Archives Serving Science: Historic Maritime Records as Sources for Indian Ocean Climate Change Research: Potential and Problems

Abstract

Climate scientists have identified the establishment of historical baseline data from which to determine degrees of climate change as a significant challenge. In this article the use of ships’ logbooks and other sources for maritime history, to provide evidence of weather and climatic conditions pre-dating the era of modern meteorological data measurements, is discussed. The CLIWOC and TANAP projects utilising international archival resources to provide climatological and related information are examined. The discussion is then focused on the Indian Ocean rim countries and the archival and historical resources that may yield similar information. The article concentrates on sources in the Republic of South Africa, and sources in the Sultanate of Oman and Western Australia are discussed for comparative purposes. Utilising archival sources to provide historical climate-change related data aligns archivists and information scientists with the major imperatives of the South African Government. A beginning can also be made with developing south-south scientific and archival co-operation that can unlock new sources of historical and climatological knowledge.