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Project Plabs

Project Plans: 1996

Looking down from the Space Shuttle, Astronaut John David Bartoe saw "a large river meandering slowly for miles, passing from one country to another without stopping. I also saw huge forests, extending across several borders. And I watched the extent of the ocean touch the shores of separate continents." His view of earth from space captures the common global interests we share to gain a better understanding of the Earth as a system of physical processes and human actions that affect all people. It also conveys the unmistakable relationship of Earth to other planets, and in a similar vein, our motivation for understanding comparable planetary dynamics.

The importance of understanding the processes which shape our environment has never been greater than it is now. Our planet and our species have always been characterized by change. But today is unique, as the advances and expansions of humans have created the ability to globally alter the planet. Knowledge of global change, understanding of the mechanisms involved, and development of predictive models hold potentially great economic and social value.

In general, ICP research projects are designed to gain this knowledge through iteration between theoretical (model simulations) and real world climate and planetary observations. Participants are expected to become familiar with data, understand the global distribution of variables, analyze the changes (anomalies) in different timescales and geographic areas and assess the variability of climate and planetary parameters. At the same time, the approach is designed to contribute to education about the scientific research process.

Scientific Questions Guiding ICP Research Projects

ICP projects address fundamental science and technical questions and, in a very unique way, involve representatives from the entire science pipeline in the research process, i.e. scientists, post docs, graduate students, college faculty and students, and high school faculty and students.

  • To what extent can climatic changes be explained by natural forces and anthropogenic effects (e.g. greenhouse gases) as opposed to unforced variability or chaos in the climate system?
  • How capable is the GCM of making a climate prediction for a specified summer?
  • Will continued global warming trends increase the probability of extreme weather, compromising the health and economic well-being of people in select global regions?
  • Will greater understanding of storm tracks improve our ability to predict the effects of climate change?
  • To what extent do clouds that form in midlatitude storms explain the role of clouds in regulating climate?
  • How does the nature and distribution of aerosols in Jupiter's atmosphere affect the planet's energy balance? What are the climatic effects of aerosols?
  • Is the North Atlantic climate trend of the past 30 years, with Greenland cooling while the United States and Europe warm, likely to flip in coming years as it did this past winter?
  • What is the best scientific approach for modeling evapotranspiration and improving its representation in the GCM for climate prediction?
  • How can we explain fluctuations in sea surface temperatures in the tropical Atlantic ocean to better predict the interannual and decadal variability in the tropics of northern Brazil?

1996 Projects