Prof. Dr. Paul D. Williams Appointed Founding Editor-in-Chief of Meteorology

We are pleased to announce that Prof. Dr. Paul D. Williams has been appointed founding Editor-in-Chief of the new journal Meteorology (ISSN: 2674-0494).

Prof. Dr. Paul D. Williams is a Professor of Atmospheric Science at the Department of Meteorology at the University of Reading, UK. Since receiving his Ph.D. in Atmospheric Physics from the University of Oxford in 2003, he has specialised in atmospheric modelling, turbulence, jet streams, and climate change. He has pioneered research into the effects of climate change on aviation, showing that severe aircraft turbulence will double or triple in the coming decades. In addition, he has developed turbulence forecasting methods as well as numerical time-stepping schemes for atmospheric models. He has published two books and over 50 peer-reviewed scientific papers in leading journals.

The following is a short Q&A with Prof. Dr. Paul D. Williams, who shared his vision for the journal with us, as well as his views on the research area and open access publishing:

1. What was it about Meteorology that made you want to take on the role as its founding Editor-in-Chief?

The number of fully open access journals publishing research on meteorology has previously been very limited. This has led to lots of valuable meteorology research being inaccessible to members of the public—and even to scientists who lack the resources to purchase journal subscriptions. There is, therefore, a clear need for a fully open access journal that focusses exclusively on meteorology.

2. What is your vision for the journal?

I would like Meteorology to become one of the top open access journals that meteorology researchers consider when choosing where to publish their papers. Some of Meteorology’s key strengths will be our highly qualified Editorial Board, coupled with the fast processing of manuscripts and rapid publication times.

3. What does the future of this field of research look like?

Meteorology as a scientific discipline has never been more important. The atmosphere is where we live, and the weather within it can vary from pleasant to hazardous—occasionally, it can even be life-threatening. As well as forecasting and understanding weather on timescales from hours to seasons, there is also the question of how climate change will modify meteorological systems, including weather extremes.

4. What do you think of the development of open access in publishing?

Open access is probably the most significant development in scientific publishing that has occurred in my career so far. Many early career researchers today find it hard to believe that previous generations had their access to publicly funded scientific research restricted by paywalls. Open access publishing is here to stay, and I am glad that Meteorology is at the forefront of this exciting development.

We warmly welcome Prof. Dr. Paul D. Williams as the founding Editor-in-Chief of Meteorology, and we look forward to Meteorology achieving many milestones under his leadership. For further information, please visit https://www.mdpi.com/journal/meteorology.