Weekly Report for the Week Ending February 6, 2009
Print 
GSFC Laboratory for Atmospheres, Code 613
Noteworthy science achievements/awards
- A NASA-led Synthesis and Assessment Product (SAP) titled "Atmospheric Aerosol Properties and Climate Impacts" was issued by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program on Friday, January 16. This product is the latest in a series of Climate Change Science Program reports that addresses various aspects of the country's highest priority climate research, observation and decision-support needs. The study's authors include scientists from NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Department of Energy. Mian Chin (GSFC, Code 613.3) is the report's coordinating lead author, and Ralph Kahn (GSFC, Code 613.2), Lorraine Remer (GSFC, Code 613.2), Hongbin Yu (GSFC, Code 613.2), and David Rind (GISS) are the lead authors for individual chapters in the report. The press release can be found at http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2009/jan/HQ_09-009_Aerosols_report.html, and the entire report is available at http://www.climatescience.gov/Library/sap/sap2-3/default.php
Noteworthy personnel awards and staff changes
- Bo-Wen Shen (613.1/UMCP) was the runner-up in the most readable poster category for "Hurricane Forecasts with a Global Mesoscale Model on the NASA Columbia Supercomputer" at the second Science Exploration Directorate New Year’s Poster Party Blowout on January 21 at the Building 28 Atrium. Co-authors include Wei-Kuo Tao (613.1).
Projects/missions
- A system requirements review (SRR) was held for the proposed Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) Thermal Infra-Red Sensor (TIRS) on Monday and Tuesday, February 02 – 03 in Building 26, Room 205.
Significant planned events
Proposals
Highlights of inter-Directorate teaming
External interactions (HQ, universities, other Gov't organizations, etc.)
- Robert Cahalan (613.2) attended a kickoff meeting for TSIS (Total and Spectral Solar Irradiance Sensor) in Boulder, CO, January 27-28, 2009.
- Charles Ichoku (613.2) attended a GLOBE Climate Change Research & Education Meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, January 29-30, 2009.
- Ralph Kahn (613.2) attended the ARCTAS Data Workshop, Virginia Beach, VA, January 26-30, 2009.
- C. Jackman (Code 613.3) and M. DeLand (SSAI / 613.3) attended the Ground Level Enhancement (GLE) Coordinated Data Analysis Workshop (CDAW), held at the Lockheed Martin facility in Palo Alto, CA, from Jan. 6-9, 2009. GLEs are measurements of significant increases in the count rates of ground-level neutron monitors due to extremely high energy solar particles, which occur as a result of very large solar explosions. N. Gopalswamy, Code 695, was one of the two primary organizers of the workshop, which was attended by about 25 scientists.
Accepted papers
- Prigarin, S. and A. Marshak (613.2), 2009. A simple stochastic model for generating broken cloud optical depth and cloud top height fields. J. Atmos. Sci., 66, 92-104. [Published]
- Wang, J* (613.2 GEST Visiting Fellow in 2008)., S. C. van den Heever, and J. Reid, A conceptual model for the link between Central American biomass burning aerosols and severe weather over the south central United States, "Aerosol and Precipitation" special issue, Environ. Res. Lett. 4, 015003, doi:10.1088/1748-9326/4/1/015003, 2009. [Published]
- S. E. Strahan (UMBC/613.3), M. R. Schoeberl (610.0), and S. D. Steenrod (UMBC/613.3), 2009: The impact of tropical recirculation on polar composition, Atmos. Chem. Phys Disc., 9, 1097-1121.
Noteworthy talks/presentations
- Jérôme Riedi: Laboratoire d’Optique Atmospherique, Lille, "Using clouds to observe aerosols", Code 613.2 Branch Seminar Series, January 21, 2009.
- Robert Cahalan (613.2) presented an overview of climate change at Harper’s Ferry Mather Training Center of the National Park Service, for the workshop “Earth to Sky 3: Interpreting Climate Change,” January 26, 2009.
Major events in the coming week
Issues and Concerns
Status of any major actions
Print-friendly
page
(new window)
