SPARC International Project Office now at ETH Zurich
The international project for atmospheric and climate research SPARC (Stratospheric Processes And their Role in Climate) relocated its coordination centre from Canada to Switzerland. On 7 February 2012, at the occasion of the SPARC Scientific Steering Group meeting held in Zurich, SPARC celebrated the inauguration of its new office at ETH Zurich and its 20th anniversary.
SPARC is a core project of the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP). It coordinates research worldwide on the stratosphere, the atmospheric layer in 15 to 50 km altitude. Founded in 1992, SPARC significantly contributed to the present-day knowledge of chemical and physical processes in the atmosphere and, by doing so helped to improve global prediction models for ozone and climate.
Relocating the SPARC coordination centre from Toronto to Zurich bears great opportunities for Switzerland. “Swiss scientists are at the forefront of atmospheric and climate research and have contributed to the SPARC project from the very beginning. Having the SPARC International Project Office in Zurich will help to strengthen Switzerland’s role in international atmospheric research,” said Johannes Staehelin, Director of the SPARC Office and Professor at the Institute of Atmospheric and Climate Science at ETH Zurich. The SPARC Office in Zurich is sponsored by ETH Zurich, the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN), the Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology MeteoSwiss, and WCRP. In addition, the Swiss National Science Foundation funds the position of a young researcher working at the office.
The celebrations of the SPARC 20th anniversary and inauguration of its new International Project Office took place at ETH Zurich on 7 February 2012.
Find information on the SPARC project at: www.sparc-climate.org
Find the 20-year anniversary brochure at:
www.sparc-climate.org/publications/brochures
Source: SPARC Office [1]