CLIMATIC CHANGE

Activity and progress in research on climate change has been substantial during the past four years. A number of factors seem to be responsible for the surge of interest and progress in this field during the 1970's, and the momentum should continue into the 1980's. In this introduction, we will mention some of these factors in each of three areas: paleoclimates, short‐term climate fluctuations, and climate simulations. These same three areas will be reviewed in subsequent sections. Copyright 1979 by the American Geophysical Union.