ABSTRACT
The recent rise of interest in climatology has been so startling that it is no cliché to suggest that this is truly the Cinderella of the planetary and environmental sciences. In the course of a single decade climatology has risen from a position of lowly obscurity to be recognized and feted by many; from a situation of relative poverty and obscurity it has found itself, with surprise, but also pleasure, being transported to the environmental ball where it is now acknowledged and respected by many. Funding for its activities may not ensure its advance in a gilded coach, but it no longer has to jog along in its traditional pumpkin.
