BZE radio talks to:

Acacia Pepler:  a PhD student at the University of New South Wales Climate Change Research Centre.

She's studying extreme rainfall and low-pressure systems on the east coast of Australia (East Coast Lows). Her research is focused on why & how East Coast Lows develop, including the importance of the Great Dividing Range and East Australian Current, as well as how East Coast Lows may change in the future with climate change.

BZE Technology Radio Show: 26 Aug 2016: Podcast:

Acacia spoke about:

The impacts and importance of East Coast Lows for severe weather and water security,

Why East Coast Lows can be difficult to forecast,

The differences between tropical and extra-tropical cyclones

Some current research

How regional climate models work and why they're useful, and

How climate changes like warmer oceans or higher sea levels may change the impacts of East Coast Lows in the future.

Intense rainfall is expected to increase with global warming.

Further reading

Acacia Pepler's Blog: http://acaciapepler.weebly.com/

The Conversation: Acacia Pepler

The role of climate change in eastern Australia’s wild storms

The Conversation:  Acacia Pepler

Nine years after the Pasha Bulker storm, we’re finally getting a handle on East Coast Lows

Eastern Seaboard Climate Change Initiative

http://climatechange.environment.nsw.gov.au/Impacts-of-climate-change/East-Coast-Lows/Eastern-Seaboard-Climate-Change-Initiative

Journal of Southern Hemisphere Earth Systems Science

http://www.bom.gov.au/jshess/index.shtml

Beyond Zero Emissions interviewers: Kay Wennagel and Michael Staindl

About the BZE Technology Radio Show

Broadcast from Radio 3CR Melbourne Australia

Key words

Drought, Flooding, Biodiversity, Spread of disease, Natural disasters, Runaway climate change, Tipping points, Climate refugees, Climate science