Former NOAA scientist Kirk Bryan, Ph.D, has been named winner of the 2023 National Academy of Science’s Alexander Agassiz Medal for his pioneering work in oceanography and climate science.
The warming Arctic reveals shifting seasons, widespread disturbances, and the value of diverse observations. Shifting seasons and climate-driven disturbances, such as wildfires, extreme weather, and unusual wildlife mortality events, are becoming increasingly difficult to assess within the context of what has been previously considered normal. Read more at the 2022 Arctic Report Card site...
2022 was a busy year for volcanic eruptions with Hawaii's Mauna Loa and Kilaeau erupting simultaneously, along with Mount Semeru, Indonesia and the Hunga undersea volcano in Tonga. While the United States Geological Survey is the primary agency that monitors volcanic activity in the United States, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) oversees safety systems for tsunamis and other volcano-related threats, as well as studies the impact of volcanic gasses on our global climate.
Global carbon dioxide emissions in 2022 remain at record levels and natural carbon sinks are being impacted by climate change, according to a report published last week by the Global Carbon Project.
New NOAA research published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, found that hurricane intensification rates near the U.S. Atlantic coast have increased significantly over the last 40 years and will likely continue to increase in the future.
Today, NOAA and partners released Implementing the Steps to Resilience: A Practitioner's Guide, a handbook for national climate resilience. The resource is designed to help climate adaptation practitioners work with local governments and community organizations to incorporate climate risk and equity into their long-term decision making.
NOAA Research, through NOAA Ocean Exploration, has awarded a $3.5 million, five-year contract to Integrated Systems Solutions, Inc. (ISS) to establish the National Oceanographic Partnership Program Office to support NOAA and the Navy Office of Naval Research (ONR) in their role in jointly co-chairing the National Oceanographic Partnership Program (NOPP) Federal Interagency Working Group (IWG).
NOAA science expertise and data has supported the U.S. government decision to reduce potent greenhouse gas emissions. On September 21st, the United States Senate successfully approved the Kigali Amendment of the Montreal Protocol with strong bipartisan support. The Kigali Amendment, negotiated under the Obama administration in 2016, is an international agreement to phase-out and replace hydrofluorocarbons, a class of chemicals that act as potent greenhouse gasses.
NOAA has invested in 23 small businesses developing innovative technologies in technical areas including climate adaptation and mitigation, weather-ready nation, healthy oceans, and resilient coastal communities and economies. These grants were awarded under the agency’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program, and total over nearly $3.4 million.
Hurricane Andrew made landfall on August 24, 1992, near Homestead, Florida, becoming one of the most catastrophic hurricanes in U.S. history. It had an extremely low central pressure of 922 millibars and maximum sustained wind speeds estimated at 165 miles per hour. The storm rapidly intensified less than 36 hours before landfall, leaving most residents less than a day to secure their homes and heed evacuation orders.
When NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) staff found themselves with a major hurricane on their doorstep, hurricane researchers urgently began working to aid forecasters at NOAA’s National Hurricane Center (NHC). Hurricane Andrew affected their families, and even destroyed one scientist’s home. Once the hurricane passed, our scientists went right back to work, using what they had learned and seen firsthand to improve our understanding of tropical cyclones. In the 30 years since Andrew, NOAA scientists, forecasters and partners have revolutionized hurricane forecasting to save lives and property.