Reinhard Bohm

Reinhard Böhm (born February 9, 1948 in Vienna ; † October 8, 2012 in Rauris ) was an Austrian climate researcher and meteorologist .

resume

Böhm passed his Matura at the Goethe Realschule in Vienna-Penzing in 1966 . From October 1967 to June 1973 he completed a successful course of studies at the Institute for Meteorology, Geophysics and Philosophy of the University of Vienna under the professors Heinz Reuter , Peter Weinzierl , Erich Heintel and Johann Mader , which he completed with a doctorate . The title of his dissertation was "A calculation method for determining the water temperature of a river". Using the example of the Kamp in Lower Austria, the calculation for a beautiful summer day is carried out and the error that arises from not taking into account the natural course of the horizon is shown.

In August 1973 Böhm joined the Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics  (ZAMG) in Vienna. There he worked in the weather observation department until 1985. Then he switched to the climatological department. From the beginning of 2001, Böhm was in charge of the climate survey and hydro-climatology section , preferring to focus on high mountain climatology and glacier research in the area of ​​the Hohe Tauern and the Sonnblick group ( Hoher Sonnblick , Stubacher Sonnblick and Großer Sonnblick ). From the 1990s he developed into a specialist in climate change and climate variability.

His participation in numerous national and international climate research projects gave him an international reputation. Böhm was also the author or co-author of more than 150 scientific publications and several popular science books. In January 2009, Böhm was entrusted with the management of the specialist department for climate variability and models.

On the way to the Sonnblick observatory, Böhm collapsed on the glacier.

Reinhard Böhm died on October 8, 2012 as a result of a heart attack that he suffered on the Sonnblick glacier in Salzburg.

Scientific work

His professional qualifications earned Reinhard Böhm the nickname “Father of Austrian Climate Research”.

Climate research

A study presented by Böhm in May 2012 caused a stir, in which he could not determine any increase in extreme weather conditions for the Alpine region .

Based on a long-term study by the Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics and the HISTALP data set (Historical Instrumental Climatological Surface Time Series of the Greater Alpine Region) - this consists of measurement data from 58 locations in the Alpine region, some of which date back to 1760 - he proved that climate change is undisputed, but that there is no increase in weather extremes. Böhm found that the temperature fluctuations had not increased but decreased in the last few decades. “The equation - climate change means more extreme values ​​- is only partially correct. There are more hot days, but at the same time the number of cold days is decreasing. Overall, the weather will be more balanced and less changeable, ”said Böhm, who rejects“ disproportionate climate change marketing ”, in an interview on ORF radio station Ö1 .

According to Böhm, it is undisputed that the global average temperature has increased by one degree in the last 150 years, with this increase in the Alpine region even being two degrees. He attributes this phenomenon to the fact that (as a comparison of the temperature and air pressure curves of the last 200 years shows) there was a slight shift in the subtropical highs from Italy to the north. For the Alpine region, this means an annual increase of 300 hours of sunshine, which leads to more frequent heat waves.

Another result of this study was that long-term trends in temperature, precipitation and air pressure show two long waves of variability that repeat themselves approximately every one hundred years. It also showed that the climate was more fluctuating around the middle of the centuries than towards the end or at the beginning of the centuries, when it was more stable. Böhm was unable to explain this climate variability, but assumed that it interacts with the oceans. Although it is widely believed that there are no longer any transitions between the seasons , the study showed that they are not. Although it has become warmer, the fluctuations have not increased.

Böhm's study is in contradiction to other studies at the same time that assume an increase in extreme weather events.

Publications

• Reinhard Böhm, Ingeborg Auer , Wolfgang Schöner : Laboratory above the clouds - The history of the Sonnblick Observatory , Böhlau Verlag, Vienna 2011, ISBN 978-3-205-78723-5 .
• Günter Blöschl, Knut Beyer, Ronald Ganz, Ortwin Renn, Wolfgang Stalzer, Reinhard Böhm, Klaus Haslinger: Energy resources and climate change , facultas.wuv Universitätsverlag, Vienna 2011, 104 pages, ISBN 978-3-7089-0713-0
• Reinhard Böhm: Hot air to Copenhagen. Keyword climate change. Facts - Fears - Businesses , Va Bene 2010, 282 pages.
• Ingeborg Auer, Franz Prettenthaler , Reinhard Böhm, Herwig Proske (Eds.): Two Alpine Valleys in Climate Change , Innsbruck University Press 2010, 199 pages.
• Reinhard Böhm, Wolfgang Schöner, Ingeborg Auer, Bernhard Hynek , Christine Kroisleitner , Gernot Weyss : Glaciers in Climate Change. From the ice of the polar regions to the Goldbergkees in the Hohe Tauern , ZAMG 2007, 111 pages.
• Ingeborg Auer, Reinhard Böhm, Martin Leymüller , Wolfgang Schöner: The climate of the Sonnblick - climate atlas and climatography of the GAW station Sonnblick including the surrounding mountain region , ZAMG Vienna 2002, ISSN  1016-6254 , 305 pages.
• Reinhard Böhm, Ingeborg Auer, Wolfgang Schöner: The Sonnblick. The 100 year history of the observatory and its research activities. Vienna 1986, ISBN 3-215-05956-8 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Springer-Verlag : Reinhard Böhm - A calculation method for determining the water temperature of a river (accessed on October 9, 2012)
2. ↑ Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics Vienna: Reinhard Böhm's curriculum vitae ( memento of the original from August 19, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF document, 461 KB; accessed on October 11, 2012) 
3. ↑ ^{a b} ORF science on October 9, 2012: Climate researcher Reinhard Böhm died (accessed on October 11, 2012)
4. ↑ Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics Vienna: Climate researcher Reinhard Böhm has died (accessed on October 11, 2012)
5. ^ ORF Salzburg from October 9, 2012: Climate researcher Böhm died (accessed October 11, 2012)
6. ↑ Axel Bojanowski in Spiegel online on October 11, 2012: The Austrian father of climate research is dead (accessed on October 11, 2012)
7. ↑ ^{a b c d} ORF science on 20120522: Alps: No trend towards more extreme weather conditions (accessed on October 11, 2012)
8. ↑ ^{a b c d e} Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics Vienna: Books (accessed on October 11, 2012)
9. ^ Universitätsverlag Wien: Energy resources and climate change (accessed on October 11, 2012)
10. ↑ Reinhard Böhm: Hot Air - Keyword Climate Change ( Memento of the original from March 13, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Book review (PDF document, 50 KB; coast.hzg.de, accessed on October 11, 2012)