An artistic tribute to a climate science legacy An artistic tribute to a climate science legacy Renowned climate scientist, Dr. Syukuro Manabe, and his pioneering work at GFDL become the subject of an art installation at a Paris train station for COP21. Read more
Great Lakes water levels at or above average for next 6 months Great Lakes water levels at or above average for next 6 months NOAA and Army Corps issue forecast, consider El Niño potential impact Scientists from NOAA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Environment Canada have issued a six-month forecast for water levels to be at or above average on Lake Superior, Michigan, Huron, and Erie into spring of 2016. Lake Ontario water levels are expected to remain close to monthly averages. However, the impacts of the anticipated strong El Niño and other atmospheric anomalies on the forecast are difficult to predict. Read more
HFC greenhouse gases: a tale of two (or more) futures HFC greenhouse gases: a tale of two (or more) futures New research projects greenhouse effect from substances that replaced ozone-depleting products A new paper appearing online in Atmospheric Environment coauthored by researchers at NOAA’s Earth System Research Laboratory looked at the climate implications of various proposals for future HFC use that are being discussed this week under the United Nations Montreal Protocol, the global agreement that protects the ozone layer. Read more
Annual Antarctic ozone hole larger and formed later in 2015 Annual Antarctic ozone hole larger and formed later in 2015 The 2015 Antarctic ozone hole area was larger and formed later than in recent years, according to scientists from NOAA and NASA. On Oct. 2, 2015, the ozone hole expanded to its peak of 28.2 million square kilometers (10.9 million square miles), an area larger than the continent of North America. Throughout October, the hole remained large and set many area daily records. Read more
Warming waters a major factor in Gulf of Maine cod collapse Warming waters a major factor in Gulf of Maine cod collapse New study shows how warming complicates fisheries management For centuries, cod was the backbone of New England’s fisheries and a key species in the Gulf of Maine ecosystem. Today, cod stocks in the gulf are on the verge of collapse, hovering at 3-4 percent of sustainable levels. Even setting tighter limits on fishing has failed to slow this rapid decline. Now a new report in Science concludes that rapid warming of Gulf of Maine waters— warming in the last decade faster than in 99 percent of the global ocean —has reduced the capacity of cod to rebound from overfishing, leading to collapse. Read more
NOAA’s Ko Barrett elected vice chair of international climate science panel NOAA’s Ko Barrett elected vice chair of international climate science panel Ko Barrett (left) joins Youba Sokana of Mali and Thelma Krug as IPCC vice chairs The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) elected NOAA’s Ko Barrett to serve as one of three vice chairs for the international body. The IPCC was created to review and assess the most recent scientific, technical, and socio-economic information produced worldwide that is relevant to the understanding of climate change. Read more
When smoke is in the air, all eyes turn to this NOAA weather model 26Aug2020 Read more NOAA's HRRR-Smoke model may still be designated as experimental, but when wildfires are burning, many count on it for smoke forecasts. Read more
Aviation is responsible for 3.5 percent of climate change, study finds 3Sep2020 Read more The study evaluated all of the aviation industry’s contributing factors to climate change, including emissions of carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide, and the effect of contrails and contrail cirrus – short-lived clouds created in jet engine exhaust plumes at aircraft cruise altitudes that reflect sunlight during the day and trap heat trying to escape at night. Read more
Arctic melt season puts focus on sea ice forecasts 21Aug2020 Read more Improving Arctic sea ice forecasts is a high priority for NOAA, as indigenous communities, fisheries, ecotourism, oil and gas industries, shipping concerns, wildlife managers and scientists need better information in a region that is rapidly shifting from a reliable frozen ice cap to an open-water ocean. Check out an animation of this summer's Arctic snow and ice melt. Read more
Mapping, listening at the bottom of the sea 26Aug2020 Read more Barely had the ink dried on the partnership agreement signed by NOAA and ocean explorer Victor Vescovo, owner of Caladan Oceanic LLC, when his team headed out to the Pacific Ocean to dive and map the Mariana Trench, and answer the questions -- how deep and where exactly is the bottom of the ocean. Read more
NOAA teaming up with Arizona firm to advance study of stratosphere 19Aug2020 Read more World View Enterprises has offered to carry a miniaturized NOAA instrument on its high-altitude balloon to capture measurements of atmospheric particles on a series of flights in 2021 that will last weeks and cover thousands of miles at altitudes above 55,000 feet. Read more