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Prof Paul Williams

@profpaul.bsky.social
3.7K followers 330 following 130 posts

Professor of Atmospheric Science at University of Reading. Studies turbulence, jet streams, aviation, climate change. www.met.reading.ac.uk/~williams

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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Pleasure to speak with the BBC about how flyers might face more disruption with hotter skies. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Flyers might have to face more disruption with hotter skies
Are people going to have to increasingly accept more delays and diversions as the effects of climate change intensify?
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
Happy memories of our International Workshop on Aviation Meteorology, held at Chapman University in California earlier this summer.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Rising turbulence is a tangible example of how climate change affects everyday life, as I explain in this profile article in the Times of India.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
It was nice to be in London today to speak at the University of Westminster's summer school on climate and air transport.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
Excited to be presenting our research on aviation turbulence and climate change at the UK Department for Transport this week.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Team Turbulence (me and two of my PhD students) at EGU in Vienna last week.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Always great to be in Vienna for the General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
Turbulence is the leading weather-related cause of aircraft accidents, as I explained at the Price Forbes Aviation Forum in Bogota last month.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
Great to speak about the impacts of turbulence on aircraft at the Price Forbes Aviation Forum in Colombia this month.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
Great 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...
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
A 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.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 19/01/2026
I enjoyed speaking about the jet stream and turbulence to weather presenters from around the world at the Andorra Weather Meeting this weekend!
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
Turbulence is growing faster than our ability to predict it, as I explain to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation here... www.cbc.ca/radio/whaton...
cbc.ca
Severe turbulence is expected to double. What if plane design learned from birds? | CBC Radio
Pilots can’t see it coming, and it’s hard to avoid. But severe clear-air turbulence can shake a plane ‘like King Kong.’ It’s on the rise, and forecast to get worse due to climate change. The rise has ...
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
Great to spend a few days in Toulouse this week. The home of so many great things in aviation!
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
One 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!
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
It's great to be visiting ISAE (the Higher Institute of Aeronautics and Space) in France today.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
Exciting visit to Lazarski University in Warsaw this week, to discuss how climate change is affecting aviation.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
I am excited to be in Warsaw this week to speak at the 13th European Aviation Conference. Exciting discussions about the future of aviation!
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
Our 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. doi.org/10.1175/JAS-...
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
Our 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: doi.org/10.3390/aero... www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/...
dailymail.co.uk
UK airports are set to get NOISIER due to climate change, experts warn
If you live near an airport, it might be wise to invest in a decent pair of earplugs - because the noise of departing aircraft is set to get even worse.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 25/09/2025
I 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). www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
bbc.co.uk
Focus on Africa - South Africa building fire: What happened to survivors? - BBC Sounds
More than 70 people died in the Usindiso building in central Johannesburg in 2023
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 24/09/2025
Atmospheric 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: www.mdpi.com/journal/mete...
mdpi.com
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Reposted by Prof Paul Williams
Adam Vaughan @adamvaughan.bsky.social · 23/09/2025
It's not just that airport expansion will make climate change worse. Climate change will also make airports worse. New study of 30 European airports projects warming will increase the number of people exposed to noise pollution by mid-century www.mdpi.com/2226-4310/12...
mdpi.com
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 01/09/2025
I 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.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 29/08/2025
Our 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: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Reading University research shows turbulent flights to increase
University of Reading research shows that clear-air turbulence, which is invisible to aircraft, is set to get worse.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 19/08/2025
I 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.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 05/08/2025
Taking my son to Brazil for a much-needed holiday!
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 30/07/2025
Guess what was the top most-read article on the BBC News website today? And also the most engaged with, achieving well over 1,000 comments so far! I am happy to be quoted in it, explaining why servere turbulence is becoming more frequent. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 28/07/2025
I am very happy to be featured in this BBC article on how the aviation sector is responding to increased turbulence. www.bbc.co.uk/future/artic...
bbc.co.uk
Turbulence is increasing. Here's how the aviation industry is trying to smooth things out
Climate change is creating stronger turbulence. Aircraft designers hope innovative new techniques will reduce its effects.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 22/07/2025
Congratulations to my PhD student Isabel Smith, who officially became Dr Smith today!
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 17/07/2025
I am very lucky to lead a fantastic research group in aviation turbulence at the University of Reading, pictured here having lunch today with a visitor. Thank you all for your contributions to our group's success.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 16/07/2025
How is climate change affecting aviation? And how can the sector adapt? We had a stimulating Q&A session on these topics at an Airbus conference in Toulouse recently.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 10/07/2025
Did you know that turbulence is the leading cause of weather-related commercial aircraft accidents? It accounts for 71% of them, according to a study we published in 2019, as I discussed at this recent presentation for Airbus in Toulouse.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 08/07/2025
Is the jet stream speeding up because of climate change, helping eastbound flights reach record-breaking ground speeds? I discussed the evidence in this recent presentation at the Airbus Leadership University in Toulouse.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 07/07/2025
It was a pleasure to share the stage with Camille Sagues and Veronique Roca at this recent Airbus event, discussing the crucial topic of adaptation of the aviation sector to climate change.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 01/07/2025
Here are my thoughts on what air travellers should know about turbulence before heading to the airport this summer. www.usatoday.com/story/travel...
usatoday.com
Turbulence is getting worse. Here's what passengers should know before summer flights.
Some kinds of turbulence are less common in summer, but storms can bring bumpy rides for airplane passengers. Here's how to stay safe.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 26/06/2025
I have been in Peru this week, to speak at an ICAO workshop on severe meteorological phenomena and aviation. It is great to see that the international aviation community is taking seriously the increasing risks of severe weather associated with climate change.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
Today I'm getting naked to talk about wind shear! A listener of The Naked Scientists asked why clouds sometimes move in a different direction from the surface wind. I got my clothes off (don't worry, it's audio only!) to answer the question. Listen here: www.thenakedscientists.com/podcasts/que...
thenakedscientists.com
Why do clouds move in a different direction to the wind?
Shear-ly not...
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 19/06/2025
I had the pleasure of speaking at a conference in Rimini this week about how aviation will need to adapt to climate change, covering the latest science on topics such as airport flooding, degraded take-off performance, more lightning, modified hail patterns, and stronger turbulence.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 18/06/2025
We had a great aviation session at the European Climate Change Adaptation conference in Rimini this week. Thanks to fellow panellists Ian Elston, Davide Bassano, Marc Wetterwald, Robert Brons and moderator Rachel Burbidge for the stimulating discussions.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 12/06/2025
I am honoured to learn that our recent study on turbulence increases has been recognised by the publisher as one of the most-viewed articles in Geophysical Research Letters!
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 10/06/2025
Happy memories of speaking about trends in weather-related aviation risks at the International Union of Aerospace Insurers (IUAI) conference in Prague last week.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 05/06/2025
I am back home after spending a stimulating three days in Prague attending the IUAI Members Conference. It was a pleasure to reunite with old friends and make some new ones too!
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 03/06/2025
I am happy to be in Prague today, to speak to aviation insurers about long-term trends in turbulence and other hazards related to climate change.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 01/06/2025
Travel writer Cathy Adams describes her fear turbulence as climate change makes it worse - in today's Sunday Times.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 29/05/2025
It's always good to be in Paris, especially when presenting our research on turbulence and climate change to the Air France KLM Group executive committee.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 23/05/2025
I spent the week visiting Airbus in Toulouse, to discuss the consequences of increased turbulence from climate change. Exciting things are happening. Watch this space!
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 16/05/2025
It was great to give a climate change lecture to teenagers at St Albans School today. Will this be the generation that finally solves the climate change problem? Quite possibly, if the level of engagement during the Q&A session was anything to go by.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 09/05/2025
Some good news coverage of my presentation in Vienna last week... www.fastcompany.com/91330301/why...
fastcompany.com
Why your next flight could be a lot bumpier
New research shows that climate change could cause turbulence to quadruple along some busy flight routes over the next several decades.
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Prof Paul Williams @profpaul.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
No trip to Vienna is complete without a selfie in front of the Mozart monument in Burggarten!
Selfie in front of Mozart monument.
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