Professor of Atmospheric Science at University of Reading. Studies turbulence, jet streams, aviation, climate change. https://www.met.reading.ac.uk/~williams/https://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.socialhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mzlg3ode522eIn my keynote presentation at the ICAO Green Airports Seminar in Cairo, I discussed how aviation is both a contributor to, and recipient of, climate change. This last part is easily forgotten, but adaptation is going to be just as important as mitigation.05 Nov 2026 17:42 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mzlg3ode522ehttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mz4cypqcvc23Great to be in Cairo this week, to deliver an opening keynote presentation at the ICAO Green Airports Seminar. I discussed how aviation is both a contributor to and recipient of climate change.30 Oct 2026 17:36 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mz4cypqcvc23https://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3myi75rn4os2vI am pleased to be giving a keynote presentation to set the scene at the ICAO Green Airports Seminar in Cairo next week. Join us for two days on decarbonizing airports and building climate resilience. https://www.icao.int/events/env/icao-green-airports-seminar-2026 #greenairports202622 Oct 2026 17:34 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3myi75rn4os2vhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mwtfy6c5x22tGreat to be spending today at EUROCONTROL in Brussels, to speak about climate change at a conference on environmental measures in aviation.01 Oct 2026 17:45 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mwtfy6c5x22thttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3muwp4w2o6k22Pleasure to speak with the BBC about how flyers might face more disruption with hotter skies. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm274p8m88lo07 Sep 2026 14:17 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3muwp4w2o6k22https://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mu5wgfxa5k2yHappy memories of our International Workshop on Aviation Meteorology, held at Chapman University in California earlier this summer.28 Aug 2026 17:51 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mu5wgfxa5k2yhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mtszc2gcrs2pRising turbulence is a tangible example of how climate change affects everyday life, as I explain in this profile article in the Times of India.24 Aug 2026 09:43 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mtszc2gcrs2phttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3moyb4dmktk2qIt was nice to be in London today to speak at the University of Westminster's summer school on climate and air transport.23 Jun 2026 20:40 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3moyb4dmktk2qhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mnzwuauk6c2hExcited to be presenting our research on aviation turbulence and climate change at the UK Department for Transport this week.11 Jun 2026 19:17 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mnzwuauk6c2hhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mllre7ejrs2uTeam Turbulence (me and two of my PhD students) at EGU in Vienna last week.11 May 2026 17:10 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mllre7ejrs2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mlbmbl4dbc2jAlways great to be in Vienna for the General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union.07 May 2026 16:13 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mlbmbl4dbc2jhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mg46m3p4kk2pTurbulence is the leading weather-related cause of aircraft accidents, as I explained at the Price Forbes Aviation Forum in Bogota last month.02 Mar 2026 21:19 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mg46m3p4kk2phttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mfcnrook422pGreat to speak about the impacts of turbulence on aircraft at the Price Forbes Aviation Forum in Colombia this month.20 Feb 2026 17:41 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mfcnrook422phttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mf3cnptxq22rGreat to speak at the Price Forbes Aviation Forum in Bogota earlier this month. I discussed air turbulence and climate change. How bad can it get? Potentially quite bad, I think...17 Feb 2026 19:34 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mf3cnptxq22rhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mcv5p25usk2gA tale of two press releases. One says the jet stream is slowing down, the other says it is speeding up. How can they both be right? In fact, as I explained in this talk at the Andorra Weather Meeting, there is no contradiction. The jet stream is changing in different ways at different altitudes.20 Jan 2026 21:58 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mcv5p25usk2ghttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mcsbp4aw4s2pI enjoyed speaking about the jet stream and turbulence to weather presenters from around the world at the Andorra Weather Meeting this weekend!19 Jan 2026 18:32 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mcsbp4aw4s2phttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mbufr3wnv22cTurbulence is growing faster than our ability to predict it, as I explain to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation here... https://www.cbc.ca/radio/whatonearth/clear-air-turbulence-prediction-planes-birds-9.701706507 Jan 2026 21:25 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mbufr3wnv22chttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3maei3qfsgk2oGreat to spend a few days in Toulouse this week. The home of so many great things in aviation!19 Dec 2025 19:59 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3maei3qfsgk2ohttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3mabq7g6se22oOne of the true joys of an academic career is examining a PhD student on their past 3+ years of ground-breaking research and awarding them their doctorate. Congratulations Dr Suzanne Salles!18 Dec 2025 17:46 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3mabq7g6se22ohttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3ma555xrqyk2zIt's great to be visiting ISAE (the Higher Institute of Aeronautics and Space) in France today.16 Dec 2025 21:55 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3ma555xrqyk2zhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3m5hkvb3u2k2kExciting visit to Lazarski University in Warsaw this week, to discuss how climate change is affecting aviation.12 Nov 2025 21:11 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3m5hkvb3u2k2khttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3m5f3lbb5fs2mI am excited to be in Warsaw this week to speak at the 13th European Aviation Conference. Exciting discussions about the future of aviation!11 Nov 2025 21:32 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3m5f3lbb5fs2mhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3m367lgnxjc2pOur new study finds that the upper atmosphere is becoming more sheared and less stratified because of climate change. Both these changes are making the air less stable and more conducive to turbulence. Published in the November issue of Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences. https://doi.org/10.1175/JAS-D-24-0283.114 Oct 2025 17:05 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3m367lgnxjc2phttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3m232wh5byk2bOur new study published this month finds that climate change will tend to create more noise around airports across Europe. The lift generated by a departing aircraft is less in warmer air, reducing climb angles by up to 7.5%. Study: https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace12090815 https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-15137139/airports-Heathrow-Gatwick-noisier-climate-change.html30 Sep 2025 17:38 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3m232wh5byk2bhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3lzon2tbyos24I was interviewed on the BBC World Service's "Focus on Africa" show earlier this month, to discuss turbulence on flights from an African angle. Listen to the discussion here (starting at around 22:40). https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0m07l4b25 Sep 2025 18:58 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3lzon2tbyos24https://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3lzlzi3fqsc2uAtmospheric scientists: submit your paper to our special issue on "Wind-Speed Variability from Tropopause to Surface" in the journal Meteorology. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 January 2026. Further details and submission link: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/meteorology/special_issues/716881L4KW24 Sep 2025 18:02 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3lzlzi3fqsc2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3lxs6ajqn2k2lI am pleased to share that I have started a new role as Head of Department today. I joined the University of Reading's renowned Department of Meteorology 22 years ago, and I am looking forward to taking over the reins for a while.01 Sep 2025 17:53 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3lxs6ajqn2k2lhttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3lxk4elgrds2tOur new study finds that the upper atmosphere is becoming more sheared and less stratified because of climate change. Both these changes are making the atmosphere less stable and more conducive to turbulence. Covered by the BBC here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9wy4k1zyqvo29 Aug 2025 12:58 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3lxk4elgrds2thttps://bsky.app/profile/profpaul.bsky.social/post/3lwrmx3k6qk2qI love meeting face-to-face at in-person conferences. There's something magical about being physically present in the same place as like-minded people. Virtual meetings have their place, and favour a hybrid-first approach to maximise accessibility, but I will always choose to travel if I can.19 Aug 2025 19:18 +0000at://did:plc:t6u36m5kitdaq6igymuse4b4/app.bsky.feed.post/3lwrmx3k6qk2q