We put the ocean in a /shell/ and throw that shell back into the ocean.
At Climate Research Lab we focus on research and development that contributes to the science, monitoring, forecasts, and climate projections for South Asia and the larger Indo-Pacific region. We attempt to translate climate science to facilitate the food, water, and economic security of the region. The lab works on the mechanisms and impacts of climate change on the monsoon, cyclones, heat waves, the marine ecosystem, and human health.
| Critical Gaps in the Indian Ocean Observing System | |||
| The Indian Ocean Observing System collects high resolution ocean and atmospheric data, used for forecasting weather and climate events, such as cyclones, storm surges, rains and floods, heatwaves and droughts.
Lack of deployment and maintenance of these ocean observation systems during the three years of COVID (2020-2022) resulted in an irrecoverable gap in our climate data and repercussions on our weather forecasts. Our new paper here, published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, quantify the critical gaps in the Indian Ocean Observing System (IndOOS), their potential impacts on weather and climate services, and provide recommendations for the way forward [pdf].
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| Gone with the Heat | |||
| “Gone with the Heat”, an embroidered story of coral reef bleaching under marine heatwaves. Marine heatwaves, extremely warm waters in the ocean, strip off the colorful protective membrane of the corals, bleaching and killing them. As corals die, the marine biodiversity and fishes depending them also disappear, making our oceans an ecological desert.
Artwork executed by the Kolls and exhibited @ the International Indian Ocean Science Conference 2024, Lombok, Indonesia.
Hawksbill turtles are critically endangered sea turtles. They feed on sea sponge, kelp and sea grass.
Marine heatwaves bleach the sponges, wither the kelp and grass — and the sea turtles disappear… The coral and the marine species in the artwork are from the Indian Ocean region and found in the coral triangle. The artwork is hand embroidery by Juby Aleyas Koll (Sarah) on canvas, along with water color, acrylic, beads, and sand from the Indian Ocean. Each coral and fish species are depicted with different hand embroidery stitches.
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| COP28: The Gulf between Climate Commitments and Reality | |||
| Op-Ed on COP28 in The Times of India, December 2023 [pdf] There is a huge “gulf” between IPCC science and the COP28 consensus. Global warming already exceeds 1.2°C and will surpass 1.5°C by 2030 and 2°C by 2050, as the trajectory of emissions and COP28 commitments to curb them are insufficient in restraining the temperature rise. COP28 came out with a pledge of $792 million for the loss and damage climate fund. The pledged amount is less than 1% of the losses developing countries face every year from global warming, which is at the scale of several trillion dollars.
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| International Indian Ocean Expedition | |||
| If you use weather forecasts, thank the monitoring systems in the ocean and the research and modeling that support these forecasts …and the people behind them!
Recently, we conducted a brainstorming on the Future Road Map for the International Indian Ocean Expedition (IIOE2) at the Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad. The 2nd International Indian Ocean Expedition is a major global scientific program engaging the international scientific community in collaborative oceanographic and atmospheric research from coastal environments to the deep sea over the period 2015-2025, revealing new information on the Indian Ocean (i.e. its currents, its influence upon the climate, its marine ecosystems) which is fundamental for future sustainable development and expansion of the Indian Ocean’s blue economy. Roxy Mathew Koll is the Co-Chair of the Science Theme on “Extreme events and their impacts on ecosystems and human populations” under the Second International Indian Ocean Expedition (IIOE2). Aditi Modi is the Vice-President of the IIOE2 Early Career Scientists Network. | |||
| Freshwater on Earth | |||
| Freshwater on Earth. How much is available? Can we access it into the future, sustainably? What is the direction of change and what are the drivers? The Schmidt Futures VIEW Advisory Board is on it. Watch this space for updates!
@ Stanford University, California | |||
| Indian Ocean Climate @ der Freitag | |||
| Indian Ocean is a canary in the coalmine, a marker of things to come on a global scale. Interview with Julia Lauter for the German newspaper der Freitag [pdf] [online version, translate and read].
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| Monsoon and Marine Heatwaves at the WCRP Conference | |||
| How accurately are we monitoring and predicting the monsoon? What are the challenges and opportunities in improving monsoon predictions? What’s the role of climate change and land surface processes on it and how can we use AI/ML to scale up to the potential predictability of the monsoon?
Roxy Mathew Koll delivered a keynote talk on ‘Observing and Predicting the South Asian monsoon — Challenges in a Changing Climate’ at the WCRP Open Science Conference 2023, organized by the World Climate Research Programme, at Kigali, Rwanda, on 25 October 2023.
The Monsoon Panel
Session on Compound Climate Extremes
Climate Research Lab at the WCRP Conference Aditi Modi presented her research on the impacts of climate change on marine primary productivity in the tropical Indian Ocean, based on satellite observations and Earth system models. Sophia Yacob presented her R&D on a new climate-dengue model using AI/ML. We had a poster on the Meenachil River and Rain Monitoring — the citizen science program in Kerala, supported by Koll Science Foundation and Climate Trends, under the purview of WCRP My Climate Risk Lighthouse Activity. |
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| Climate Proofing Mumbai | |||
| The population of Mumbai, including the city and the suburbs, crossed 20 million around the time when global surface warming hit 1 degree Celsius. By 2050, the population is projected to double—reaching about 40 million. Guess where we will be in terms of global warming? Global mean surface temperatures will cross 2 degrees Celsius by then. Will Mumbai submerge? Can we climate-proof our coastal cities?
Roxy Mathew Koll at the Mumbai First roundtable meeting on climate change with Claudia Roth, the German Minister of Culture and Media, at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, Mumbai.
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| Indian Ocean Futures. Policy Document | |||
| Indian Ocean is a canary in the coalmine, a marker of things to come on a global scale. Read more in this public policy document Indian Ocean Futures, published by the UWA Public Policy Institute [pdf].
Addressing climate change in the Indian Ocean Region: knowledge, capabilities and networks. Pubished in Indian Ocean Futures, by the University of Western Australia. | |||
| Cyclones and Climate Change. Interview @ The New Indian Express | |||
| Interview with The New Indian Express — Brace for more cyclones as the Arabian Sea heats up, 1 July 2023 [interview].
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| Heatwaves and Health. Op-Ed @ Hindustan Times | |||
| Op-Ed at Hindustan Times — Heatwaves and Health, 22 June 2023 [article].
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| Climate Crisis. Interview @ Hindustan Times | |||
| Interview with Hindustan Times — Climate crisis accelerating at faster pace than expected, 5 June 2023 [interview].
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| Heatwaves over India @ Frontline Magazine | |||
| Frontline Magazine — Death by Degrees. An analysis of heatwaves over India, 2 June 2023 [article]
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| Inaugural Address at the G20 Coastal Cities Summit | |||
| Climate Proofing Coastal Cities — Challenges and Way Forward. Inaugural address at the G20 Coastal Cities Summit organized by Mumbai First. For coastal cities like Mumbai, any development can be an opportunity to redesign the city considering present and future climate challenges. | |||
| Citizen science network for river and rain monitoring | |||
 Newspaper highlights on the Meenachil river-rain campaign, a citizen science network, with which Roxy Mathew Koll is involved.
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| Student Guidelines | |||
Here are some student guidelines for you to make the best out of our Climate Research Lab. | |||
| Climate Research Lab, 2024 | |||
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