NOAA research links human-caused CO2 emissions to dissolving sea snail shells off U.S. West Coast NOAA research links human-caused CO2 emissions to dissolving sea snail shells off U.S. West Coast For the first time, NOAA and partner scientists have connected the concentration of human-caused carbon dioxide in waters off the U.S. Pacific coast to the dissolving of shells of microscopic marine sea snails called pteropods. Read more
Scientists test a new tool to improve local precipitation forecasts Scientists test a new tool to improve local precipitation forecasts A new weather forecasting tool could soon find itself part of the day-to-day operations of NOAA's National Weather Service (NWS). The instrument, called Atmospheric Emitted Radiance Interferometer, or AERI, measures temperature, water vapor and trace gases (like ozone, carbon monoxide and methane) in the lowest layer of Earth’s atmosphere, the troposphere. Now, an AERI project led by Tim Wagner, a scientist with NOAA’s Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, has received funding through NOAA’s Joint Technology Transfer Program. Read more
Study shows ocean acidification is two-front assault on coral reefs Study shows ocean acidification is two-front assault on coral reefs Scientists studying coral reefs in volcanically acidified water of the southwestern Pacific Ocean measured a net loss of coral reef skeletons due to increased bio-erosion, according to new research by NOAA, the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies (CIMAS) and Australian scientists. Read more
NOAA Research grants support continued tornado research in the Southeast NOAA Research grants support continued tornado research in the Southeast A study of tornadoes in the southeastern United States begins its second year this month as NOAA Research announces awards of $2.5 million in grants presented to partner institutions. Read more
Q&A: Is Arctic warming fueling severe winter weather in the mid-latitudes? Q&A: Is Arctic warming fueling severe winter weather in the mid-latitudes? We caught up with James Overland, oceanographer at NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Lab, to hear about his latest research on whether Arctic warming is fueling more severe winter weather in the mid-latitudes, the temperate zone of the Earth between the tropics and the Arctic, and the part of the United States where most Americans live. Read more
Antarctic ozone hole about average in 2016 Antarctic ozone hole about average in 2016 Results are consistent with expectations, scientists say The hole in the Earth’s ozone layer that forms over Antarctica each September grew to about 8.9 million square miles in 2016 before starting to recover, according to scientists from NOAA and NASA who monitor the annual phenomenon. Read more
Hurricane hunter lands at NOAA's Boulder labs 17Oct2018 Read more The former Chief of Operations at the NOAA Aircraft Operations Center in Lakeland, Florida, pilot and NOAA Corps CAPT Catherine A. Martin is now the Executive Director of NOAA Boulder Laboratories. Read more
Drifting buoys track Hurricane Michael in the Gulf of Mexico 12Oct2018 Read more On Monday night, October 8, 2018, 10 drifting buoys were thrown from the hatch of a U.S. Air Force Hurricane Hunter into the Gulf of Mexico so they could be in front of Hurricane Michael to help with hurricane forecasting. Read more
NOAA funding research effort to develop global aerosol map 19Sep2018 Read more The University of Colorado has been awarded funding for development of an improved global map of smoke, dust and other aerosol particles. Read more
Ozone hole modest despite conditions ripe for depletion 2Nov2018 Read more Weather conditions were ripe for a big ozone hole this year. But declining levels of ozone-depleting chemicals kept it to near-average size. Read more
Small unmanned aircraft flies into rapidly intensifying Hurricane Michael 15Oct2018 Read more NOAA scientists flew multiple missions into Hurricane Michael in the days before landfall, closely observing the rapid intensification of the storm. Their tools included a small unmanned aircraft, called the Coyote, which flew into the strongest winds of the eyewall as the storm intensified to a category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Read more