Current Events

  • Atmospheric CO2 Level Tops 400 ppm
    During the week of May 13th, the CO2 level at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii topped 400 ppm rep...Read more

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    Atmospheric CO2 Level Tops 400 ppm

    During the week of May 13th, the CO2 level at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii topped 400 ppm repeatedly. Daily levels of CO2 can vary due to weather, and there are seasonal trends as well. The level of atmospheric greenhouse gases continues to increase, now over 120 ppm since the Industrial Revolution began. For more on the Keeling Curve, see http://keelingcurve.ucsd.edu/. Find out more about greenhouse gases and warming.
  • Massive Tornado Outbreak on Tornado Alley
    The week of May 19 brings dozens of tornadoes to Tornado Alley in the states of Oklahoma, Kansas, Io...Read more

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    Massive Tornado Outbreak on Tornado Alley

    The week of May 19 brings dozens of tornadoes to Tornado Alley in the states of Oklahoma, Kansas, Iowa, Illinois and Missouri. On May 20th, a massive tornado struck Moore, Oklahoma, devastating communities - destroying over 100 homes and hitting two elementary schools and a hospital - with many casualties and deaths. Our thoughts are with our friends and colleagues suffering from these storms. For more on the May 20th storms, see the NOAA Storm Prediction Center Storm Report.
  • Kansas Legislator Proposes Bill to Outlaw Sustainability Education
    A bill has been introduced in the Kansas legislature this week that would prohibit the promotion of ...Read more

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    Kansas Legislator Proposes Bill to Outlaw Sustainability Education

    A bill has been introduced in the Kansas legislature this week that would prohibit the promotion of sustainability. Here is a link to the one-page bill: http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2013_14/measures/documents/hb2366_00_0000.pdf. See report on Bloomberg News.

    Image courtesy of Dione Rossiter

From: Dione Rossiter
Iquique, Chile, October 22, 2008

Nephelococcygia

The flights out of Iquique have been extremely successful. We have been trying different flight paths in order to find the most interesting science and get the most insightful data.

We had two flights before my instrument, the PDI, was delivered. As soon as it was, the Twin Otter crew installed it on the airplane and, by the next day, we were ready to test it out. This is the 4th cloud mission I have been a part of and I was FINALLY able to fly with the PDI onboard the Twin Otter.

I had a lot of fun and, of course, I saw lots of clouds! We flew below, inside, and above a layer of stratocumulus cloud that seemed to go on forever. All of the instruments on board are being used to understand (in extremely great detail) not only the clouds but the boundary layer as well. The boundary layer is the lowest layer of the atmosphere; it’s the layer where stratocumulus clouds form and it’s the layer you live in!

Now that I’ve gotten some data back, I hope to find something interesting to share with you in my next postcard. Until then, go outside and see what kind of clouds form around where you live. Did you know there’s actually a word for the act of watching clouds? It’s called ‘nephelococcygia’ (ne-fê-lê-kak-'si-jee-yê… a tough word, I know). ;)

~Dee

Postcards from the Field: Climate Science from the Southeast Pacific

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