Rapid Climate Change (RAPID) was a £20 million, six-year (2001-2007) programme for the Natural Environment Research Council. The programme aimed to improve the ability to quantify the probability and magnitude of future rapid change in climate, with a main (but not exclusive) focus on the role of the Atlantic Ocean's Thermohaline Circulation.

The specific scientific objectives of the RAPID programme were agreed by the Rapid Climate Change Steering Committee and are detailed in the RAPID Science Plan.

Approximately £11M were awarded to proposals that were submitted in response to the RAPID First round of funding. Of this about £5M was committed to design a system to continuously monitor the strength and structure of the North Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation. This design effort was being matched by comparative funding from the US National Science Foundation (NSF) for collaborative projects reviewed jointly with the NERC proposals. This monitoring effort continued in the NERC-funded follow-on programme RAPID-WATCH 2008-20014.

A 2nd and last round of funding was completed in 2005 with two parallel Announcements of Opportunity. A total of 5 bids were funded under the Joint International AO, with the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research and the Research Council of Norway, and 11 bids under the RAPID 2nd "Science" AO.

Dr Meric Srokosz was the Science Co-ordinator for the programme and Dr Val Byfield was the Deputy Science Co-ordinator, having taken over from Dr Christine Gommenginger from 1 April 2005. In autumn 2005 Dr. Craig Wallace joined the team as Knowledge Transfer co-ordinator.