By monitoring trends such as
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Highlights
Since 1989, the U.S.
In particular, Our Changing Planet highlights progress and accomplishments in interagency activities. These highlights represent the broad spectrum of USGCRP activities that extend from Earth system observations, modeling, and fundamental research through synthesis and assessment, decision support, education, and public engagement.
Interagency collaboration supports predictions of Arctic sea cover used by the U.S. Navy and other operational and research organizations.
Summer sea ice cover in the Arctic Ocean shrunk significantly since the early 1980s, with particularly rapid declines in recent years[1]. Arctic sea ice plays a key role in regulating weather and climate in and beyond the region[2], and projections of how sea ice cover will change in the coming years are critical for...
Scientists are gaining new understanding of processes that control greenhouse gas emissions from Arctic
Rapid warming in the Arctic is causing carbon-rich soils known as permafrost, previously frozen for millennia, to thaw. As thawing soils decompose, the...
Scientists are using satellites to collect detailed data on forest change in remote parts of Alaska and the Arctic.
Rapid warming in the Arctic and boreal regions of Alaska is affecting boreal forests and tundra ecosystems in a number of ways. Higher temperatures and changes in precipitation have led to a higher incidence of wildfire and increased tree mortality from
Scientists are using aerial and ground survey methods to measure change in Alaska’s interior forests and its impact on
The boreal forests of interior Alaska are changing rapidly as the climate warms. Wildfires are more frequent and more severe, and declines in growth of spruce trees...
Satellite observations of sea ice thickness provide an opportunity to improve seasonal predictions of Arctic sea ice cover.
Arctic sea ice grows and melts each year with the seasons, reaching its low point in September. Summer sea ice cover has shrunk significantly over the past thirty years, although variation from year to year means that the downward trend is not uniform. Arctic sea ice plays a critical role in regulating weather and climate in and beyond the region. Sea ice decline activates a...
Vast quantities of carbon—twice the size of the current amount in the atmosphere—are stored in frozen
A key challenge for Earth System Models is accurately representing land surface and subsurface processes and their complex interactions in a warming climate. This is true for ecosystems across the globe, but particularly critical for Arctic ecosystems, which are projected to warm at a rate twice that of the global average by the end of the 21st century. The Next-Generation Ecosystem Experiments in the Arctic (NGEE-Arctic) project is addressing this challenge by integrating process studies,...
The Arctic tundra is a cold, desert-like biome, with a layer of permanently frozen soil and organic matter below the surface containing vast stocks of carbon. As Arctic tundra soils warm in response to
Although the volume and surface extent of Arctic sea ice varies between seasons and years, observations show a long-term down-ward trend over the last three decades. Variability in Arctic sea ice is an important