NASA to Spotlight Shrinking Arctic Sea Ice and Unprecedented Glacier Study at Copenhagen
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WASHINGTON -- NASA will take its Earth science research and
educational programs before a world-wide audience Dec. 7-18 during
the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change conference
in Copenhagen, Denmark. NASA is one of several U.S. government
agencies supporting the first-ever U.S. Center, an outreach
initiative housed in Copenhagen's Bella Conference Center.
Organized by the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Center will host
more than 60 events during the conference. The center's meeting room
is a 100-seat auditorium where U.S. and international leaders in the
fight against climate change will headline presentations on a wide
range of critical initiatives, policies, and scientific research. The
center's reception room serves as a welcome area where visitors can
learn more about U.S. climate actions and programs.
The reception room will feature displays and videos using data from
U.S. satellites, including NASA's fleet of Earth-observing research
spacecraft. Some of this imagery will be shown on the "Science On a
Sphere" projection system, a six-foot, computer-driven globe that
displays animated images of the Earth's land, oceans, and atmosphere.
NASA scientists also will be on hand to discuss agency research and
programs with visitors.
The U.S. Center, which is open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time daily,
is located in Hall C5 of the Bella Conference Center. NASA is
sponsoring the following presentations during the Copenhagen
conference:
State of the Science: Earth's Changing Polar Ice Cover
The presentation will feature the latest observations and research
findings on shrinking Arctic sea ice and the rapidly changing ice
sheets of Greenland and Antarctica. Speaker: Waleed Abdalati,
University of Colorado (Dec. 7, meeting room).
Climate Change Impacts on Civilizations: Lessons from Space
Archaeology
NASA is pioneering the use of satellite observations to read the clues
of how ancient civilizations reacted to changes in climate. Speakers:
Tom Sever, University of Alabama; Ron Blom, NASA's Jet Propulsion
Laboratory (Dec. 7, meeting room).
"Extreme Ice" Multimedia Presentation
See images from the most wide-ranging glacier study ever conducted
using ground-based, real-time photography. Speaker: James Balog,
Extreme Ice Survey (Dec. 7, meeting room; Dec. 9 and 16, reception
room).
Student Climate Research Campaign
This is a showcase of research projects by secondary school students
from around the world conducted through the NASA-sponsored Global
Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) program.
Speaker: Donna Charlevoix, University of Colorado (Dec. 8, reception
room).
International Global Climate Change Observation from Space
NASA plays a leadership role in the Committee on Earth Observation
Satellites. The committee's international member agencies operate and
plan missions to measure critical components of climate change.
Speakers: Jack Kaye, NASA's Earth Science Division; Makoto Kajii,
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Dec. 11, meeting room).
The World's Forests as Carbon Sinks and Sources
This presentation will feature the latest scientific knowledge on how
forests absorb and release carbon, and how human activities have
changed that balance. Speaker: Jeffery Masek, NASA's Goddard Space
Flight Center (Dec. 11, meeting room).
Many of the meeting room events will be webcast live on the State
Department conference Web site. For a complete schedule of events,
visit:
http://cop15.state.gov
Regular updates on events during the conference will be posted at:
http://www.facebook.com/usdos.
NASA has released a new multimedia climate change resource reel for
journalists showcasing downloadable videos, data visualizations,
animations, and still images that illustrate key climate change
concepts and discoveries. It is available online at:
http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/
For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov
Source: NASA
