report to OPACE-2 co-chairs; and
8. Task team lead to inform the OPACE co-chairs that the task is
finished and that the team can be dissolved
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
Task Team on Definitions of Extreme Weather and Climate Events (TT-DEWCE)
1. Considering the existing work and studies, including by WMO
communities and others which relate to climate extreme events, their
definitions, geographical distribution, space and time scales,
intensity, etc;
2. Taking into account the gaps in and the need for developing
common definition related to climate extreme events with particular
focus on cold waves, heat waves and severe precipitation and storms
events (not including those related to tropical cyclones);
3. Provide guidance to the Members on methodologies and standards
for defining extreme weather and climate events and assessing their
attribution and return periods, and advise on adequate computational
tool for the assessment;
4. Provide an advise on developing an inter-operable data base for
climate extreme events with focus on regional and national levels;
5. Liaise with other commissions, programs, co-sponsored programs
and regional and international projects and agencies to develop
linkages and partnership on this subject;
6. Should software be deemed appropriate, either create the software
or recommend that such software be created;
7. Report to OPACE-2 co-chairs; and
8. Task team lead to inform the OPACE co-chairs that the task is
finished and that the team can be dissolved.
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
OPACE 3: Climate Products and Services
Expert Team on Regional Climate Centres (ET-RCC)
(a) Steer the implementation, designation and effective operation of
RCCs, including to keep RCCs up to date on evolving or new research
or operational developments; to promote inclusion of highly
recommended functions in the RCCs and RCC-networks; to identify and
promote training in development and delivery of RCC products and
services; and to monitor performance of RCCs and propose
improvements as required;
(b) Establish global standards for mandatory RCC products and
services and their delivery, as well as verification of forecasts
and reporting of results;
(c) Promote the use of GPC and RCC forecast products at regional and
national levels and development of consensus-based forecasts,
especially through mechanisms such as RCOFs;
(d) Liaise with regional associations, WCRP/CLIVAR regional panels,
CBS/DPFS, and CAS and other relevant entities as required;
(e) Seek sponsors and financial support for RCC implementation in
vulnerable regions;
(f) Submit reports in accordance with timetables established by the
OPACE 3 co-chairs.
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
Task Team on CLIPS Evolution (TT-CLIPS)
Develop and provide to the CCl Management Group for further action,
within a period of 9 months from the date of formation of the Task
Team, the following:
1. A set of overall functions of National Climate Centres (NCCs) to
coordinate national-level technical activities for basic climate
data, diagnostics, climate system monitoring, and in many cases
long-range forecasts (LRF), to help alignment with the core products
and services of Global Producing Centres of Long Range Forecasts (GPCs)
and Regional Climate Centres (RCCs)/RCC Networks;
2. A concept note on National Climate Services (NCSs), including
proposals for a range of possible structures and coordination
mechanisms and clear definitions of climate services, from the
perspectives of national programmes, and services to users, ensuring
due flexibility around the proposed roles and responsibilities of
NCSs and NCCs according to national capabilities and priorities;
3. An outline for a climate information and prediction services
toolbox;
4. Review of the past experiences with the CLIPS Focal Point
network, and development of a new Climate Services Information
System (CSIS) Focal Point network along with their Terms of
Reference;
5. A draft action plan for the transition of CLIPS into the upcoming
GFCS; and
6. Task team lead to inform the OPACE co-chairs that the task is
finished and that the team can be dissolved.
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
Task Team on Global Seasonal Climate Update (TT-GSCU)
1. Develop, including through a scoping workshop, a mechanism to
generate regular global consensus statements on the seasonal
climate, termed Global Seasonal Climate Update (GSCU), through
expert assessments of global climate monitoring products of the
current season and the outlooks for the ensuing season in terms of
the broad patterns of precipitation and temperature, along with the
indication of the situation and expected evolution of the major
general circulation features of both atmosphere and ocean;
2. Develop practical approaches to facilitate enhanced use of GPC
and related Lead Centres' long-range forecast products by RCCs and
other regional entities, RCOFs, and NMHSs, including through the
GSCU concept;
3. Develop an outline for a consensus statement with a comprehensive
assessment of current and coming seasonal global climate anomalies,
including the uncertainty aspects, to assist in risk management,
adaptation policies and decision making by global partners;
4. Develop an implementation plan to engage potential contributors
to develop the GSCU on a trial basis in near-real-time and for
limited circulation and peer review;
5. Liaise with the CCl-XV OPACE-2 expert/task teams on aspects of
climate monitoring and assessment;
6. Identify lead coordinators for operational production of the GSCU;
7. Report to OPACE-3 co-chairs on the progress; and
8. Task team lead to inform the OPACE co-chairs that the task is
finished and that the team can be dissolved.
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
OPACE 4: Climate Information for Adaptation
and Risk Management
Expert Team on Climate Risk and Sector-specific Climate Indices
(ET–CRSCI)
1. Develop methods and tools including standardized software for,
and to generate, sector-specific climate indices, including their
time series based on historical data, and methodologies to define
simple and complex climate risks;
2. Promote the use of sector-specific climate indices to bring out
variability and trends in climate of particular interest to
socio-economic sectors (e.g., droughts), with global consistency and
to help characterize the susceptibility of various sectors to
climate;
3. Develop the training materials needed to raise capacity and
promote uniform approaches around the world in applying these
techniques;
4. Work with sector-based agencies and experts, including those of
relevant WMO Technical Commissions, particularly CHy and CAgM, to
facilitate the use of climate information in users' decision-support
systems for climate risk management and adaptation strategies;
5. Submit reports in accordance with timetables established by the
OPACE IV co-chairs.
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
Task Team on User Participation in Climate Outlook Forums (TT-UPCOF)
1. Review and assess the approaches in the existing and ongoing user
outlook forums (e.g., MALOF, HYDROF);
2. Develop guidance and promotional material to enhance user
participation in Regional Climate Outlook Forums (RCOFs) and in
post-COF user interaction, particularly through implementation of
user-driven outlook forums in conjunction with RCOFs;
3. Develop guidance for RCOFs to more efficiently communicate
climate outlooks to the users, along with uncertainty aspects;
4. In collaboration with the concerned sectors, develop proposals to
establish sector-driven user outlook forums with clear linkages to
RCOFs to take climate outlooks into account;
5. Work with CHy and CAgM to develop the concepts of user outlook
forums for water resources and agriculture/food security;
6. Task team lead to inform the OPACE co-chairs that the task is
finished (within a period of 12 months from the date of formation of
the Task Team) and that the team can be dissolved.
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
Task Team on User Interface (TT-UI)
1. Develop a guideline for users on integrating climate predictions
and information into climate risk management, and adaptation
strategies and planning, to include a user-friendly terminology;
2. Collect and assess existing case studies relevant to quantifying
the social and economic benefits of using climate information,
products and services;
3. Collect and develop information on the susceptibility of various
sectors to climate variations and change and on the use of climate
information in climate risk management and adaptation by specific
sectors, and publish these in the form of an online catalog;
4. In collaboration with CBS ET on Meteorological, Hydrological and
Climate Services for Improved Humanitarian Planning and Response,
develop an implementation plan to facilitate the provision of
meteorological, Hydrological and Climate Services to the
international humanitarian agencies from National Meteorological and
Hydrological Services (NMHSs), RSMCs, Global and Regional Climate
Centres (RCCs);
5. Inform the CCl Management Group on completion of the tasks
(within a period of three years from the date of formation of the
Task Team) and that the team can be dissolved.
Back
to CCl Expert Teams
Task Team on Climate Risk Management (TT-CRM)
1. Develop a concept of Climate Risk Management;
2. Find or develop examples of best practices in CRM already in use
in different parts of the world (e.g. in water and agriculture
sectors);
3. Develop a strategy for extending the concept of CRM to WMO
Members (through training workshop (s); educational materials
(preferably for e-learning); practical tools to apply CRM
principles);
Develop a 'summary report' to feed into Congress sixteen, 2011.
Back
to CCl Expert Teams