Sea Grant agent works with Arctic communities to study bowhead whales Sea Grant agent works with Arctic communities to study bowhead whales Integrating science and cultural practices to tackle emerging issues In Alaska’s Bering Strait and Arctic regions, there are dozens of Alaskan Native tribes, many of whom depend on the marine environment for food, as they have in some cases for thousands of years. In this world more foreign to most Americans than many other countries (and bigger than many too) works exactly one NOAA Oceanic & Atmospheric Research Sea Grant extension agent: Gay Sheffield. Read more
New study finds Alaskans familiar with ocean acidification, not aware of risks to fisheries New study finds Alaskans familiar with ocean acidification, not aware of risks to fisheries New research published in Marine Policy from the first Alaska-focused study on public understanding and awareness of ocean acidification risk shows that Alaskans are three times more aware of ocean acidification than Americans in general. However, Alaskans have difficulty seeing ocean acidification as an immediate risk, and the direct risks to Alaska’s fisheries are still not well understood. The research, “Gauging perceptions of ocean acidification in Alaska,” can be read online. Read more
NOAA flies over Arctic to measure extent of sea ice NOAA flies over Arctic to measure extent of sea ice Annual fall mission helps gauge climate change in Arctic NOAA researchers set out this week on a two-week mission to fly over the Arctic to measure how much the ice has melted over the summer and gauge the speed of this fall’s refreezing of sea ice. This is the second year in a row scientists have flown above Arctic waters. Data gathered from both years is testing a hypothesis that increased summer heat stored in the newly sea-ice free areas of the Arctic Ocean lead to surface heat fluxes in autumn that are large enough to have impacts on atmospheric temperature, humidity, wind and cloud distributions. Read more
NOAA launches research on next generation of high performance weather, climate models NOAA launches research on next generation of high performance weather, climate models NOAA collaborates with U.S. Navy, other public and private partners to create faster, lower-cost models NOAA and the U.S. Navy are teaming up with academic and other government scientists to design the next generation of powerful supercomputer models to predict weather, ocean conditions and regional climate change. Four teams of scientists are beginning projects this month to rewrite computer models that will create faster, lower-cost, better integrated models. These new models will take advantage of new supercomputers that use more energy efficient/lower-cost processors such as those originally developed for the video gaming industry. Read more
Climate models show carbon emission mitigation could slow Arctic temperature increases Climate models show carbon emission mitigation could slow Arctic temperature increases NOAA-led research using climate model projections concludes the Arctic climate will continue to show major changes over the next decades, but that carbon emission mitigation could slow temperature changes in the second half of the century, according to a paper published by AGU’s Earth’s Future. Read more
A more acidic Arctic? NOAA deploys first buoy in region to monitor levels of CO2 absorbed by ocean A more acidic Arctic? NOAA deploys first buoy in region to monitor levels of CO2 absorbed by ocean NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in partnership with the Marine Research Institute in Iceland deployed the first high-latitude ocean acidification monitoring buoy in the Atlantic Ocean in early August. The moored buoy is the first of its kind to be deployed north of the Arctic circle in a region where very little is known about how carbon dioxide (CO2) is entering the ocean environment. 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
Lawns provide surprising contribution to L.A. Basin’s carbon emissions 12Oct2020 Read more Understanding the biologic contribution of CO2 to megacities' overall carbon emissions will be important for designing and evaluating mitigation strategies. Read more
NOAA's miniature aerosol instrument delivered to space 8Oct2020 Read more A miniaturized aerosol spectrometer developed by scientists in NOAA’s Chemical Sciences Labotatory will be one of several insttuments making sure air in the living spaces of the International Space Station stays safe. Read more
Natural disaster plans may aid businesses’ pandemic response 19Oct2020 Read more The social and economic impacts of COVID-19 have battered small- and medium-sized enterprises, putting millions of jobs in the U.S. at risk. And a year rife with natural disasters has not done the many already struggling businesses any favors. Read more
Monitoring Change in the Arctic 25Sep2020 Read more While NOAA has had to cancel many of its planned research surveys in Alaska, it has been able to conduct a number of scaled-back research surveys in 2020. One such survey that will be finishing up this week is in the Arctic and was conducted on board NOAA Ship Oscar Dyson to collect critical data supporting a long time series involving many scientific partners. Read more