NSF: Natural regeneration of tropical forests helps global climate mitigation and forest restoration.- La regeneración natural de los bosques tropicales ayuda a mitigar el cambio climático global y la restauración de los bosques

Hola amigos: A VUELO DE UN QUINDE EL BLOG., la Fundación Nacional de Ciencias de Los Estados Unidos, nos alcanza la información que hay una regeneración natural de bosques tropicales en América Latina, que de alguna manera ayudan a mitigar el cambio climático global.

More information..........

http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=138510&WT.mc_id=USNSF_51&WT.mc_ev=click

New study looks at 43 regions in Latin America

Small patches of tropical dry forest are regrowing spontaneously in a former pastureland. Credit and Larger Version

May 13, 2016

This article is the ninth in a series on NSF's Long Term Research in Environmental Biology (LTREB) awards. Visit parts one, two, three, four, five, six , seven and eight.

Climate scientists have long recognized the importance of forest conservation and forest regrowth in climate mitigation and carbon sequestration -- capturing carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the atmosphere. But the detailed information required to make accurate estimates of this potential has remained elusive.

Now, an international team of 60 scientists, working together as the 2ndFOR Network, has completed studies on the effects of forest conservation and secondary forest regeneration across 43 regions in Latin America.

In an article titled "Carbon sequestration potential of second-growth forest regeneration in the Latin American tropics," published today in the journal Science Advances, University of Connecticut ecologist and evolutionary biologist Robin Chazdon and her colleagues report a series of new findings.

 

Long-term studies

 

"This study uses knowledge gained from long-term studies of tropical forests to address a pressing societal need," says Saran Twombly, program director in the National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Environmental Biology, which funded the research through NSF's Long Term Research in Environmental Biology, and Dynamics of Coupled Natural and Human Systems, programs. "It shows that natural processes alone can provide a solution to the excess carbon dioxide threatening the planet."

The studies aimed to model the areas covered by regrowth forests across the lowlands of the Latin American Tropics in two age classes; to project potential above-ground carbon storage in these young forests over four decades; and to illustrate alternative scenarios for carbon storage where 0-80 percent of these forests are allowed to regenerate.

Chazdon says that "this research is vital because actively growing vegetation takes carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and converts it to plant tissues such as wood and leaves. Old-growth forests contain large stocks of carbon in their biomass. When these forests are cleared and burned, this carbon is released into the atmosphere, contributing to global warming. This is one of the main reasons why it is important to halt deforestation."

But scientists have also learned that when forests regrow, their carbon stocks in above-ground biomass increase over time, depending on climate, prior land use and features of the surrounding landscape.

"This regrowth can happen without planting trees, through the spontaneous process of natural regeneration," says Chazdon. "This is a low-cost way of restoring forests and of reaching carbon mitigation goals."

Major findings

Among the major findings of the study are:

• Models of forest age in 2008 show that 17 percent of the forest area in lowland Latin America consists of young second-growth forest (1-20 years) and 11 percent consists of intermediate age forest (20-60 years).
  
• Assuming that 100 percent of the second growth persists and regenerates over 40 years, carbon storage capacity doubles in young second growth and increases by 120 percent in intermediate age forests. In both forest age classes, a net gain of 8.48 trillion kilograms of carbon is stored over 40 years.
  
• This amount is equivalent to 31.09 trillion kilograms of CO₂, which equals all the carbon emissions from fossil fuel use and other industrial processes in all the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean from 1993 to 2014.
  
• Ten countries account for 95 percent of this carbon storage potential, led by Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela and Mexico.

Forest-based climate change solutions

Chazdon says that, remarkably, this huge amount of carbon storage doesn't require costly tree plantings or conversion of farmlands. "It is all based on natural forest regrowth and only requires persistence and protection of the young forests and abandoned agricultural fields."

Forest-based solutions provide many other benefits, including hydrologic regulation, habitats and corridors for conserving biodiversity, and provision of non-timber forest products to local people, Chazdon says.

Prior carbon storage efforts have placed emphasis on avoiding deforestation. But, Chazdon says, "avoiding deforestation and supporting forest regeneration are complementary and mutually reinforcing activities."

While forest regeneration and protection alone cannot fully compensate for greenhouse gas emissions on a global scale, researchers say the study affirms that this strategy can contribute significantly toward reaching national and international carbon mitigation targets.

-NSF-

Media Contacts Cheryl Dybas, NSF, (703) 292-7734,cdybas@nsf.gov
Sheila Foran, UCONN, (860) 486-5385,

sheila.foran@uconn.edu

Related WebsitesNSF Grant: LTREB: Successional Pathways and Rates of Change in Tropical Forests of Brazil, Costa Rica and Mexico:

 http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1147429&HistoricalAwards=false
NSF Grant: CNH: The Emergence of Adaptive Governance Arrangements for Tropical Forest Ecosystems:

 http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1114984&HistoricalAwards=false

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering. In fiscal year (FY) 2016, its budget is $7.5 billion. NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 colleges, universities and other institutions. Each year, NSF receives more than 48,000 competitive proposals for funding and makes about 12,000 new funding awards. NSF also awards about $626 million in professional and service contracts yearly.

 Get News Updates by Email 

Useful NSF Web Sites:
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 http://www.nsf.gov
NSF News:
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 http://www.nsf.gov/news/newsroom.jsp
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Pasture with young second-growth forest in the background in Chiapas, Mexico.
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An 18-year-old second-growth wet tropical forest in Costa Rica that was once a pasture.
Credit and Larger Version

Extensive natural regeneration of Atlantic rainforest at Rio Cachoiera Nature Reserve in Brazil.
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Old-growth Atlantic rainforest in background with second-growth in foreground in Bahia, Brazil.
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The National Science Foundation (NSF)
Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui
ayabaca@gmail.com
ayabaca@hotmail.com
ayabaca@yahoo.com
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NSF: Earth Week: In a drought, which trees risk death? .- Semana de la Tierra: En una sequía, que la muerte árboles es un riesgo?

Hola amigos: A VUELO DE UN QUINDE EL BLOG., La sequía dejó 225 millones de árboles muertos en el suroeste de EE.UU. en 2002. Nueve años más tarde, que mató a 300 millones de árboles en Texas. El año pasado, 12 millones de árboles murieron en California.
En todo el mundo, un gran número de árboles se están muriendo en el calor extremo y la sequía. Tales matanzas colectivas pueden tener consecuencias importantes para el futuro de los bosques y el clima de la Tierra. En la Semana de la Tierra, los científicos están tratando de entender cómo el calentamiento global podría afectar la frecuencia ocurren los eventos de mortalidad de árboles - y qué tan grave que podría llegar a ser.
Una Universidad de Utah,un biólogo puede ser capaz de ayudar. William Anderegg y sus colegas buscaron patrones en los estudios previos de mortalidad de los árboles y encontraron algunos rasgos comunes que caracterizan las que vivía especies y que murió durante la sequía. Los resultados, publicados hoy en la revista Proceedings de la Academia Nacional de Ciencias (PNAS), pueden ayudar a trazar el futuro de los bosques.

More information.............

http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=138226&WT.mc_id=USNSF_51&WT.mc_ev=click

Study identifies tree traits that contribute to drought vulnerability

Ponderosa pine on Grand Canyon rim falling over from a drought attack. Credit and Larger Version

April 18, 2016

Drought left 225 million trees dead in the U.S. Southwest in 2002. Nine years later, it killed 300 million trees in Texas. This past year, 12 million trees died in California.

Throughout the world, large numbers of trees are dying in extreme heat and drought. Such mass die-offs can have critical consequences for the future of forests and Earth's climate. On Earth Week, scientists are trying to understand how a warming climate could affect how often tree mortality events occur -- and how severe they could become.

A University of Utah biologist may be able to help. William Anderegg and his colleagues looked for patterns in previous studies of tree mortality and found some common traits that characterized which species lived and which died during drought. The results, published today in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), can help chart the future of forests.

"There are some common threads that we might be able to use to predict which species are going to be more vulnerable in the future," Anderegg says.

 

Forests in crisis

 

"With drought projected to increase, predicting tree death is imperative to understanding changes in Earth's forests," says Liz Blood, program director in the National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Environmental Biology, which funded the research. "This study offers important new insights into how and why trees die from drought, and which trees are at greatest risk."

Worldwide, forests absorb the equivalent of about one-quarter of the carbon dioxide emissions humans produce. So large-scale tree die-offs not only shut down a forest's ability to sequester greenhouse gases but also release some of those gases back into the atmosphere as dead trees decompose.

In climate models, scientists have had difficulty accounting for these changes in carbon dioxide storage. The effect of drought on various species' mortality rates has been difficult to predict. "That launched this search to understand what about a tree's physiology predisposes it to die during a severe drought," Anderegg says.

The researchers combed through 33 published studies of tree mortality that included 475 tree species and more than 760,000 individual trees. The team noted mortality rates for each species, then compared those to 10 tree physiological traits, searching for commonalities.

The traits included typical tree characteristics such as wood density, rooting depth and basic leaf characteristics, and whether the species was evergreen or deciduous. Other traits concerned the hydraulics of how water moves through trees.

 

Tree 'heart attack'

 

The researchers found only three traits that significantly predicted tree drought mortality, all of which related to hydraulics.

Roots take in water, which is pumped throughout the tree to hydrate leaves and support photosynthesis. In times of plenty, water moves easily through the tree. But when temperatures increase, evaporation from leaves drives higher water demand.

At the same time, if drought makes water harder to come by, the tree's roots have to pull harder to draw scant moisture from the soil. Tension builds in the tree's "pipes" as they work harder and harder to move water, like a person trying to suck a thick smoothie through a small straw.

At a certain point, tension on the "pipes" becomes so great that bubbles of air enter them and block water flow. The result is called an embolism.

"It's a little bit akin to a tree heart attack," Anderegg says. "You can actually hear this on a hot summer day if you stick a microphone up to a tree -- you can hear little pings and pops as these pipes get filled with air." Blocked pipes lead to tree death.

The three traits Anderegg found that significantly affected tree mortality were:

• The point at which a tree loses 50 percent of its hydraulic conductivity due to embolism.
• The point at which a tree loses 88 percent of total hydraulic conductivity.
• The hydraulic safety margin, the range between the tension of water the tree allows during dry conditions and the tension that causes hydraulic dysfunction.

Other traits did not affect tree mortality nearly as much as these characteristics. Anderegg says trees accustomed to plentiful water, such as trembling aspens, are more susceptible than junipers, which are better adapted to dry conditions.

 

Signs of climate change

 

The next step is to incorporate these traits into climate models and forest models to help public and private land managers forecast which trees might be most susceptible to drought.

Anderegg says that recent tree-killing droughts in the western U.S. were marked more by elevated temperature -- a sign of a warming world -- than by a lack of rainfall.

"These widespread tree die-offs are a really early and visible sign of climate change already affecting our landscapes," he says.

-NSF-

Media Contacts Cheryl Dybas, NSF, (703) 292-7734, cdybas@nsf.gov
Paul Gabrielsen, University of Utah, (801) 585-6861, paul.gabrielsen@utah.edu

Related WebsitesNSF Grant: Extreme Events and Ecological Acclimation: Scaling from Cells to Ecosystems: http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1340270&HistoricalAwards=false

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering. In fiscal year (FY) 2016, its budget is $7.5 billion. NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 colleges, universities and other institutions. Each year, NSF receives more than 48,000 competitive proposals for funding and makes about 12,000 new funding awards. NSF also awards about $626 million in professional and service contracts yearly.

 Get News Updates by Email 
Useful NSF Web Sites:
NSF Home Page:
http://www.nsf.gov
NSF News:
http://www.nsf.gov/news/
For the News Media:
http://www.nsf.gov/news/newsroom.jsp
Science and Engineering Statistics:
http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/
Awards Searches:
http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/

Dead oak trees line a forest near Mancos, Colorado.
Credit and Larger Version

These trembling aspen trees near Fairplay, Colorado, were killed by severe drought.
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Drought stress felled these trembling aspens near Flagstaff, Arizona.
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Dead trees from recent droughts in the San Juan National Forest near Mancos, Colorado.
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Drought near Grand Junction, Colorado, resulted in the deaths of many trembling aspens.
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The National Science Foundation (NSF)
Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui
ayabaca@gmail.om
ayabaca@hotmail.com
ayabaca@yahoo.com
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NSF: Increasing drought threatens almost all U.S. forests .- El aumento de la sequía amenaza a casi todos los bosques de Estados Unidos

Hola amigos: A VUELO DE UN QUINDE EL BLOG., hemos recibido información de la Fundación Nacional de Ciencias de Los Estados Unidos, nos dice: "Bosques en todo el país están sintiendo el calor de la creciente sequía y el cambio climático, según un nuevo estudio realizado por científicos de 14 instituciones de investigación.
"En las últimas dos décadas, las temperaturas más cálidas y precipitaciones variables han aumentado la severidad de las sequías forestales en gran parte del territorio continental de Estados Unidos", dijo James Clark, autor principal del estudio y científico ambiental en la Universidad de Duke.
Clark y sus colegas publicaron su trabajo en la revista Global Change Biology.
"Mientras que los efectos han sido más pronunciada en Occidente, nuestro análisis muestra virtualmente que todos los bosques de Estados Unidos están experimentando cambios y son vulnerables a futuras caídas", dijo Clark.
Es una tarea difícil predecir lo que estos bosques se verá como en 20 años, según los investigadores.

More information....

http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=136815&WT.mc_id=USNSF_51&WT.mc_ev=click

 

Forests nationwide feeling the heat

Drought has left little but skeleton trees in a forest of pinons in the U.S. Southwest. Credit and Larger Version

February 22, 2016

Forests nationwide are feeling the heat from increasing drought and climate change, according to a new study by scientists from 14 research institutions.

"Over the last two decades, warming temperatures and variable precipitation have increased the severity of forest droughts across much of the continental United States," said James Clark, lead author of the study and an environmental scientist at Duke University.

Clark and colleagues published their paper today in the journal Global Change Biology.

"While the effects have been most pronounced in the West, our analysis shows virtually that all U.S. forests are now experiencing change and are vulnerable to future declines," Clark said.

It's a tall order to predict what these forests will look like in 20 years, the researchers say.

 

Drought across the U.S. West

 

Drought-induced forest diebacks (the deaths of entire communities of trees known as stands), bark beetle infestations, and wildfires are already occurring on large scales across the West. Many models predict droughts are likely to become more severe, frequent and prolonged across much of the U.S.

Evidence is also mounting that climate is changing faster than tree populations can respond.

As conditions become drier and warmer, many tree populations, especially those in Eastern forests, may not be able to expand into new, more favorable habitats, fast enough to keep up.

"Most forest research is carried out at local study sites, where trees are individually catalogued and measured," said Henry Gholz, a program director in the Division of Environmental Biology at the National Science Foundation (NSF), which supported the research. "This approach risks 'missing the forest for the trees.'"

The new results show that changes in both western and eastern U.S. forests could happen quickly under drier conditions in the future, said Gholz.

"Prolonged drought affects wildfire risks, species distribution, forest biodiversity and productivity, and virtually all goods and services provided by forests," Clark said, "so there is a pressing need to know what is happening now, what might happen in the future, and how we can manage for these changes."

 

Forests and drought, from A to Z

 

The new paper addresses this need by providing a comprehensive overview of current and projected drought effects on forests nationwide, how they vary by region, and which management practices could help to partially mitigate adverse effects.

The paper also identifies critical gaps in our knowledge base that hinder scientists' ability to predict the pace and extent of future drought effects on forests.

"We currently have a pretty good handle on predicting the impacts of climate change and drought on individual trees," Clark said. "Ecologists have identified many of the important differences between species that explain how they respond differently to drought."

But, he said, uncertainty still exists about what might happen at the species-wide or stand-wide levels, particularly in Eastern forests. "These are the scales where we really need reliable predictions so forest managers can take steps now to help reduce large-scale adverse future effects." 

Without a stronger basis for understanding how the complex interactions among trees, species and environmental conditions work at broader scales, even the most sophisticated current models can provide only limited guidance, Clark said. "That's where we need to focus our efforts now."

Major co-authors of the paper are Louis Iverson and Christopher W. Woodall of the U.S. Forest Service, as well as scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey, the University of Vermont, the University of California (UC), Santa Barbara, Sarah Lawrence College, the University of Michigan, the University of Arizona, Ohio State University, Harvard Forest, UC Davis, Northern Arizona University and the Swiss Federal Research Institute.

-NSF-

Media Contacts Cheryl Dybas, NSF, (703) 292-7734, cdybas@nsf.gov
Tim Lucas, Duke University, (919) 613-8084, tdlucas@duke.edu

Related WebsitesNSF News: Cause of California drought linked to climate change: https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=132709
NSF News: Drought, heat likely to affect U.S. West's power grid: http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=135021
NSF Discovery: Earth Week: Bark beetles change Rocky Mountain stream flows, affect water quality:
http://nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=130951
NSF Discovery: Ghosts of Forests Past: Bark Beetles Kill Lodgepole Pines, Affecting Entire Watersheds:
 http://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=128398
NSF Discovery: Born during a drought: Bad news for baboons: http://nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=134000&org=NSF

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering. In fiscal year (FY) 2016, its budget is $7.5 billion. NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 colleges, universities and other institutions. Each year, NSF receives more than 48,000 competitive proposals for funding and makes about 12,000 new funding awards. NSF also awards about $626 million in professional and service contracts yearly.

 Get News Updates by Email 
Useful NSF Web Sites:
NSF Home Page:
 http://www.nsf.gov
NSF News:
http://www.nsf.gov/news/
For the News Media:
 http://www.nsf.gov/news/newsroom.jsp
Science and Engineering Statistics:
http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/
Awards Searches: http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/

Wildfires, with flames fanned by drought, are happening on large scales across the U.S. West.
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Dying ponderosa pines cover a hillslope during the third year of a warm drought in California.
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Symptoms of drought are appearing across the country, such as "leaf scorch" on this linden tree.
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Bark beetles have moved in and killed large swaths of forests in the wake of drought.
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Many tree species may not be able to expand into more favorable habitats fast enough.
Credit and Larger Version
The National Science Foundation (NSF)
Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui
ayabaca@gmail.com
ayabaca@hotmail.com
ayabaca@yahoo.com
Inscríbete en el Foro del blog y participa : A Vuelo De Un Quinde - El Foro!

NASA : Study Shows Climate Change Rapidly Warming World’s Lakes.- Un estudio muestra que el cambio climático rápido calentamiento Lagos del mundo

Hola amigos: A VUELO DE UN QUINDE EL BLOG., El uso de más de 25 años de datos de temperatura por satélite y las mediciones de tierra de 235 lagos en seis continentes, este estudio - la más grande de su tipo - Se encuentra lagos están calentando un promedio de 0,61 grados Fahrenheit (0.34 grados Celsius) cada década. Los científicos dicen que es mayor que la tasa de calentamiento de cualquiera de los océanos o la atmósfera, y puede tener efectos profundos.

More information.....

http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/study-shows-climate-change-rapidly-warming-world-s-lakes

A combination of satellite data and ground measurements, such as from instrumented buoys like this one in Lake Tahoe on the California/Nevada border, were used to provide a comprehensive view of changing lake temperatures worldwide. The buoy measures the water temperature from above and below.

Credits: Limnotech

 

Climate change is rapidly warming lakes around the world, threatening freshwater supplies and ecosystems, according to a new NASA and National Science Foundation-funded study of more than half of the world’s freshwater supply.

This image of Lake Tahoe, from the ASTER instrument on Terra, shows the lake’s temperature variations (cold is blue, warm is red).

Credits: NASA

 

Using more than 25 years of satellite temperature data and ground measurements of 235 lakes on six continents, this study -- the largest of its kind -- found lakes are warming an average of 0.61 degrees Fahrenheit (0.34 degrees Celsius) each decade. The scientists say this is greater than the warming rate of either the ocean or the atmosphere, and it can have profound effects.

The research, published in Geophysical Research Letters, was announced Wednesday at the American Geophysical Union meeting in San Francisco.

As warming rates increase over the next century, algal blooms, which can rob water of oxygen, are projected to increase 20 percent in lakes. Algal blooms that are toxic to fish and animals are expected to increase by 5 percent. Emissions of methane, a greenhouse gas 25 times more powerful than carbon dioxide on 100-year time scales, will increase 4 percent over the next decade, if these rates continue.

“Society depends on surface water for the vast majority of human uses,” said co-author Stephanie Hampton, director of Washington State University’s Center for Environmental Research, Education and Outreach in Pullman. “Not just for drinking water, but manufacturing, for energy production, for irrigation of our crops. Protein from freshwater fish is especially important in the developing world.”

Water temperature influences a host of its other properties critical to the health and viability of ecosystems. When temperatures swing quickly and widely from the norm, life forms in a lake can change dramatically and even disappear.

“These results suggest that large changes in our lakes are not only unavoidable, but are probably already happening,” said lead author Catherine O'Reilly, associate professor of geology at Illinois State University, Normal. Earlier research by O’Reilly has seen declining productivity in lakes with rising temperatures.

Study co-author Simon Hook, science division manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, said satellite measurements provide a broad view of lake temperatures over the entire globe. But they only measure surface temperature, while ground measurements can detect temperature changes throughout a lake. Also, while satellite measurements go back 30 years, some lake measurements go back more than a century.

Global changes in lake temperatures over the past 25 years. Red shades indicate warming; blue shades indicate cooling. The study found Earth’s lakes are warming about 0.61 degrees Fahrenheit (0.34 degrees Celsius) per decade on average, faster than overall warming rates for the ocean and atmosphere.

Credits: Illinois State University/USGS/California University of Pennsylvania

 

“Combining the ground and satellite measurements provides the most comprehensive view of how lake temperatures are changing around the world,” he said.

The researchers said various climate factors are associated with the warming trend. In northern climates, lakes are losing their ice cover earlier in the spring and many areas of the world have less cloud cover, exposing their waters more to the sun’s warming rays.

Previous work by Hook, using satellite data, indicated many lake temperatures were warming faster than air temperature and that the greatest warming was observed at high latitudes, as seen in other climate warming studies. This new research confirmed those observations, with average warming rates of 1.3 degrees Fahrenheit (0.72 degrees Celsius) per decade at high latitudes.

Warm-water tropical lakes may be seeing less dramatic temperature increases, but increased warming of these lakes still can have significant negative impacts on fish. That can be particularly important in the African Great Lakes, where fish are a major source of food.

“We want to be careful that we don’t dismiss some of these lower rates of change,” said Hampton. “In warmer lakes, those temperature changes can be really important. They can be just as important as a higher rate of change in a cooler lake.”

In general, the researchers write, “The pervasive and rapid warming observed here signals the urgent need to incorporate climate impacts into vulnerability assessments and adaptation efforts for lakes.”

NASA uses the vantage point of space to increase our understanding of our home planet, improve lives and safeguard our future. NASA develops new ways to observe and study Earth's interconnected natural systems with long-term data records. The agency freely shares this unique knowledge and works with institutions around the world to gain new insights into how our planet is changing.

For more information about NASA's Earth science activities, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/earth

-end-

Steve Cole
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0918
stephen.e.cole@nasa.gov

Alan Buis
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-0474
alan.buis@jpl.nasa.gov

Eric Sorensen
Washington State University, Pullman
509-335-4846
eric.sorensen@wsu.edu

Last Updated: Dec. 16, 2015

Editor: Sarah Ramsey

Tags:  Earth, Water,

NASA

Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui

ayabaca@gmail.com

ayabaca@hotmail.com

ayabaca@yahoo.com

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NASA : NASA to Fly, Sail North to Study Plankton-Climate Change Connection .- NASA volará, Vela del Norte para estudiar la conexión del cambio climático y el Plancton........

Hola amigos: A VUELO DE UN QUINDE EL BLOG., NASA comienza un estudio de cinco años este mes del ciclo anual del fitoplancton y el impacto que las pequeñas partículas en el aire emitidas por el océano tienen sobre el Atlántico Norte sensibles al clima.
The agency's North Atlantic Aerosols and Marine Ecosystems Study (NAAMES);  recogerá datos durante las campañas de medición de los buques y aeronaves y combinar esos datos con lecturas de satélites y sensores océano continuas. La primera de las cuatro misiones de investigación de temporada comienza 06 de noviembre y continúa hasta principios de diciembre.

More information....

http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-to-fly-sail-north-to-study-plankton-climate-change-connection

NASA’s C-130H Hercules airborne laboratory begins research flights over the North Atlantic Nov. 12 from St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada, the agency's North Atlantic Aerosols and Marine Ecosystems Study (NAAMES).

Credits: NASA

The research vessel Atlantis, operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, will provide detailed ship-based measurements of plankton in the North Atlantic as part of the North Atlantic Aerosols and Marine Ecosystems Study (NAAMES).

Credits: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

 

NASA begins a five-year study this month of the annual cycle of phytoplankton and the impact that small airborne particles emitted from the ocean have on the climate-sensitive North Atlantic.

The North Atlantic Aerosols and Marine Ecosystems Study (NAAMES) will collect data during ship and aircraft measurement campaigns and combine that data with continuous satellite and ocean sensor readings. The first of four seasonal research missions begins Nov. 6 and continues through early December.

NASA’s C-130H Hercules airborne laboratory will begin research flights Nov. 12 from St. John’s International Airport in St. John’s, Newfoundland. The flights will be coordinated with the research vessel (R/V) Atlantis, operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Atlantis will provide detailed ship-based measurements of plankton in the North Atlantic.

“We will be studying an ocean region that every year exhibits one of the largest natural phytoplankton blooms on Earth,” said Mike Behrenfeld, NAAMES principal investigator from Oregon State University in Corvallis. “These plankton are also known to release organic compounds into the atmosphere that can be measured as far away as Ireland. That makes the North Atlantic an ideal place to study how plankton blooms are recreated each year by ecological and physical processes, and how ocean biology is involved in the sea-air exchange of organic aerosols and trace gases that may influence clouds and climate.”

The C-130H will fly eastward to rendezvous with and overfly the global-class, floating laboratory-ship Atlantis during its approximately 26-day research cruise. By combining ship, airborne, computer modeling, sustained satellite and autonomous sensor data, scientists hope to improve their predictions of ecosystem and aerosol changes in a warming ocean.

Plankton ecosystems in the ocean are strongly interconnected with climate and life on Earth. Plankton production, responding to a warming climate, results in environmental impacts such as changes in fisheries production, uptake of atmospheric carbon dioxide, and ocean emissions of climate-regulating aerosols. The ability to predict the consequences of a warming ocean depends on resolving conflicting theories about what controls plankton ecosystems and their aerosol emissions.

NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, has science and project management responsibilities for NAAMES and science instruments onboard the C-130H. The agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, leads project data management. The NAAMES ship and airborne science-instrument teams involve more than 20 different research facilities and academic institutions. NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility Aircraft Office in Virginia operates the C-130H research aircraft to support airborne scientific research activities.

The NASA C-130H and the R/V Atlantis supporting the NAAMES mission will be available to the media at two different events this month. On Wednesday, Nov. 4 from 10 to 11:30 a.m. EST, media can tour the Atlantis at Woods Hole, located at 86 Water St. The C-130H will be available on Tuesday, Nov. 10 from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Newfoundland Time Zone, in Hangar #4 of St. John’s International Airport, located at RCAF Road in St. John’s.

NAAMES is part of NASA’s second series of Earth Venture suborbital investigations that provide an innovative approach to regularly address Earth science research that accommodates evolving scientific priorities. Earth Venture investigations are part of NASA's Earth System Science Pathfinder Program, managed at Langley for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington.

NASA researchers collect and study data from space, air, land and sea to tackle challenges facing the world today, including improved environmental prediction and natural hazard and climate change preparedness. NASA develops new ways to observe and study Earth's interconnected natural systems with long-term data records. The agency freely shares this unique knowledge and works with institutions around the world to gain new insights into how our planet is changing.

For more information about NAAMES, go to:

http://naames.larc.nasa.gov

For more information about NASA’s Earth science activities, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/earth

- end -

Steve Cole
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0918
stephen.e.cole@nasa.gov

Chris Rink
Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va.
757-864-6786
chris.rink@nasa.gov

Last Updated: Nov. 4, 2015

Editor: Karen Northon

Tags:  Climate,

NASA

Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui

ayabaca@gmail.com

ayabaca@hotmail.com

ayabaca@yahoo.com

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NASA : Media Accreditation Opens for Launch of Ocean-Measuring Satellite .- Se abre Acreditación de los Medios Abre para el lanzamiento del Satélite para medición de los Océanos.............

Hola amigos: A VUELO DE UN QUINDE EL BLOG., hemos recibido información de la Agencia Espacial NASA, indicando que se abre la acreditación de los medios de información para el lanzamiento del Satálite : the Jason-3 satellite. La inscripción está abierta para los Estados Unidos y los medios de comunicación internacionales que cubramos el 22 de julio lanzamiento de Jason-3, la cuarta misión de una serie de misiones de satélites que miden la altura de la superficie del océano. Asimismo, ya realizó una práctica de ejecución de la secuencia de integración mecánica utilizada para aparearse avanzada Radiómetro de Microondas instrumento del Jason-3 de las naves espaciales al satélite Jason-3. El radiómetro es uno de los tres instrumentos de la NASA incorporados que son componentes integrales de Jason-3. Mide la radiación de la superficie de la Tierra en tres frecuencias para determinar la cantidad de vapor presente en la atmósfera el agua, lo que afecta a la precisión de las mediciones de Jason-3 altímetro.

More information.............
http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/media-accreditation-opens-for-launch-of-ocean-measuring-satellite

IN May 2013, technicians at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, performed a practice run of the mechanical integration sequence used to mate the Jason-3 spacecraft's Advanced Microwave Radiometer instrument to the Jason-3 satellite. The radiometer is one of three NASA-built instruments that are integral components of Jason-3. It measures radiation from Earth's surface at three frequencies to determine the amount of water vapor present in the atmosphere, which affects the accuracy of the Jason-3 altimeter measurements.

Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Registration is open for U.S. and international media to cover the July 22 launch of Jason-3, the fourth mission in a series of satellite missions that measure the height of the ocean surface.

The Jason-3 mission, led by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), will launch from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Due to U.S. Air Force security requirements, international media must apply for accreditation at least 30 days before the launch.

Jason-3 is the latest in a series of U.S.-European satellite international missions that have been measuring the height of the ocean surface for 23 years. Sea level height is a critical piece of evidence about Earth’s natural cycles and climate change. Knowing sea level height also improves hurricane forecasts, navigation and the efficiency of fisheries and other offshore industries.

To apply, media should contact Capt. Selena Rodts at 805-606-3595 or selena.rodts.1@us.af.mil, or by fax at 805-606-4571. To mail an accreditation request, send the required information to Rodts at 30th Space Wing Public Affairs Office, Vandenberg Air Force Base, California 93437.

International media must provide their full legal name, date of birth, nationality, passport number and media affiliation. U.S. media must provide their full legal name, date of birth and media affiliation. A valid legal photo identification will be required for all media upon arrival at Vandenberg.

The Jason-3 project is managed within NASA by the agency’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. NASA’s Launch Services Program at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida is responsible for launch vehicle program management of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

For more information about the Jason-3 mission, visit:

http://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/jason-3

-end-

Steve Cole
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0918
stephen.e.cole@nasa.gov
George H. Diller
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-867-2468
george.h.diller@nasa.gov
Alan Buis
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-0474
alan.buis@jpl.nasa.gov

Last Updated: May 24, 2015

Editor: Karen Northon

Tags:  Water

SMAP

May 19, 2015

NASA
Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui
ayabaca@gmail.com
ayabaca@hotmail.com
ayabaca@yahoo.com
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NASA : NASA Science Leads New York City Climate Change 2015 Report .- Informe de los conductores de NASA Ciencia sobre el Cambio Climático en New York

Hola amigos: A VUELO DE UN QUINDE EL BLOG., la Agencia Espacial SANA, nos informa sobre un informe de los conductores de: NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), y The New York City Panel on Climate Change (NPCC) 2015, sobre el Cambio Climático en New York.

NASA, nos dice : "El Panel de la ciudad de Nueva York sobre el Cambio Climático (PNCC) 2015, co-presidido por un investigador de la NASA, publicó su último informe que detalla significativos futuros aumentos de la temperatura, las precipitaciones y el nivel del mar en el área metropolitana de Nueva York.

El informe tiene como objetivo aumentar la resistencia actual y futuro de las comunidades, los sistemas de toda la ciudad y la infraestructura en la región metropolitana de Nueva York a una serie de riesgos climáticos. Cynthia Rosenzweig, del Instituto Goddard de la NASA para Estudios Espaciales (GISS), Nueva York, co-presidentes del panel de la ciudad de Nueva York...."

NASA, agrega : " El PNCC fue fundada en 2008 para estudiar los efectos del cambio climático en la ciudad de Nueva York cinco condados y la región circundante. Como algunos de los principales científicos de la Tierra en el área metropolitana de Nueva York, los investigadores GISS han participado en los trabajos del grupo desde sus inicios. El modelo climático del GISS se utilizó en las proyecciones climáticas, y los científicos de GISS dirigió el equipo técnico, que analizó los datos científicos y desarrolló las proyecciones...."

 

More information.......

Observed and projected temperature in New York City.

Image Credit: 

NPCC, 2015

 

Future 100-year flood zones for New York City based on the high-estimate 90th percentile NPCC2 sea level rise scenario.

Image Credit: 

NPCC, 2015

 

Map of annual temperature changes in the Northeast in 2050.

Image Credit: 

NPCC, 2015

 

NASA LANDSAT surface temperature map of mid-town Manhattan with Central Park in the center.

Image Credit: 

NPCC, 2015

 

The New York City Panel on Climate Change (NPCC) 2015, co-chaired by a NASA researcher, published its latest report which details significant future increases in temperature, precipitation and sea level in the New York metropolitan area.

The report aims to increase current and future resiliency of the communities, citywide systems and infrastructure in the New York metropolitan region to a range of climate risks. Cynthia Rosenzweig of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), New York, co-chairs the New York City panel.

The NPCC was founded in 2008 to study the effects of climate change on New York City’s five boroughs and surrounding region. As some of the leading Earth scientists in the metropolitan New York area, GISS researchers have been involved in the panel’s work since its beginning. The GISS climate model was used in climate projections, and scientists at GISS led the technical team, which analyzed the scientific data and developed the projections.

“The NPCC is a prototype for how federal government scientists and municipal policymakers can work together,” said Rosenzweig, who also is affiliated with the Center for Climate Systems Research at Columbia University’s Earth Institute, New York. "This collaboration will help ensure that climate science developed for the New York metropolitan region informs and draws from the best available information, positioning residents and planners to confront expected future changes in the most effective way possible."

Increasing temperature and heavier precipitation events, along with sea level rise, are projected by the report to accelerate in the coming decades, increasing risks for the people, economy and infrastructure of New York City.

Specific report findings about local New York observations and projections include:

- Mean annual temperature has increased a total of 3.4 degrees Fahrenheit (F) from 1900 to 2013. Future mean annual temperatures are projected to increase 4.1 to 5.7 degrees F by the 2050s and 5.3 to 8.8 degrees F by the 2080s, relative to the 1980s base period. The frequency of heat waves is projected to increase from 2 per year in the 1980s to roughly 6 per year by the 2080s.

- Mean annual precipitation has increased by a total of 8 inches from 1900 to 2013. Future mean annual precipitation is projected to increase 4 to 11 percent by the 2050s and 5 to 13 percent by the 2080s, relative to the 1980s base period.

- Sea levels have risen in New York City 1.1 feet since 1900. That is almost twice the observed global rate of 0.5 to 0.7 inches per decade over a similar time period. Projections for sea level rise in New York City increase from 11 inches to 21 inches by the 2050s, 18 inches to 39 inches by the 2080s, and, 22 inches to 50 inches, with the worst case of up to six feet, by 2100. Sea level rise projections are relative to the 2000 to 2004 base period.

“Climate change research isn’t just something for the future,” said Rosenzweig. “It’s affecting how key policy decisions are being made now. NASA is proud to work with New York City and other intergovernmental entities to provide world-class science.”

The report also uses NASA Landsat 7 data to map the surface temperature of mid-town Manhattan and show the cooling effect of Central Park. The Climate Impacts Group at GISS, led by Rosenzweig, provided technical support for the report.  

NASA has a Climate Adaptation Science Investigator (CASI) program that is geared toward evaluating the risks facing NASA facilities due to climate change.  The GISS Climate Impacts Group is using processes and lessons learned during its work with the NPCC to support the CASI program. And CASI research focusing on the advance of key NASA products related to climate adaptation could also have future applications benefiting New York City. In addition, the proposed "Climate Change Resilience Indicators and Monitoring System" will utilize NASA data observations and measurements to help the city manage climate risk.

GISS is a laboratory in the Earth Sciences Division of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland and is affiliated with the Earth Institute and School of Engineering and Applied Science at Columbia University.

NASA monitors Earth's vital signs from land, air and space with a fleet of satellites and ambitious airborne and ground-based observation campaigns. NASA develops new ways to observe and study Earth's interconnected natural systems with long-term data records and computer analysis tools to better see how our planet is changing. The agency shares this unique knowledge with the global community and works with institutions in the United States and around the world that contribute to understanding and protecting our home planet.

For a copy of the NPCC’s 2015 report, visit:

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nyas.2015.1336.issue-1/issuetoc

 

For more information about NASA GISS, visit:

http://www.giss.nasa.gov/

For more information about NASA's Earth science activities, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/earthrightnow

NASA
Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui
ayabaca@gmail.com
ayabaca@hotmail.com
ayabaca@yahoo.com
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