A Prize for Innovation in Meteorology

A substantial part of the national gross product in many countries is weather dependent. National weather services and the private sector have been innovative for more than a century to make better use of our meteorological knowledge. However, large gains are still to be made and the prize encourages individuals and groups to propose ideas how meteorology in a practical way can further move society forward. Meteorology can make society safer, can deliver costs savings, and improve the lives of large groups of people.

Harry Otten Prize for Innovation in Meteorology 2023 awarded to Hamish Pritchard for his idea Lakes as snowfall sensors.

The Harry Otten Prize for Innovation in Meteorology has been awarded for the sixth time. During the Annual Meeting of the European Meteorological Society currently taking place in Bratislava, the jury announced that Hamish Pritchard from the British Antarctic Survey (U.K.) has won the first prize of 25,000 Euro. His idea, Lakes as snowfall sensors: Solving the precipitation problem in the mountain cryosphere, entails that lakes can be used as pressure-sensing surfaces to yield accurate observations of the water content of snowfall simply, cheaply, autonomously, and over large areas. With standard water-pressure sensors submerged on a lakebed, the mass of winter snow precipitation as it reaches the lake surface can be recorded, while avoiding biases that appear with other instruments that interact with snow as it falls or accumulates.

Application timeline

On September 4th 2023 the Harry Otten Prize, worth €25,000 has been awarded for the sixth time. The winner is Hamish Pritchard (British Antarctic Survey) for the idea “Lakes as snowfall sensors: Solving the precipitation problem in the mountain cryosphere”. The Harry Otten Prize will be awarded at the EMS Annual Meeting in 2025 in Ljubljana. Submittiing ideas for the 2025 prize round will be possible between 15 September 2024 and 10 March 2025.

Application

To apply click on this link: application procedure. It is easy and helps you to provide all necessary information. The exact rules of the contest and additional guidance can also be found on this site.