Numerical models have become essential tools in environmental science, particularly in weather forecasting and climate prediction. This book provides a comprehensive overview of the techniques used in these fields, with emphasis on the design of the most recent numerical models of the atmosphere. It presents a short history of numerical weather prediction and its evolution, before describing the various model equations and how to solve them numerically. It outlines the main elements of a meteorological forecast suite, and the theory is illustrated throughout with practical examples of operational models and parameterizations of physical processes. This book is founded on the author's many years of experience, as a scientist at Météo-France and teaching university-level courses. It is a practical and accessible textbook for graduate courses and a handy resource for researchers and professionals in atmospheric physics, meteorology and climatology, as well as the related disciplines of fl
Modern plate tectonic theory, the development of earthquake prediction and the mitigation of earthquake hazards are based on the study of earthquakes during the twentieth century. Investigation of earthquakes over a much longer period, although in no way invalidating the global importance of plate tectonics, shows that patterns of seismic activity do change with time and that areas of intense seismic activity in the historical past are often gaps of earthquake activity today. This study of the historical seismicity of Iran over the last thirteen centuries not only shows this quite clearly but also reveals a long-term tectonic pattern which is different from that deduced from short-term observations. The historical data provides the basis for the development of earthquake prediction models and for long-term earthquake hazard assessment. This book will be of equal interest to earth scientists, seismologists, historical geographers and orientalists.
