Books

Books : reviews

John T. Houghton.
The Physics of Atmospheres.
CUP. 1977

Three important factors have combined to bring about a large increase in atmospheric science: problems of pollution, concern about world food resources which has made scientists more aware of the critical effect of climatic fluctuations, and developments in satellites and computers which have made available powerful new tools for atmospheric research. Professor Houghton describes the physical processes governing the structure and circulation of planetary atmosphere. Simple physical models are constructed by applying the principles of classical thermodynamics, radiative transfer and fluid dynamics, together with appropriate analytic and numerical techniques. Analysis of these models is carried out for real situations in the earth’s atmosphere and, to a lesser extent, in the atmospheres of the terrestrial planets.

The book is intended for the serious undergraduate or graduate student studying atmospheric physics, meteorology or space science, professional scientists in these same subjects, or anyone requiring specialist knowledge of the atmosphere.

John T. Houghton, G. J. Jenkins, J. J. Ephraums.
Climate Change: the IPCC scientific assessment.
CUP. 1990

This is the Report of Working Group l of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which was set up jointly by the World Meteorological Organization and United Nations Environment Programme in 1988. It is an assessment of how human activities may be changing the Earth’s climate through the Greenhouse Effect – potentially the greatest global environmental challenge facing mankind.

The topics covered by this assessment include:
• Changes in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere
• The global climate system and how it is modelled
• Computer predictions of climate change
• Observed climate change over the last century
• Detection of climate change due to human activities
• Changes in sea level due to global warming
• The response of eeosystems to climate change
• Research required to narrow uncertainties

Several hundred international scientists participated in the preparation and review of this assessment, making it the most authoritative and strongly supported statement on climate change that has been made by the scientific community so far. The information presented here is of the highest quality.

It has been deSigned to provide a common guide to policymakers worldwide, and will now form a solid scientific foundation upon which forthcoming negotiations on the response to climate change will be based. This assessment is, therefore, an essential reference for all who are concerned with climate change and its consequences.

John T. Houghton.
Global Warming: the complete briefing: 4th edn.
CUP. 2009

John Houghton’s market-leadlng textbook is now in full colour and includes the latest IPCC findings and future energy scenarios from the International Energy Agency, making it the definitive guide to climate change. Written for students across a wide range of disciplines, its simple, logical flow of ideas gives an invaluable grounding in the science and impacts of climate change and highlights the need for action oh global warming.

Written by a leading figure at the forefront of action to confront humanity’s most serious environmental problem, this undergraduate textbook comprehensively explores issues, allowing students to think through the problem, assess the data and draw conclusions on the action that should be taken, by governments, by industry and by each and every one of us.