Carib Climate Podcast Ep. 10 - Igniting Caribbean Climate Research

CaribClimate Podcast

It only takes S.P.A.R.K.S. to get climate modelling going. The S.P.A.R.K.S. or Scientific Platform for Applied Research and Knowledge Sharing, is a supercomputer procured by the Caribbean Regional PPCR for the University of the West Indies, Mona in 2016. Since then, it has moved the ability of the region to generate its own climate projections by leaps and bounds.

Before S.P.A.R.K.S, climate modelling would often take weeks to be done, and often could not be done in the region. This meant that researchers would often have to rely on data generated elsewhere, which would not necessarily be exactly what they needed to make projections for the region. With the S.P.A.R.K.S., modelling takes mere hours and can be done at an extremely high resolution.

Joining us for this episode is Jayaka Campbell, a climate modelling consultant and representative from the Climate Studies Group Mona. He will walk us through the S.P.A.R.K.S., how it's moved modelling forward for the region and some the work that has come having ready access to a supercomputer.

The CaribClimate Podcast has been commissioned by the Caribbean Regional PPCR. A 5-year, 10.9 Million USD project funded by the Climate Investment Funds (CIF) and administered by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), through the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona Office of Research and Innovation (MORI). The project's objectives were to:

1. Improve the Caribbean's processes to acquire, store, analyze, access and disseminate climate-relevant data.

2. Pilot and scale-up innovative climate-resilient initiatives in the region.

Learn more about the project by visiting caribppcr.org.jm