Tag: NOAA

Critical solar observations from NSF’s GONG network now maintained by NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center

sarah JonasAnnouncement

Recently, NSF’s NSO successfully transitioned the processing of these important observations of the Sun’s magnetic field and lower atmosphere to the operational control of NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC), a move that will ensure reliable delivery of the data to the NOAA’s space weather forecasters who are the nation’s official civilian source for space weather watches, warnings, alerts, and forecasts.

CSU Researchers Award $1.1 Million in Sea-Level Rise Research Funding to Assist California

sarah JonasAnnouncement

Three research projects studying sea-level rise received a total of $1.1 million in funding from California State University Council on Ocean Affairs, Science and Technology (COAST) and California Sea Grant. The grant supports 11 researchers and 20 students from six CSU campuses.

Gulf of Mexico Alliance Announces New Gulf Star Projects

sarah JonasAnnouncement

The Gulf of Mexico Alliance is pleased to share several new projects as part of its ongoing Gulf Star Program. This year’s projects focus on supporting coastal resilience, underrepresented and underserved communities, citizen science water and marine debris monitoring, living shorelines, wildlife conservation, and regional data sharing.

‘Hail to the Queen’ – Saving the Caribbean Queen Conch

sarah JonasResearch Results

Second only to the spiny lobster, the queen conch is a prized delicacy long harvested for food and is revered for its beautiful shell. Conch populations have dwindled so low, creating a dire and urgent situation in ecological and economic terms. To preserve this most significant molluscan fishery in the Caribbean, the world’s leading expert on queen conch aquaculture has published an 80-page, step-by-step user manual that provides complete illustrations and photos of how to culture and restore the queen conch.

Planning Ahead Protects Fish and Fisheries

sarah JonasResearch Results

Conservation of fish and other marine life migrating from warming ocean waters will be more effective and also protect commercial fisheries if plans are made now to cope with climate change, according to a Rutgers-led study in the journal Science Advances.

UCI, others see agriculture as major source of increase in atmospheric nitrous oxide

sarah JonasResearch Results

Irvine, Calif., Oct. 8, 2020­ – An international team of researchers – including Earth system scientists at the University of California, Irvine – recently completed the most thorough review yet of nitrous oxide from emission to destruction in the planet’s atmosphere. In addition to confirming that the 20 percent increase in the amount of the greenhouse gas since the start of the Industrial Revolution can be totally attributed to humans, the team expressed doubt about the ability to reduce emissions or mitigate their future impacts.

Gulf of Mexico Mission: ‘Ocean Blue Holes Are Not Created Equal’

sarah JonasFeature

Scientists recently got a unique glimpse into the “Green Banana” Blue Hole thanks to gutsy divers and a 500-pound autonomous, benthic lander. Together with hand-picked, elite scuba divers, the research team is unraveling the structure and behavior of these marine environments by examining geochemistry, hydrodynamics, and biology. Findings from this exploration also may have important implications for phytoplankton in the Gulf of Mexico, including blooms of the Florida Red-tide species Karenia brevis.

UAH gets $600,000 to create more accurate analysis of soil moisture

sarah JonasAnnouncement

A $600,000 grant to create a more accurate analysis of soil moisture for drought depiction, agricultural assessments and flood potential has been awarded to the interim dean of the College of Science at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Rutgers-Led Project Will Buy 76,000 Oysters From Farmers Struggling During COVID-19 Pandemic

sarah JonasExpert Pitch

New Brunswick, N.J. (Sept. 10, 2020) – A Rutgers-led project will buy 76,000 oysters from New Jersey oyster farmers who are struggling to sell the shellfish following the shutdown of restaurants and indoor dining as a result of the COVID-19…

BGSU’s Davis named to global steering committee for harmful algal blooms

sarah JonasFeature Expert

Dr. Timothy Davis, the Patrick L. & Debra (Scheetz) Ryan Endowed Professor at BGSU, was one of nine international researchers recently named to the Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) for GlobalHAB, an international program that is jointly sponsored by the Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research (SCOR) and Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO.

Novel Measurement and Forecasting Systems Make ‘Weathering the Storm’ More Precise

sarah JonasFeature

In the last several decades, more than half of the deaths associated with tropical cyclones in the U.S. were due to inland flooding. Unfortunately, current forecasting capabilities are limited. Researchers are developing a warning system for more accurate and timely detection and forecasting of inland and coastal floods, under a variety of precipitation regimes. The technology will enable local and state governments to more effectively plan and respond to tropical storms.

Mangrove Trees Won’t Survive Sea-Level Rise by 2050 if Emissions Aren’t Cut

sarah JonasResearch Results

Mangrove trees – valuable coastal ecosystems found in Florida and other warm climates – won’t survive sea-level rise by 2050 if greenhouse gas emissions aren’t reduced, according to a Rutgers co-authored study in the journal Science. Mangrove forests store large amounts of carbon, help protect coastlines and provide habitat for fish and other species. Using sediment data from the last 10,000 years, an international team led by Macquarie University in Australia estimated the chances of mangrove survival based on rates of sea-level rise.

Plasma science report co-chaired by UAH astrophysicist urges better federal agency coordination

sarah JonasFeature

Federal agencies should better coordinate their activities in plasma science and engineering (PSE) and jointly support new funding opportunities that take advantage of PSE’s overlaps with different science disciplines, according to a decadal report by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS).

Rutgers Experts Can Discuss 2020 Hurricane Season Outlook in N.J.

sarah JonasExpert Pitch

New Brunswick, N.J. (May 19, 2020) – Rutgers University–New Brunswick experts are available for interviews on the 2020 hurricane season outlook in New Jersey, the Garden State’s vulnerability to hurricanes and tropical storms, and the state’s tropical cyclone history. Hurricane…

Climate Change Could Threaten Sea Snails in Mid-Atlantic Waters

sarah JonasResearch Results

Climate change could threaten the survival and development of common whelk – a type of sea snail – in the mid-Atlantic region, according to a study led by scientists at Rutgers University–New Brunswick. The common, or waved, whelk (Buccinum undatum) is an important commercial species that has been harvested for decades in Europe and Canada for bait and human consumption. Its habitat within the mid-Atlantic region is one of the Earth’s fastest warming marine areas and annual fluctuations in the bottom temperature are among the most extreme on the planet due to unique oceanographic conditions.

Simulations Show Effects of Buoyancy on Drift in Florida Current

sarah JonasResearch Results

Acquiring a better understanding for how objects drift in the ocean has importance for many uses, but most models lack a systematic approach. One new effort looks to provide a clearer alternative. Researchers have released the results from an experiment aimed at tracking different objects as they drift in the Florida Current. Using satellite data, the group developed a new model for how objects drift. They discuss their work in this week’s Physics of Fluids.

Supercomputer Models Improve Oregon/Washington Coastal Forecasts

sarah JonasResearch Results

Researchers at Oregon State University have been using the Comet supercomputer at the San Diego Supercomputer Center to test an algorithm that they believe will reduce errors in the widely used three-day forecasts for water temperature, salinity levels, sea heights, and currents off the coasts of Oregon and Washington.

Volunteers and Deep Computer Learning Help Expand Red Tide Warning Systems

sarah JonasResearch Results

A new study published in the peer-review journal PLoS ONE shows that citizen science volunteers using a relatively low-cost tool can help increase the size and accuracy of a red tide monitoring network to better protect public health from the impacts of toxic algae in the Gulf of Mexico.