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New Research Will Help Shed Light on Role of Amazon Forests in Global Carbon Cycle

By Guest PostFebruary 1, 2013Environmentabsorbing, alan di vittorio, Amazon, amazon basin, amazon forest landscape, analytical method, annual carbon accumulation, atmosphere, berkeley lab, biogeochemical process, biogeochemistry, brazil, carbon cycle, carbon cycling, carbon dioxide pollution, carbon sequestration, central amazon, climate change, climatic warming, co2 concentration, CO2 emissions, daniel marra, dar roberts, earth, forest carbon budgets, forest mortality patterns, gabriel ribeiro, Germany, global climate system, global warming effect, human activities, hurricane katrina, impact, jeffrey chambers, joerg tews, manaus, max planck institute, mortality map, natural disturbances, old growth forests, pixel, planet, plot based analyses, positive feedback mechanism, robinson negron juarez, satellite images, simulation modeling, spatial scale, superstorm sandy, terrestrial ecosystems, tree mortality patterns, trends, tropical, tulane university

Berkeley Lab scientists devise new tools for detecting previously unknown tree mortality.

The Earth’s forests perform a well-known service to the planet, absorbing a great deal of the carbon dioxide pollution emitted into the atmosphere from human activities. But when trees are killed by natural disturbances, such as fire, drought or wind, their decay also releases carbon back into the atmosphere, making it critical to quantify tree mortality in order to understand the role of forests in the global climate system. Tropical old-growth forests may play a large role in this absorption service, yet tree mortality patterns for these forests are not well understood.

Now scientist Jeffrey Chambers and colleagues at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have devised an analytical method that combines satellite images, simulation modeling and painstaking fieldwork to help researchers detect forest mortality patterns and trends. This new tool will enhance understanding of the role of forests in carbon sequestration and the impact of climate change on such disturbances. (more…)

Roots of Deadly 2010 India Flood Identified; Findings Could Improve Warnings

By Guest PostNovember 14, 2012Environmentarabian sea, bay, bengal, big thompson canyon, black hills, clouds, colorado, desert, dramatic rain, flash flood, himalayas, indian town, kristen rasmussen, leh, moisture, mountain, natural disaster, plains, reanalysis data, remote region, robert houze, satellite images, south dakota, storms, tibetan plateau, torrential downpour, total rainfall, university, valley, warning, Washington, weather forecaster

On the night of Aug. 5, 2010, as residents slept, water began rushing through Leh, an Indian town in a high desert valley in the Himalayas.

Average total rainfall in the area for August is about a half-inch. During this 24-hour period more than 8 inches fell, causing severe damage and leaving 193 dead, hundreds missing and thousands homeless.

“Flash flooding events don’t happen often but when they do they are some of the scariest, most dangerous and quickest natural disasters that can happen,” said Kristen Rasmussen, a University of Washington graduate student in atmospheric sciences. “But now that we know what types of conditions to look out for, flash flood warnings in remote regions of India might be possible.” (more…)

A Better Way to ID Extreme Weather Events in Climate Models

By Guest PostDecember 11, 2011Environmentatmospheric river, berkeley lab, bill collins, cam5, category 5 hurricane, climate simulation, community atmospheric model, computer models, cray xe6 supercomputer, dan krotz, data, effects of climate change, floods, frequency of extreme weather events, global atmosphere models, global climate model, hawaiian islands, heavy precipitation, high resolution simulation, hopper, hurricane, large datasets, library of congress, michael wehner, models, North America, pacific coast, pattern detection algorithm, prabhat, satellite images, simulation, weather, weather phenomenon, wes bethel

*Berkeley Lab scientists help automate the search for hurricanes and other storms in huge datasets*

You’d think that spotting a category 5 hurricane would never be difficult. But when the hurricane is in a global climate model that spans several decades, it becomes a fleeting wisp among mountains of data.

That’s a problem. As scientists develop ever-more sophisticated computer models to predict the effects of climate change, one of the things they’ll look for are changes in the frequency of extreme weather events such as hurricanes and heavy precipitation. The more data generated by models, however, the more difficult it is to quantify these rare but potent events. (more…)

Staggering tree loss from 2005 Amazon storm

By Guest PostJuly 16, 20102 commentsEnvironment, NatureAmazon, carbon cycling, central amazon, ecologist, geophysical research letters, inpa, jeffrey chambers, manaus region, NASA, negrón-juárez, new orleans, niro higuchi, rainforest, satellite images, tropical, tulane university

WASHINGTON — A single, huge, violent storm that swept across the whole Amazon forest in 2005 killed half a billion trees, a new study shows.

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New Research Will Help Shed Light on Role of Amazon Forests in Global Carbon Cycle

Roots of Deadly 2010 India Flood Identified; Findings Could Improve Warnings

A Better Way to ID Extreme Weather Events in Climate Models

Staggering tree loss from 2005 Amazon storm