The 12th NAME User Workshop

The Met Office welcomed over 80 participants to a hybrid workshop to discuss recent developments and applications of the NAME atmospheric dispersion model.

The workshop was organised by members of the Atmospheric Dispersion and Air Quality group and brought together new and experienced users and model developers of the Met Office's atmospheric dispersion model NAME. The event provides a platform for sharing research and other model-related information, networking and strengthening links. This year the workshop was mainly held in-person to facilitate networking, but with online access to the oral sessions for those unable to travel. Participants attended from academia, government organisations, research institutions and commercial companies.

The NAME model and user community

The Numerical Atmospheric-Dispersion Modelling Environment (NAME) is a Lagrangian-Eulerian model developed by the Met Office to simulate the dispersion of a wide range of airborne pollutants from dispersion events such as nuclear accidents, volcanic eruptions, chemical accidents, smoke plumes from fires, and airborne animal and plant disease spread. In recent years, the NAME user community has seen continuous growth and the first user workshop was established in 2014.

Scientific content of the workshop

During the 2026 workshop, details were presented of collaborative projects and the use of NAME across many applications, organisations and countries. Interdisciplinary sessions covered the latest technical and scientific developments in NAME, inversion techniques and applications of the model to air quality, biological, chemical, radiological and volcanic dispersion.

Key topics presented at the workshop

This year's workshop, opened by Simon Vosper (Director of National Capability - Research and Development), welcomed attendees to explore the diverse applications of NAME through talks, posters, and discussions. Presentations highlighted the breadth of the model’s capabilities, from volcanic ash dispersion and air quality to radiological and biological releases and emergency response. Together, they demonstrated the important role NAME plays in supporting scientific research, operational decision-making, and responses to societal challenges.

Through a Tech Bar session, attendees explored NAME developments and its application at the Met Office, including next-generation interactive visualisation of NAME data with GeoVista (thanks to the AVD team!), updates to the CHEMET & PACRAM services, and a visit to EMARC in the Services Operations Centre. Participants also took part in a hands-on exercise, where they worked together to solve the mystery of tracing the source of hazardous gas releases.

The next NAME User Workshop is expected to be held summer 2027.