PIONEERING research led by a North-East academic has unearthed a new source of data for weather forecasters.

For the past three years, a team of international experts working at the University of Sunderland have been examining ships' logs - from 1750 to 1850 - which has given one of the most accurate pictures yet of daily weather over the oceans.

The findings have given scientists a clear picture of weather from the past, and how it can help them to predict climate changes in the future.

Among the logs studied were those from the famous journeys of North Yorkshire-born explorer Captain Cook.

Dr Dennis Wheeler, who led the research team, said: "A lot of work has been done recently with world meteorological records going back 150 years. Our work goes back much further.

"Although oceans cover 75 per cent of the earth's surface, we had very little information about the weather.

"These logs help us understand how climate changed in the past, which is a very useful tool when predicting climate change in the future."

Dr Wheeler worked with colleagues from a host of international organisations, including the University of Madrid, the Royal Dutch Meteorological Institute, the University of East Anglia and the University of Mendoza, in Argentina.

The logs are held in British, Dutch, French, and Spanish archives.

Although the project is finished, the team hopes to receive funding to allow it to look at the vast amount of logbooks which have still not been examined, in a bid to further understand past climates.