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NOAA National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) Publication is Highly Referenced
Dr. Herb Sauer and Dan Wilkinson were notified that their paper, "Global Mapping of Ionospheric HF/VHF Radio Wave Absorption Due to Solar Energetic Protons" which appeared in the most recent issue of the American Geophysical Union's Space Weather journal was the most often downloaded paper during this past week. This significant paper reports on the results of using energetic particle measurements from NOAA's GOES satellites to yield estimates of high-latitude radio wave absorption which can seriously disrupt or negate airline communications on polar flights.
Significance: The National Weather Service Space Weather Prediction Center has incorporated these findings into a real-time operational product for commercial airline flight planning.
Outcome: This supports the Goal 3 objective to demonstrate global leadership on environmental issues.
( or 303-497-3681)
NOAA National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) Provides Bathymetric Map for Tsunami Buoy Deployment
Deep-Ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunamis (DART) buoys allow monitoring of sea-surface height (height of the ocean surface above the seafloor) and are an integral part of the Tsunami Warning System. DART buoy station 42408, located 310 nautical miles south-southeast of New Orleans, LA, went adrift on December 11, 2008, and stopped reporting any water column heights or tsunami event messages. NGDC produced a custom bathymetric map to assist the National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) in the deployment of a new station 42409 to replace station 42408. Station 42409 has been established 106 nautical miles northeast of the previous station.
Significance: DART buoy placement is a key NOAA effort to reduce the loss of life from tsunami in U.S. coastal communities and minimize false alarms, which result in high economic costs for unnecessary evacuations. The pre-deployment information saves costly ship time and reduces the effort of deployment, increasing the efficiency of the operation.
Outcome: Broaden and develop a more robust Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS).
( or 303-497-3158)
NOAA's National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) actively participated in the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting
NGDC sent 14 attendees who gave 21 presentations at the annual AGU meeting held in San Francisco, December 15-19, 2008. The meeting is the largest annual gathering of geophysicists, this year with over 16,000 participants. NGDC Assistant Director Dave Clark gave presentations "The Role of NOAA's National Data Centers in the Earth and Space Science Infrastructure," and "The new ICSU World Data System: Building on the 50 Year Legacy of the World Data Centers." Dr. Stefan Maus, NGDC affiliate with the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Earth Sciences (CIRES) chaired two sessions of "Geomagnetic Field Modeling and Interpretation of Satellite, Observatory, Marine, and Aeromagnetic Data." NGDC also staffed the NOAA Exhibit, providing Global and Arctic posters, foldable icosahedron globes, a variety of data CD-ROMs, and geothermal resource reports.
NOAA Issues Press Release on the National Geophysical Data Center's (NGDC) Development of Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) of Oregon's Coast
NOAA has issued a press release on four high-resolution DEMs of Oregon's coast developed by NGDC. The DEMs are detailed models of coastal relief, constructed from near-shore bathymetry and land topography that support NOAA's Tsunami Forecast and Warning System. They provide a framework that allows scientists to forecast the magnitude and extent of coastal flooding caused by a tsunami or storm surge with greater accuracy. The DEMs also support efforts by the State of Oregon, through the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program, to map tsunami evacuation zones and deliver accurate information to coastal communities to foster tsunami preparedness.
Significance: Although infrequent, tsunami waves have caused considerable damage and loss of life in U.S. coastal areas. The NOAA/NGDC development of coastal digital elevation models is an integral part of NOAA's effort to forecast tsunamis and deliver accurate and timely warnings and to develop resilient communities. The DEMs and other tsunami data archived by NGDC provide information essential for coastal hazard assessment and research related to past hazardous events for monitoring and mitigating the socio-economic impact of coastal hazards.
Outcome: This activity supports the general goal to improve our environmental and marine infrastructure and to develop a more robust Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS).
( or 303-497-6767)
NOAA's National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) Develops New Tsunami Inundation Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of Santa Barbara, California
NGDC has developed a high-resolution coastal DEM of Santa Barbara, California for the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL). This integrated bathymetric-topographic DEM is part of an on-going collaboration across NOAA to support the tsunami forecast and warning system being developed by PMEL for the Tsunami Warning Centers. The new DEM covers an area roughly 1-degree square centered on Santa Barbara and the Channel Islands offshore Southern California, with a cell size of one-third arc-second (~10-m). It was compiled from the best available digital data obtained from U.S. federal, state and local agencies, and academic institutions, and will increase the accuracy with which NOAA's tsunami modeling efforts will forecast inundation in the region.
Significance: Although infrequent, tsunami waves have caused considerable damage and loss of life in U.S. coastal areas. The NOAA/NGDC development of coastal digital elevation models is an integral part of NOAA's effort to forecast tsunamis and deliver accurate and timely warnings and to develop resilient communities. The DEMs and other tsunami data archived by NGDC provide information essential for coastal hazard assessment and research related to past hazardous events for monitoring and mitigating the socio-economic impact of coastal hazards.
Outcome: This activity supports the general goal to improve our environmental and marine infrastructure and to develop a more robust Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS).
( or 303-497-6767)
NOAA Fields a New Generation Ionosonde
The Solar and Terrestrial Physics Division of the National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) has installed a state-of-the-art ionosonde system at its Boulder field site. The Vertical Incidence Pulsed Ionospheric Radar (VIPIR) embodies a decade of ionospheric sounding technological developments and represents a significant improvement in sensing capability over current sensors. The new VIPIR system has already revealed new details on the structure and dynamics of ionospheric features that may facilitate improvements in operational ionospheric modeling.
Significance: The Boulder VIPIR provides a bridge between future discoveries led by NASA and the National Science Foundation with historical data sets and presently operational mature technologies within the DoD. This supports National Space Weather Program objectives while maintaining a global climate record.
Outcome: This supports the Goal 4 objective to broaden and develop a more robust Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS).
( or 303-497-4331)
Satellite Data Indicate Significant Gas Flaring Reduction
Based on DMSP nighttime lights data, the National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) Earth Observation Group estimates that the global level of natural gas flaring in oil fields decreased by 6% from 2006 to 2007. The 2007 estimate stands at 147 billion cubic meters of gas burnt. This significant result marks the second consecutive year of decline as reported by NGDC. The new estimates were recently briefed by NGDC's Dr Chris Elvidge to the World Bank Global Gas Flaring Reduction (GGFR) initiative steering committee meeting in Amsterdam, the Netherlands on December 3-4, 2008.
Significance: Since global petroleum production went up over the same time period, the DMSP satellite estimates indicate that efforts to curb gas flaring are yielding positive results.
Outcome: This effort supports the Goal 4 objective to broaden and develop a more robust Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS).
( or 303-497-6121)
NOAA's National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) Reports on 2007 Estimates of Measured Global Gas Flaring
Dr. Chris Elvidge from NGDC reported on the 2007 estimates for measured global gas flaring at the Global Forum on Flaring Reduction and Natural Gas Utilization held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands on December 4-5, 2008. The Global Forum is organized by the World Bank-led Global Gas Flaring Reduction partnership (GGFR) along with participation from the US Environmental Protection Agency's Natural Gas STAR Program, Methane to Markets Partnership and the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers (OGP). NGDC's Earth Observation Group, led by Dr. Elvidge, produces annual estimates of global gas flaring using satellite-based nighttime earth imagery data. This was the first report of the 2007 annual estimate.
Significance: NGDC is the global leader in providing authoritative annual estimates of global gas flaring for the World Bank.
Outcome: This effort supports the Goal 3 objective to demonstrate global leadership in environmental issues and to broaden and develop a more robust Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS).
( or 303-497-6121)
NOAA's National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) participates in the United Nation's Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) West Coast / Alaska Regional Workshops
NGDC Director Chris Fox attended the Extended Continental Shelf (ECS) regional workshop in Menlo Park, CA December 3-4, 2008 both as a regional expert and as a representative of the U.S. ECS Data and Information Archive. This was the fourth and final ECS regional workshop where scientific experts were brought together with members of the U.S. ECS Task Force to discuss areas of potential extension to our shelf under the requirements of UNCLOS. NGDC briefed the workshop attendees on known existing seismic, bathymetric, gravity, magnetic, and geological data required to determine potential ECS; providing maps and digital inventories in Google Earth. Dr. Fox also provided insight from many years experience as a marine geophysicist and growing familiarity with the UNCLOS process. The U.S. ECS Task Force, a consortium of federal agencies, has delegated to NGDC the responsibility for establishing and maintaining a central data, information, and metadata repository for the U.S. ECS efforts.
Significance: Under international law as reflected in the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, every coastal state has a continental shelf out to 200 nautical miles from its coastal baselines (or out to a maritime boundary with another coastal state). The ECS is that area of the continental shelf that lies beyond this 200 nautical mile limit. The process to determine the outer limits of the ECS requires the collection and analysis of data that describe the depth, shape, and geophysical characteristics of the seabed and sub-sea floor, as well as the thickness of the underlying sediments. The NOAA/NGDC role in data and metadata management and stewardship in archiving these data are essential aspects of any U.S. Government effort to define and defend an ECS.
Outcome: This activity supports the Integrated Oceans and Coastal Mapping program and the general goal to improve our environmental and marine infrastructure and to develop a more robust Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS).
( or 303-497-6215)
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