Our history

The Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research (BCCR) combines observations with theoretical and modeling studies of past, present and future climates. The affiliated researchers have leading expertise within climate understanding, climate modeling and scenarios for climate changes and quantification of climate changes. 

BCCR focuses mainly on northern Europe and the polar regions, and is a key provider of first-rate knowledge on climate change to policy makers, industry, and the general public. 

The research is organised into four research teams, each with specific goals, objectives and implementation plans.

The Centre is named in honour of the visionary scientists Vilhelm and Jacob Bjerknes.

Vilhelm Bjerknes (1862-1951) laid the foundations of modern meteorology and weather forecasting through the "Bergen School of Meteorology" at the Geophysical Institute in Bergen. His Son Jacob (1897-1975) carried out pioneer research on climate change and the role of the ocean in the climate system. Read more about Vilhelm Bjerknes' career here.

The Bjerknes Centre was founded in 2000 by the four partnerinstitutions University of Bergen (UiB), The Norwegian Research Centre (NORCE), Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Centre (NERSC) and The Institute of Marine Research (IMR).

The BCCR was labeled a National Centre of Excellence (CoE) from 2003 - 2012. The funding and acknowledgement from the Norwegian Research Council made it possible for various research groups and disciplines in Bergen to work together. This multidisciplinary collaboration has enhanced the level of climate research on a national scale, and continues to do so today.