RECENT RESEARCH AT EXETER HAS BEEN CONCERNED WITH SEPARATE STUDIES OF CERTAIN DOMINANT PLANETARY SCALE FACTORS IN OTHERWISE SIMPLE COMPUTER ATMOSPHERIC MODELS RESPONDING TO APPLIED MERIDIONAL DIFFERENTIAL HEATING. THE RESULTS OF SUCH A MODEL INCLUDING THE EFFECT OF THE ROCKIES SYSTEM INDICATED A NEW RESULT INVOLVING WEST-EAST OSCILLATION OF EDDY KINETIC ENERGY ASSOCIATED VARIATIONS IN MERIDIONAL TEMPERATURE GRADIENTS ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE POLAR REGION. SUBSEQUENT ANALYSIS OF OBSERVED DATA SHOWED THIS TO HAVE AN IMPORTANT INFLUENCE ON REGIONAL WEATHER CHARACTERISTICS, IN PARTICULAR LEADING TO THE VERY COLD EUROPEAN WINTER OF 1978-79.

2. THESE DEVELOPMENTS LEAD US TO THE FEASIBILITY OF PREDICTION OF SEASONAL (CLIMATIC) CHANGES FROM A SPECIFICATION OF A SET OF LARGE SCALE PARAMETERS DEDUCED FROM OBSERVATIONS OVER A PREVIOUS SEASON. THE PLANNED NEW RESEARCH INVOLVES INITIALLY A SYNTHESIS USING A B-PLANE, O-CO-CORDINATION MODEL OF (A) THE ROCKIES-GREENLAND-HIMALAYAS MOUNTAIN BARRIER SYSTEM, (B) THE OCEANIC (THERMOCLINE)/AND DIFFERENTIAL, (C) THE MOVING SURFACE ALBEDO/SURFACE TEMPERATURE INTERACTION, (D) SEASONAL CYCLE OF SOLAR RADIATION INPUT. THIS WILL BE QUICKLY FOLLOWED BY EXTENSION TO A SPHERICAL GEOMETRY MODEL (NOW WELL DEVELOPED IN ZERO TOPOGRAPHY, P CO-ORDINATES) TO SEE WHAT SET OF PARAMETERS, CHARACTERIZING ONE SEASON, DETERMINE THE GENERAL CLIMATIC CHARACTERISTICS OVER EUROPE OF THE FOLLOWING SEASON. FOR EXAMPLE, THE VERY COLD 1978-79 EUROPEAN WINTER CLEARLY FOLLOWED THE ASYMETRICAL FLOW PATTERN OF THE PRECEDING 1978 AUTUMM. DURING THE RESEARCH PERIOD ANALYSES OF OBSERVATIONAL DATA WILL CONTINUE (LINKED TO COMPUTER MODEL RESULTS).