Environment
Environmental research is centre-stage at the University of Reading. Our academics, postdoctoral researchers and PhD students come together from a broad range of disciplines to explore, understand, and address climate change, biodiversity loss and sustainability, both natural and as shaped by humans. We collaborate with the very best researchers and users of research, nationally and internationally. These partnerships better enable us to play a critical role in tackling environmental challenges and provide solutions that are both adoptable and adopted.
Scientists from the University of Reading attended the Summer Science Exhibition to talk about the latest research in flood forecasting.
Climate scientists have a clearer picture of how much carbon is absorbed by our oceans and its implications for climate change, thanks to a new way to measure ocean carbon...Read More >
Hundreds of people died from disastrous floods in Europe in 2021, despite scientists alerting the authorities days ahead. Reading hydrologists, who designed Europe’s flood warning system, spoke out immediately about...Read More >
Through a 40-year partnership with The European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) we are advancing understanding of weather and climate, training the next generation of climate scientists and…Read More >
University of Reading researchers are harnessing the power of the public to put historical UK weather data back into the hands of the climate scientists who need it. With extreme...Read More >
By repurposing a technical geo-surveying technique as a practical management tool, a team of Reading researchers are helping to mitigate the potentially catastrophic effects of climate change in Central Asia....Read More >
Researchers at Reading are helping communities to breathe healthier air by equipping schools and families with tools and skills to identify and tackle air pollution. More than three million children...Read More >
Researchers from the University of Reading have played a major role in improving flood forecasting, so that humanitarian aid can be delivered before the flood, before the disaster strikes. Flood…Read More >
A smartphone app and innovative biometric technology developed at Reading is being used at border crossings to keep people moving while maintaining security. Robust border control is essential, but long...Read More >
A satellite-based rainfall estimation system and drought forecasting system developed at the University of Reading are generating data to support drought insurance and agricultural decision-making. These new approaches to drought...Read More >
Advances in the use of satellite and radar data led by Reading mathematicians are helping agencies across the world, from the UK Met Office to NASA, to make better weather...Read More >
Researchers at the University of Reading have developed a new model to improve the design and sustainability of buildings in China, with a view to optimising ambient temperature control while...Read More >
Research is helping the UK move towards a green energy system while improving affordability and accessibility.
In order for a new treatment or therapy to be used in medical practice, clinical trials must be run during the research and development process, often taking years to complete...Read More >
The UK’s first ambient-pressure soft X-ray beamline is helping scientists understand what happens at the interface between solids, vapours, and liquids under near-real life conditions. At Diamond Light Source, the…Read More >
Rats and mice are becoming increasingly resistant to the rodenticides we rely on for their control. Reading researchers have been monitoring the genetic changes behind resistance to commonly used rodenticides,...Read More >
Technologies developed at Reading to enable researchers from industry and academia to run simulations and calculations involving massive datasets have helped make the UK a world-leader in environmental data analytics....Read More >
African vultures are rapidly becoming the world’s most threatened group of birds. Reading researchers have revealed the true scale of their plight and come up with solutions, spurring conservation action...Read More >
Researchers at the University of Reading have developed a new model for urban temperature forecasting that predicts how heat is captured and lost across the varying urban landscape. Forecasting temperatures...Read More >
Research in the University of Reading’s Department of Meteorology has improved our understanding of the climate impact of greenhouse gas emissions. It has advanced the design and use of reliable…Read More >
Air passengers are enjoying smoother, safer flights thanks to a turbulence forecasting algorithm that was co-developed at Reading. Mid-flight air turbulence is the leading weather-related cause of injuries to air...Read More >
Simple but striking graphics showing how the world’s climate has changed, created by a Reading climate scientist, have reached millions worldwide, starting conversations that may lead to solutions. Climate change…Read More >
Intense windstorms can wreak havoc on land and offshore. Researchers in the University of Reading’s Meteorology Department have pioneered the use of climate modelling and storm tracking to support evidence-based...Read More >
Landscape restoration following mining operations in Australia is commonplace, but research revealed that over-fertilisation of ancient soils triggers long-term damage to biodiversity. Working closely with mining giants and regulators, Mark…Read More >
A lack of connectedness – to others and to nature – is contributing to poor mental health and the climate crisis. Through a popular science book, public engagement, and government-level…Read More >
Farmers in Uganda are adapting to the changing climate with little support from, or communication with, local government advisors. Grady Walker upskilled farmers in film-making to visualise the challenges and…Read More >
From enthusiastic ‘twitchers’ recording rare bird sightings to amateur astronomers seeking unseen stars and constellations, countless citizen science communities exist across the UK. Dr Geoghegan’s research is combining these approaches…Read More >
Robust border control is essential, but long security queues awaiting weary travellers are not. Professor James Ferryman is using a smartphone app and innovative biometric technology at border crossings to transform the…Read More >
Loddon Catchment Consultancy forges links between undergraduate students, staff and local organisations to address real-world research questions that bring benefits to the local environment and its residents alike. When students…Read More >
Predicting natural events such as storms and earthquakes is a challenge, but advance notice can help save lives. During Cyclones Idai and Kenneth in 2019, Dr Emerton and Dr Ficchi’s...Read More >
Millions of smallholder farmers across Africa now look forward to a more secure future thanks to satellite-derived estimates of rainfall that are helping insurance companies provide effective cover against drought….Read More >
Between 1883 and 1904 a group of Victorian meteorologists lived in a stone hut at the summit of Ben Nevis, observing the weather every hour of every day and night….Read More >
Mid-flight turbulence is a concern to more than just nervous flyers. It is the leading cause of injuries to air passengers and flight attendants and costs the global aviation sector…Read More >
Illegally killing elephants for ivory is still a lucrative trade. But the cost to vulnerable wildlife is also higher than many might think. To prevent detection, poachers are poisoning elephant…Read More >
Solar Stormwatch is a project to map, for the first time, solar storms – eruptions of mass ejected from the sun’s atmosphere. Led by Dr Luke Barnard and Professor Chris…Read More >
Climate scientist Ed Hawkins has made a big difference to the understanding of a vital contemporary issue: the upward spiralling of global temperatures. Dr Hawkins analysed the past 165 years of…Read More >
Research to develop instrumentation and to develop models relevant to the dispersal of volcanic ash played a key role in establishing the requirement for a flight ban during the eruption...Read More >
Techniques have been proposed, developed and implemented to improve the monitoring of active volcanoes using radars that give operational warnings of eruptions and safe 'all-clears' following activity. To date, their...Read More >
In the early hours of the 16 October 1987, a now infamous storm caused a swathe of damage across southeast England and northern France, resulting in the deaths of 18...Read More >
Research on tracking storms has been used to develop a storm-tracking and analysis software package, known as TRACK. This has found widespread applications, particularly in weather forecasting, climate model development...Read More >
The accumulation of nutrients exported into water from land and atmospheric sources generates a variety of adverse impacts, leading to the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services and compromising water...Read More >
Around 19 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa are threatened by severe food shortages, with over four million people currently malnourished. There are a number of factors which contribute to this...Read More >
In Niger, AfClix activities continue to unite researchers from very different areas, all with the common aim to move resilience from theory to reality and to enable policymakers to learn,...Read More >
Coffee is Tanzania's largest export crop, with exports bringing in $60 million dollars each year to the economy (reported by USAID in 2009). Although rain plays an important role in...Read More >
In one pilot project funded by the Climate & Development Knowledge Network, the Senegal Meteorological Service (ANACIM) working with the Red Cross and community leaders, is relaying weather information to...Read More >
In Sudan, AfClix is setting up a new partnership between NCAS-Climate with Practical Action, climate departments in a number of Khartoum universities and the University of Oklahoma to extend the...Read More >
Robust rainfall monitoring is helping to mitigate climate-related risks in African countries There are more than 200 million people living in sub-Saharan Africa who depend on rain-fed subsistence agriculture; rainfall…Read More >
Research at Reading is shaping new approaches in environmental policy-making, and furthering the way for butterfly conservation.
Research by ecologists at the University of Reading has helped spotlight the vulture crisis, giving them a greater chance of survival.
Researchers at Reading are providing real-time emergency flood hazard reports to aid humanitarian responses to flooding.