New Earth science insights by scientists at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (Greenbelt, Md.) will be reported at the 2000 American Geophysical Union spring meeting in Washington, D.C. this week. Listed below are some the discussions that are open to the news media. All discussions will be held at the Washington Convention Center.
The Impact of Urbanization on Photosynthetic Production in the United States - As part of an effort to study the impact of human activity on the biosphere, data from two different satellite systems were combined with land cover maps and census information on population and housing to study the effect of urbanization on photosynthetic production in the United States. How urbanization affects the potential of the land surface to carryout photosynthesis was examined. Results show that urbanization can have a measurable but variable impact on photosynthetic productivity. Dr. Marc Imhoff will present his latest findings on Tuesday, May 30 at 9 a.m. in Room CC29.
Climate Change and the Coast: Impacts in the New York City Metropolitan Region - Results from work on the coastal zone, as part of the Metro East Coast regional climate change assessment for the U.S. National Climate Change Assessment, are highlighted. The increased risks of coastal flooding, aggravated by rising sea level, also beach erosion and beach replenishment requirements, and potential loss of coastal wetlands will be discussed. Coastal management issues associated with these hazards will also be discussed. Dr. Vivien Gornitz presents her latest results on Tuesday, May 30 at 11:25 a.m. in Room CC29.
Warming In the Arctic Observed - Results from analysis of 18 years of continuous infrared data over the entire Arctic region will be presented for the first time. The Arctic is sensitive to a warming trend and very little surface temperature data for this region has been available until now. The research provides insights into the observed positive trend in global temperature and the reported decline and thinning of the Arctic sea ice cover during the last few decades. Recent reports of a retreating and thinning sea ice cover in this area point to a strong suggestion of significant warming in the region. Dr. Joey Comiso presents his results on Thursday, June 1 at 9:05 a.m. in Room CC 4-5.
Rain Structure Near the Eyes of 1999 Hurricanes Observed by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission - Hurricanes have been observed from space since the 1970s, but it is only since the 1997 launch of the TRMM satellite that the detailed 3D rain structure of hurricanes is routinely observed. The TRMM Science Data Information System (TSDIS) Orbit Viewer is used to examine the eyes of 1999 hurricanes, five of which reached category 4 on the Saffir/Simpson scale. Dr. Owen Kelley presents the results in a poster session on Thursday, June 1 at 1:30 in Hall D.
Evaluating Hydroclimatic Variables as Predictors of Malaria Infection - Over the last decade there has been a wide-scale effort to use remotely sensed meteorological and land-use data to identify and map vector habitat and malaria transmission risk in order to improve the efficacy of malaria control programs. Malaria data are long-term monthly records of malaria diagnoses aggregated at the municipal or district level. Hydroclimatic data include ground-based observations, remotely-sensed imagery, and gridded output from hydrological models. David Grass will present the results of his findings on Friday, June 2 4:10 p.m. in Room CC29.
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