A new NASA study shows that the average thickness of sea ice in the Arctic is on the decline.
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Mar 16, 2012Physical Climate, Observations, Energy
NASA's most recently launched earth-observing satellite, Suomi NPP, is proving to pack both beauty and brains. Since its launch into space in October, Suomi NPP has taken some of the most stunning images of Earth ever generated and, at the same time, has begun to collect critical data about Earth's environment and atmosphere.
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Mar 14, 2012International, Education
This week, the U.S. Global Change Research Program launched a revamped Resource Library website for easier, more intuitive access to Federal global change resources. The Resource Library, USGCRPs access hub for publications, reports, and other global change resources, fulfills the Congressional mandate for a Global Change Research Information Office (GCRIO).
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Mar 13, 2012Oceans, Ecosystems & Biodiversity, Carbon Cycle
A new study concludes that the current rate of ocean acidification is higher than at any time in at least the last 300 million years and attributes this ecosystem -threatening change to the huge quantities of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere from fossil-fuel burning and deforestation.
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Mar 6, 2012Education
Polling results released last week by the University of Michigan and Muhlenberg College (Pennsylvania) show that, compared to previous surveys, the largest majority of Americans in years now believe global warming is occurring.
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Mar 1, 2012USGCRP has launched a new, more interactive website that showcases the 2009 National Climate Assessment (NCA) report, Global Change Impacts in the United States.
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Feb 24, 2012International, Adaptation
On Tuesday, Climate Change Fellows from more than 10 African nations convened at USGCRPs National Coordination Office in Washington, DC to discuss their experiences applying scientific knowledge to climate change adaptation efforts in Africa.
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Feb 22, 2012Mitigation, International, Agriculture & Food, Human Health
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week announced the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, a voluntary partnership that includes the United States, Bangladesh, Canada, Ghana, Mexico, Sweden, and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to reduce short-lived atmospheric pollutants such as methane, hydrofluorocarbons, and black carbon , or soot.
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Feb 3, 2012Observations, Carbon Cycle, Arctic, Cities & Infrastructure, Indicators
Last week, the Interior Department's US Geological Survey (USGS) released details about a landmark airborne survey of permafrost in the Yukon Flats of Alaska that yielded some of the most detailed, data-rich maps of permafrost ever generated.
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Jan 25, 2012Physical Climate, Observations, Extreme Events
This week, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) released temperature data showing that 2011 was one of the warmest years since record-keeping began in 1880. The global temperature continued to be extremely warm even though at least two factors acted to push it downwards in the short term.