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Arctic Ice More Vulnerable to Sunny Weather, New Study Shows
The shrinking expanse of Arctic sea ice is increasingly vulnerable to summer sunshine, new research concludes. The study, by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and Colorado State University (CSU), finds that unusually sunny weather contributed to last summer's record loss of Arctic ice, while similar weather conditions in past summers do not appear to have had comparable impacts. The study, which draws on observations from instruments on a new group of NASA satellites known as the "A-Train," was published recently in Geophysical Research Letters... Looking at the first two years of data from radar and lidar on the A-Train satellites, Kay and her colleagues found that total summertime cloud cover in the Western Arctic was 16 percent less in 2007 than the year before. (Staff: Jennifer Kay) [related] [related]
Native Americans, Scientists To Discuss Climate Change at Landmark Symposium
Leading representatives from indigenous and scientific communities will take part in a landmark climate change symposium at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder. The March 19-21 event will bring together two climate change perspectives--one rooted in indigenous experiences and one informed by current scientific results. (Speaker: Caspar Ammann)
Natural Ocean "Thermostat" May Protect Some Coral Reefs
Natural processes may prevent oceans from warming beyond a certain point, helping protect some coral reefs from the impacts of climate change, new research finds. The study, by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS), finds evidence that an ocean "thermostat" appears to be helping to regulate sea-surface temperatures in a biologically diverse region of the western Pacific. (co-author: Gokhan Danabasoglu)
NCAR Scientists to Present Latest Findings on Climate Change, Weather at New Orleans Meeting
As the city of New Orleans struggles to rebuild from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, researchers are learning more about weather and climate and their impacts on society. Scientists from the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and many other institutions will converge in New Orleans next week to present their latest findings at the annual meeting of the American Meteorological Society. (Gerald Meehl: Climate shift; Hongmei Li: Monsoon changes; Aiguo Dai: Worldwide runoff)
Scientists to Preview New Climate Change Research at AGU
Several climate scientists from the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) will discuss preliminary research findings at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union (AGU). (Haiyan Teng: Present & Future Climate; David Lawrence: Permafrost; Jennifer Kay: Arctic cloud parameterizations; Philip Rasch: Cloud Seeding)
NCAR Scientists and Technical Staff Share in Nobel Peace Prize with IPCC Colleagues Around the World
More than three dozen scientists and support staff at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) served as authors or reviewers for reports by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and several have played leadership roles. The IPCC was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize today with former Vice President Al Gore.
Tip Sheet: Scientists Available to Discuss Floods, Droughts
Tip Sheet: Explaining Hurricane Behavior, Impacts, and Possible Links to Global Warming
Scientists Close in on Missing Carbon Sink; Northern Forests Less Effective Than Expected in Reducing Global Warming
The Science article, "Weak northern and strong tropical land carbon uptake from vertical profiles of atmospheric CO2," was written by an international team of scientists led by Britton Stephens of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR).
Arctic Ice Retreating More Quickly Than Computer Models Project
The study, "Arctic Sea Ice Decline: Faster Than Forecast?" will appear tomorrow in the online edition of Geophysical Research Letters.
"While the ice is disappearing faster than the computer models indicate, both observations and the models point in the same direction: the Arctic is losing ice at an increasingly rapid pace and the impact of greenhouse gases is growing," says NCAR scientist Marika Holland, one of the study’s co-authors.
NCAR Scientists Available to Discuss New IPCC Report on the Physical Science of Climate Change
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) will release its new assessment report in Paris on February 2. Several scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) are major contributors to the report by serving as coordinating lead authors or lead authors or by reviewing drafts of the document.
Media Advisory: New Glossary, Experts Available to Explain El Niño, NAO, and Other Patterns that Influence the Weather
NCAR researchers listed below are available to help put unusual weather and persistent patterns in context. In addition, this advisory ends with a summary of NCAR's online resources for journalists.
Abrupt Ice Restreat Could Produce Ice-Free Arctic Summers by 2040
The recent retreat of Arctic sea ice is likely to accelerate so rapidly that the Arctic Ocean could become nearly devoid of ice during summertime as early as 2040, according to new research published in the December 12 issue of Geophysical Research Letters.
Expect a Warmer, Wetter World this Century, Computer Models Agree
The new study, "Going to the Extremes," will appear in the December issue of the journal Climatic Change.
Stratospheric Injections Could Help Cool Earth, Computer Model Shows
A two-pronged approach to stabilizing climate, with cuts in greenhouse gas emissions as well as injections of climate-cooling sulfates, could prove more effective than either approach used separately. This is the finding of a new study by Tom Wigley of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), published in the September 14 issue of Science.
Changes in Solar Brightness Too Weak to Explain Global Warming
Changes in the Sun's brightness over the past millennium have had only a small effect on Earth's climate, according to a review of existing results and new calculations performed by researchers in the United States, Switzerland, and Germany.
The review, led by Peter Foukal (Heliophysics, Inc.), appears in the September 14 issue of Nature. Among the coauthors is Tom Wigley of the National Center for Atmospheric Research. NCAR’s primary sponsor is the National Science Foundation.
Human Activities Are Boosting ocean Temperatures in Areas Where Hurricanes Form, New Study Finds
Rising ocean temperatures in key hurricane breeding grounds of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans are due primarily to human-caused increases in greenhouse gas concentrations, according to a study published online in the September 11 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)