Earth Science News
SPACE TRAVEL
US climate cuts hurting global science: Europe's weather agency
US climate cuts hurting global science: Europe's weather agency
by AFP Staff Writers
Paris (AFP) April 15, 2025

Europe's meteorological agency says cuts by US President Donald Trump's administration to a key American science agency had hindered the sharing of crucial observations used around the globe to monitor the climate and forecast weather.

Trump's administration has fired hundreds of staff at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and deleted government websites with data on the weather and climate.

The White House plans to go much further, US media reported last week, by gutting funding for NOAA's climate-related research programs and firing even more scientists who study global warming.

Florence Rabier, Director General of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), told journalists that the repercussions were being keenly felt across the Atlantic and beyond.

"We've been partners with them since our beginning, 50 years ago, and they provide a huge contribution to the science of weather prediction and so the climate science," Rabier said in remarks on April 10 that were embargoed until Tuesday.

"What we've seen since March is that there has been a drop in the number of observations delivered by NOAA due to funding cuts," she said.

Data provided from weather balloons, which track temperature, wind speed, humidity and other atmospheric readings, had reduced by about 10 percent, she added.

These observations were "absolutely fundamental" for forecasts globally, Rabier said, "because the weather doesn't know any border".

"It's important for climate monitoring -- any observation lost is a loss for climate monitoring, for calibration of satellite, for verification of forecasts," she said.

"In terms of both science, and observations for weather and climate, I think it would have an impact on the whole community."

NOAA is one of the world's premier climate monitors, making it a prime target as the Trump administration has downsized government agencies and gutted spending on conservation and environment.

Under plans reported by US media, about 75 percent of funding for NOAA's research branch could be eliminated from the 2026 budget -- drastic cuts that could be implemented starting this year.

The administration also wants to make budget cuts to a branch of NASA that is tasked with using satellites to study and monitor the effects of climate change, media reported.

The ECMWF runs the Copernicus Climate Change Service, which uses billions of measurements from satellites, ships, aircraft and weather stations to aid its climate calculations.

Related Links
Space Tourism, Space Transport and Space Exploration News

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
SPACE TRAVEL
US imposes trade restrictions on dozens of entities with eye on China
Washington (AFP) Mar 26, 2025
The United States added dozens of entities to a trade blacklist Tuesday, its Commerce Department said, in part to disrupt Beijing's artificial intelligence and advanced computing capabilities. The action affects 80 entities from countries including China, the United Arab Emirates and Iran, with the department citing their "activities contrary to US national security and foreign policy." Those added to the "entity list" are restricted from obtaining US items and technologies without government au ... read more

SPACE TRAVEL
Mexico seeks security coordination with US over border military moves

Ukraine's psychiatric care on the brink in face of mass trauma

UN denounces army attacks in Myanmar despite post-quake truce

Second debris removal trial starts at Fukushima plant

SPACE TRAVEL
Meta to start using Europeans' data for AI training May 27

Cambodia's Chinese casino city bets big on Beijing

Meta to train AI models on European users' public data

Sierra Space teams with Honda and Tec-Masters for ISS clean energy test

SPACE TRAVEL
Heavy methane leaks found in Swedish crater lake puzzle scientists

Trump signs order to 'make America's showers great again'

Australian PM vows not to bow to Trump on national interest

Uncovering energy inefficiencies in hydrogen production

SPACE TRAVEL
Yana, a 130,000-year-old baby mammoth, goes under the scalpel

Yana, a 130,000-year-old baby mammoth, goes under the scalpel

Rubio reaffirms 'strong' US relationship with Denmark at meeting

Melting ice, more rain drive Southern Ocean cooling

SPACE TRAVEL
Tragic promise drove world's first Michelin-starred woman sushi chef

Heavy metals contaminate up to 17% of world's arable land: study

Dutch flower industry grasps thorny pesticide issue

Engineered bacteria emit signals that can be spotted from a distance

SPACE TRAVEL
Seismologists reveal key rupture dynamics behind Myanmar quake

Downpours drench homeless survivors of Myanmar quake

Europe flooding in 2024 worst in over a decade: report

Istanbul's Hagia Sophia prepares for next big quake

SPACE TRAVEL
Sudan marks two years of war with no end in sight

France weighs options after Algeria expels 12 French embassy staff in Algiers

Somali-US air strike kills 12 militants: information ministry

U.S., coalition partners sanction 15 al-Shabaab leaders

SPACE TRAVEL
Primate mothers react differently to infant loss than humans

A visual pathway in the brain may do more than recognize objects

'Toxic beauty': Rise of 'looksmaxxing' influencers

Thailand rescue dogs double as emotional support

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.