ctbto Spectrum

Cover storyThe Race between Cooperation and Catastropheby Sam Nunncontinued from page 9can be used for the verification of weathermodels as well as for science and research.▪ Inclusion of the CTBTO-WMO responsesystem for atmospheric backtracking inthe WMO Manual for the Global DataProcessing and Forecasting System in2007. A third joint exercise was conductedin December 2007 to perform a finalverification of this response system, whichbecame operational on 1 September 2008▪ Joint article on quality assessment ofATM backtracking in support of CTBTverification, published in AtmosphericEnvironment 41 (2007) pp 4520-4534.This article will continue in the nextedition of Spectrum, describing in more detailthe 2007 CTBTO-WMO exercise mentionedabove and other ongoing activities. ■“The common interests of the UnitedStates, Europe, Russia, China, Japan,and many other nations are more alignedtoday than at any point in modern history.I believe that we must seize this historicopportunity and act accordingly.”question, of course, must be asked bythe Russians. If our answer is outside,then it’s simple – we both just keep doingwhat we are now doing. If the answeris inside, we and Russia must makeadjustments in strategy and tactics.To me, the goal of a world free ofnuclear weapons is like the top of a verytall mountain. It is tempting and easy tosay: “We can’t get there from here.” Itis true that today in our troubled worldwe can’t see the top of the mountain.Biographical notePeter Chen is Chief of the Data Processingand Forecasting Systems Division at WMO.He joined WMO in 2004 and is currentlyin charge of coordinating operationalweather forecasting for NationalMeteorological Services of WMO, includingnumerical weather prediction, and ATMfor environmental emergency response.Dr. Gerhard Wotawa is a specialist inthe modelling of atmospheric chemistryand transport. He joined the CTBTO inOctober 2000 and currently works as anAtmospheric Sciences Officer at the IDC.Dr. Andreas Becker is an AtmosphericSciences Officer in charge of ATMsoftware development at the IDC. Hejoined the CTBTO in 2001 and is aspecialist in the field of coupling of ATMsystems in support of environmentalmeasurement campaigns. ■The common interests of theUnited States, Europe, Russia, China,Japan, and many other nations are morealigned today than at any point in modernhistory. I believe that we must seize thishistoric opportunity and act accordingly.Bottom line: In an age fraught withthe dangers of nuclear proliferation andcatastrophic terrorism, global securitydepends on regional security. Twentyyears after the fall of the Berlin Wall,establishing a more cooperative andproductive relationship with Russia willrequire Europe’s leadership as well as theUnited States’.A world free ofnuclear weaponsThe reaction of many people to the visionand steps to eliminate the nuclear threatcomes in two parts – on the one hand theysay: “That would be great.” And their secondthought is: “We can never get there.”But we can see that we are headingdown – not up. We can see that we mustturn around, that we must take pathsleading to higher ground and that wemust get others to move with us.Nearly 20 years ago, U.S. PresidentRonald Reagan asked an audience toimagine that “all of us discovered that wewere threatened by a power from outerspace—from another planet.” The Presidentthen asked: “Wouldn’t we come togetherto fight that particular threat?” Afterletting that image sink in for a moment,President Reagan came to his point: “Wenow have a weapon that can destroy theworld -- why don’t we recognize that threatmore clearly and then come together withone aim in mind: how safely, sanely, andquickly can we rid the world of this threatto our civilization and our existence.”If we want our children andgrandchildren to ever see the mountain top,we must begin to answer this question. ■C T B T O S p e c t r u m 1 1 | S e p t e m b e r 2 0 0 8 Pa g e 2 7