Maynooth University Receives Funding For Project Research In Climate And Flood Forecasting

Thursday, 14 August 2025 14:13

By Hannah Kelly

The projects are aimed at addressing climate change, extreme weather events and environmental sustainability

€2.8 million in funding has been awarded to six university projects for climate and flood forecasting research, with Maynooth University being included.

Funding has been given to projects aimed at addressing climate change, extreme weather events and environmental sustainability.

Maynooth University has received €599,704 in funding.

The other colleges include University of Galway and University College Cork.

EXACT, or Extremes Across Climates and Timeframes, is led by Professor Conor Murphy of ICARUS, Maynooth University, with collaborators Dr Amr Mahfouz of the Maynooth University School of Business and Professor Peter Thorne of ICARUS.

The research project will combine Ireland's extensive historical climate records with Met Éireann's TRANSLATE climate projections to assess how events such as floods, droughts, and other climate extremes have changed over time.

It will also assess how their likelihood may evolve under different climate change scenarios.

The awards are being made via the Met Éireann Research Call 2024.

Professor Conor Murphy, Principal Investigator, ICARUS, Maynooth University, said: “With climate extremes becoming more frequent and complex, there is an urgent need to understand not just how these events are changing, but how they impact people, places, and sectors across Ireland. Through EXACT, we aim to bridge scientific research and practical decision-making by developing accessible storylines of past and future extremes. These will help support climate services, guide adaptation, and ultimately contribute to building a more climate-resilient Ireland.”

Dr. Patrick Fournet, Met Éireann’s Research Funding & Support Manager, congratulated Professor Conor Murphy on his success: “We are delighted to provide direct funding to Maynooth University for the EXACT project and look forward to integrating the outcomes of Professor Murphy’s research within the ‘TRANSLATE’ flagship programme. Building on our longstanding support via our engagement with researchers and our co-funding partnerships with other research organisations, we are proud to support Maynooth University through this award in our shared mission to maximise the impact of research in the service of society.”