Climate293
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Researchers Assess Risks Associated with Living in Low-Lying Coastal Areas
For many, sea-level rise is a remote and distant threat faced by people like the residents of the Tuvalu Islands in the South Pacific, where the highest point of land is only 5 meters (15 feet) above sea level and tidal floods occasionally cover their crops in seawater. Now, however, a recently published study by…
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Tough Environmental Policy Question? Bring in the MPAs
One hundred million personal computers were disposed of in 2004, and they are not benign — computers contain hazardous materials harmful to human health and the environment, and no policy exists to manage this e-waste. Is anyone working on this problem? Bring in the MPAs. This semester, a group studying to get their Masters’ in…
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Could Reducing Global Dimming Mean a Hotter, Dryer World?
Despite concerns over global warming, scientists have discovered something that may have actually limited the impact of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere in recent years by reducing the amount of sunlight reaching the surface of the Earth. In research they published last year in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, a team led by Beate Liepert…
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Reining in Carbon Dioxide Levels Imperative but Possible
Business-as-usual approach threatens world energy supplies and environment, but affordable, effective solutions appear within reach
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Climate Forecasting Systems Help Predict Malaria Risk in Africa
A recent study published in Nature shows that climate forecasts can help predict malaria epidemics many months in advance. These predictions can alert health service managers to changes in epidemic risk five months before the peak malaria season and four months earlier than predictions based on actual rainfall. The study appears in the February 2…
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Researchers Confirm Role of Massive Flood in Climate Change
Flood of fresh water disrupted ocean circulation and Earth’s climate; simulations validated by climate proxy record
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Second GROCC Meets Amid Changing World
More than 200 participants from nearly 150 corporations and other institutions from around the world met November 14 and 15 at Columbia University for the second session of the Global Roundtable on Climate Change (GROCC). With 2005 on pace to becoming the warmest year on record, as well as the most active for hurricanes, and…
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The IRI Becomes The International Research Institute for Climate and Society
In October 2005, the Trustees of Columbia University changed the name of the International Research Institute for Climate Prediction to better reflect the work of the Institute. The IRI develops and implements strategies to reduce society’s vulnerability to climate risk. It partners with local institutions to best understand needs, risks and possibilities. The IRI supports…
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Answers About the Earth’s Energy Imbalance by James E. Hansen, Director of the Goddard Institute for Space Studies
Below are answers to typical questions about this research topic and its implications provided by James E. Hansen, director, NASA’s Goddard Insittute for Space Studies. Hansen was lead author on a paper published by Science in April 2005 on this topic. What is the direct significance of the energy imbalance found by the authors in…