45th Anniversary of Earth Day

Yes, the first Earth Day was 45 years ago. I wonder what happened to the early, very positive acceptance and impact Earth Day had??? Maybe making money and staying elected got in the way?

Link to above NASA photo and article.

Aqua Sattellite 10 year Anniversary

From Earth Observatory "Aqua has collected a remarkable 29 million gigabytes of data throughout the last decade. (For perspective, one gigabyte holds the contents of about 10 yards of books on a shelf; 100 gigabytes would hold a floor of books in an academic library)." 
For a 10 year summary.

Satellite information gathering will probably be our best resource to figure out how to save the Earth, IF we indeed are willing and can save the Earth.

Von Karman Vortices

Okay, this has nothing to do with global warming, but it is certainly a part of atmospheric science, which has a lot to do with climate modelling. I found the linked article from Earth Observatory (NASA) fascinating.

Where Is the Hottest Place on Earth?

This is a fun read. The hottest places on Earth are so hot that it is impractical to install remote sensors there. But satellites work. Enjoy!...and let me know if you find a definite answer to the title question.

Polar Orbiting Climate Satellite Launch - NPP

This was brought out in our Osher Climate Class today, so above is the title link to the NASA page with a great deal of information about instruments, objectives, etc. It is the latest satellite in the Earth Observing System which began about 10 years ago. The NPP launch was Fri, 10/28/2011.

For those of us with grand children, there is also a NPPy page with information for kids, including a video animation with NPPy the baby Polar Bear and his mom.

2011 Minimum Arctic Sea Ice Extent

Depending on your source, 2011 was either the 2nd lowest arctic sea ice extent, or the lowest. The title link is to the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). Their satellite sensor, and the algorithms they use, show minimum sea ice extent for 2011 was 2nd to the all time minimum observed in 2007.

The University of Bremen uses a different sensor, on a different satellite, as well as different algorithms, and their analysis shows 2011 to be the lowest sea ice extent ever measured.

In a broader view, both these analyses show a consistent trend in loss of arctic sea ice since satellite measurements began in 1972. Current minimum sea ice extent is only 50% of what it was in 1972. Other data show that ice thickness is also decreasing.

Additional details from the University of Bremen study can be found in the press release link at their web site. From this press release: "Climate models show rather that the reduction is related to the man-made global warming which, due to the ice albedo effect, is particularly pronounced in the Arctic: an ice area melted by a small temperature increase will then as open water have a much darker surface, absorb more solar radiation than before, which causes additional heating.......

The ice maps of the University of Bremen show also that in this year, the Northwest and Northeast passages are ice free simultaneously (Figure 2). This had happed for the first time in 2008, and in 2009 the German shipping company Beluga has traveled it commercially for the first time."

Anatomy of a Disastrous Tornado Weather System

NASA Photo

First off, I am not saying the recent tornado outbreak is climate change related. It could be, but for now I will just focus on the amazing satellite video footage of this recent major storm system that devastated much of the southeastern US. On the title link, at very least I recommend you view the "small animation" to see what looks like a wildfire sweeping the southern states. But it is not a fire, it is simply cold air interacting with warm-moist air. Both are feeding into the front....as logic would require to sustain this storm system for more than a day. From NASA:

"The animation starts on April 26 and runs through the morning of April 28. The ingredients for severe weather are evident in the cloud patterns. A relatively stable mass of cold air—visible as a swirl of more-or-less continuous clouds—rotates in the north along the top of the image. Meanwhile, moist air pushes north and west from the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico. The warm air contains small low clouds.

The collision between two such air masses is enough to generate severe weather, but the weather also was amplified by the jet stream on April 27. Though not directly visible in the image, the narrow band of fast-moving wind blew north and east between the two air masses. With surface winds blowing from the south and east, and the jet stream blowing from the west, powerful smaller-scale circulation patterns generated lines of intense thunderstorms."

The GOES satellite that took these videos is a joint NASA-NOAA geostationary satellite that stays over one point of the earth.

Penguins, Humpbacks and Antarctic Changes

Adelie Penguin, Antarctica, photo by Bill Fintel

Adelie Penguins feed primarily on krill. Krill depend on sea ice to assist in growing their phytoplankton food. Hence, as sea ice coverage shrinks, Adelies are having less success raising their young. From the title link:

"Krill form the basis of the marine food web, supporting organisms ranging from fish and penguins to whales. Krill feed on phytoplankton -- basically, ice algae -- that grow lushly on the undersides of ice floes.

These tiny crustaceans are specially adapted to graze for the tiny plants among the ice crystals. But in the last few decades, winter ice has formed later in the season and has covered less area and spring melt comes earlier. Without ice, krill's feeding is disrupted and populations fall."

This change in seasonal sea ice coverage has also affected Humpback Whales, temporarily for the better, but probably not for their long term good. See: Whale of a find: Krill feast in Antarctica

Keeping track of our Earth in detail via satellites, is truly amazing. For Arctic and Antarctic ice mass monitoring, thank GRACE.

Humpback Whale, Antarctica, photo by Bill Fintel