June 18, 2010
Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology

Dr. Taroh Matsuno Becomes First Japanese to Win IMO Prize

Dr. Taroh Matsuno, Principal Scientist, at the Global Warming Research Project for IPCC-AR5, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth and Science and Technology, and a professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo and Hokkaido University, was awarded the 55th IMO(*2) Prize from the World Meteorological Organization(WMO, *1) on June 18th, 2010. Dr. Matsuno is the first Japanese honored with the IMO prize.

The winners of the WMO prizes, including the IMO prize, were announced at the annual meeting of its Executive Council.

The IMO Prize, the highest WMO award, is given annually to scientists who made outstanding contributions in the field of meteorology, climatology, hydrology and related sciences. Dr. Matsuno is the 57th scientist to win since the prize was founded in 1956.

Dr. Matsuno is an eminent research scientist in the field of atmospheric dynamics, and has significantly contributed to the progress of studies in climate change and 3the development of international activities/framework for climate and meteorological research, including the International Panel on Climate Change.

*1 World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

Established in 1950, WMO promotes international cooperation in the establishment of network for meteorological, climatological, hydrological and geophysical observations. It became a specialized agency for the United Nations in 1951. As of March 2010, WMO has a membership of 183 countries and 6 territories. Japan joined WMO in 1953.

*2 IMO

The International Meteorological Organization (IMO) is the predecessor of WMO.