
Dr Charles Williams
BA, DPhil
Current positions
Research Fellow
School of Geographical Sciences
Contact
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Research interests
I am a Climate Scientist, appointed as a Research Fellow at the University of Bristol (UK), within the School of Geographical Sciences. I also hold a Senior Visiting Research Fellow position at the University of Reading (UK), within the Department of Meteorology and the Climate Division of the National Centres for Atmospheric Science (NCAS-Climate). Lastly, I am a part-time tutor at the University of Oxford's Department for Continuing Education, where I teach a course in Contemporary Climate Science.
My research focuses on Deep time, looking at how climate has behaved in the warmer worlds experienced during the early Eocene and mid-Pliocene (approximately 50 million and 3 million years ago, respectively). My background lies in climate variability and change (and in particular rainfall extremes) over the tropics, with a focus on Africa, and associated atmospheric, oceanic and land surface interactions. In addition, my research interests include regional climate change and the resulting climate impacts, vulnerability to climate change and adaptation measures, and perceptions/beliefs of climate change. Outside my universities, I am a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, and used to be Chair of their Climate Change Research Group
As is perhaps hinted at in the photo, I also happen to be physically disabled, using a specialised electric wheelchair, non-invasive ventilation and requiring 24/7 care (that I manage myself). With no exaggeration, I can only (just) lift a finger. Think Prof Stephen Hawking*, just much less intelligent.
* I myself would never make such a presumptive comparison, but others have!
Publications
Recent publications
09/01/2023Unraveling the mechanisms and implications of a stronger mid-Pliocene Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) in PlioMIP2
Climate of the Past
African Hydroclimate During the Early Eocene From the DeepMIP Simulations
Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology
Past terrestrial hydroclimate sensitivity controlled by Earth system feedbacks
Nature Communications
Evaluating the large-scale hydrological cycle response within the Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project Phase 2 (PlioMIP2) ensemble
Climate of the Past
Geological Society of London Scientific Statement: what the geological record tells us about our present and future climate
Journal of the Geological Society