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Partial melting of ordinary chondrites: Lost City (H) and St. Severin (LL)

Eucrites and diogenites are examples of asteroidal basalts and orthopyroxenites, respectively. As they are found intermingled in howardites, which are inferred to be regolith breccias, eucrites and diogenites are thought to be genetically related. But the details of this relationship and of their individual origins remain controversial. Work by Jurewicz et al. showed that 1170-1180 C partial melts of the (anhydrous) Murchison (CM) chondrite have major element compositions extremely similar to primitive eucrites, such as Sioux County. However, the MnO contents of these melts were about half that of Sioux County, a problem for the simple partial melting model. In addition, partial melting of Murchison could not produce diogenites, because residual pyroxenes in the Murchison experiments were too Fe- and Ca-rich and were minor phases at all but the lowest temperatures. A parent magma for diogenites needs an expanded low-calcium pyroxene field. In their partial melting study of an L6 chondrite, Kushiro and Mysen found that ordinary chondrites did have an expanded low-Ca pyroxene field over that of CV chondrites (i.e., Allende), probably because ordinary chondrites have lower Mg/Si ratios. This study expands that of both Kushiro and Mysen and Jurewicz et al. to the Lost City (H) and St. Severin (LL) chondrites at temperatures ranging from 1170 to 1325 C, at an fO2 of one log unit below the iron-wuestite buffer (IW-1).

Jurewicz, Amy J. G.↗

Inhomogeneous distribution of materials in lodranites-acapulcoites and IAB irons and their common formation processes

The two-dimensional chemical mapping analysis (CMA) techniques of EPMA and XRF were applied to a new polished thin section (PTS) of EET84302,28, Acapulco and a 5x3 cm slice of Caddo County to find heterogeneous regional distribution of low temperature fractions in the lodranite-acapulcoite groups and silicate inclusions in the IAB irons. A region richer in metal-plagioclase was found in EET84302,28 and Caddo County. The mineralogy of EET84302,28 is not much different from coarse-grained, metal-rich acapulcoite-like mineral assemblage in EET84302,19, which has chromite-orthopyroxene segregation. Nearly uniform Mg/Fe ratios of silicates modified by reduction at regional oxygen fugacity and large difference in modal abundances of minerals in this meteorite group can be explained by regional concentration of materials when the source materials were partly melted.

Takeda, Hiroshi↗

Strategies for Engaging NASA Earth Scientists in K-12 Education and Public Outreach

Engagement of the Earth Science research community in formal education at the kindergarten through high school level and in various aspects of informal education and in professional development of practitioners in related fields has been and continues to be a challenge. A range of approaches is being used and new ones are constantly being tried. Fundamental to our strategies is an understanding of the priorities, skills, academic experiences, motivation, rewards and work experiences of most scientists. It is within this context that efforts to engage a scientist in education efforts are attempted. A key strategy is to limit our requests to activities where the scientist's contribution of time and expertise can have the most impact. Don't waste the scientist's time! Time is one of their most prized resources, it is extremely valuable to you, and to them, we treat their time like a treasured resource. The clearer a scientist's role, their unique contribution and the finite nature of their effort, the more likely they are to participate. It is critical that commitments made to scientists are kept. If they want and can do more, great! Don't expect or assume more will be forthcoming. Another approach that we use is to create periodic venues that, among other things, serve to identify individuals who have an interest or inclination to con , tribute to education efforts. Once identified we strive to determine their interests so that we can make the best match between their interests and the needs of the education program or efforts. In this way, we try to make the best use of their time while engaging them in efforts which will be personally rewarding, and will further the overall education objectives. In addition, we try to make it easier for scientists to participate by providing focused training, such as development of their interviewing skills, and exposure to key concepts, knowledge and skills which are well known among educators but are not common knowledge among scientists. Another strategy with which we are still struggling is how to create and provide career meaningful rewards for individuals who demonstrate excellence in education equivalent to excellence in science. We do not yet have a yardstick to measure excellence in education nor is there a consensus among scientific peers that these two can be equivalent. None-the-less, methods to identify excellence in education, such as the peer review process, are being tried with some success. Use of solicitation and selection of educational efforts via a peer review process that is the same as for scientific research to identify unique, interesting and creative ideas has been somewhat effective. Furthermore, the application of the same peer review process to the output of an educational effort is used to validate and ensure the quality of this output. An example will be used to illustrate the application of some of these strategies to the development of a high school Earth and Space System Science curriculum created in partnership with a local county school system (Anne Arundel County, MD).

Meeson, Blanche W.↗

Mapping Near-Surface Salinization Using Long-wavelength AIRSAR

In May 1999, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory acquired airborne synthetic aperture radar (AIRSAR) data over the Hatchel and Montague Test Sites in Texas. We analyzed P- and L-band polarimetric radar data from these AIRSAR missions to assess whether AIRSAR could be used as a rapid and remote platform for screening large areas at risk for near-surface soil and water salinization. Ongoing geological, geophysical, and hydrological studies at the Hatchel Test Site in Runnels County and the Montague Test Site in Montague County have demonstrated the utility of high-resolution airborne electromagnetic (EM) induction in mapping electrical conductivity changes that accompany shallow natural and oil-field related salinization at these sites in the Colorado and Red River basins. We compared AIRSAR and airborne EM data quantitatively by (1) selecting representative flight lines from airborne EM surveys of the Hatchel and Montague sites, (2) extracting measurement locations and apparent conductivities at the highest available EM frequency, (3) identifying and extracting all P- and L-band backscatter intensities for all locations within 5 m of an airborne EM measurement, and (4) examining the spatial and magnitude relationships between apparent conductivity and all radar polarization and polarization-ratio combinations. For both test sites, backscatter intensity in all individual P- and L-band polarizations was slightly negatively correlated with apparent conductivity. In most modes this was manifested as a decrease in the range and magnitude of backscatter intensity as apparent conductivity increased. Select single-band and cross-band polarization ratios exhibited somewhat higher correlation with apparent conductivity by partly diminishing the dominance of the vegetation contribution to V backscatter intensity. The highest correlation with conductivity was obtained using the L-band vertical- to cross-polarization ratio, the P-band vertical- to L-band cross-polarization ratio, and the P-band vertical-to cross-polarization ratio. These correlations were higher for the more arid (and less electrically conductive) Hatchel Test Site than they were for the Montague Test Site.

Paine, Jeffery G.↗

Stennis Space Center Environmental Geographic Information System

As NASA's lead center for rocket propulsion testing, the John C. Stennis Space Center (SSC) monitors and assesses the off-site impacts of such testing through its Environmental Office (SSC-EO) using acoustical models and ancillary data. The SSC-EO has developed a geographical database, called the SSC Environmental Geographic Information System (SSC-EGIS), that covers an eight-county area bordering the NASA facility. Through the SSC-EGIS, the Enivronmental Office inventories, assesses, and manages the nearly 139,000 acres that comprise Stennis Space Center and its surrounding acoustical buffer zone. The SSC-EGIS contains in-house data as well as a wide range of data obtained from outside sources, including private agencies and local, county, state, and U.S. government agencies. The database comprises cadastral/geodetic, hydrology, infrastructure, geo-political, physical geography, and socio-economic vector and raster layers. The imagery contained in the database is varied, including low-resolution imagery, such as Landsat TM and SPOT; high-resolution imagery, such as IKONOS and AVIRIS; and aerial photographs. The SSC-EGIS has been an integral part of several major projects and the model upon which similar EGIS's will be developed for other NASA facilities. The Corps of Engineers utilized the SSC-EGIS in a plan to establish wetland mitigation sites within the SSC buffer zone. Mississippi State University employed the SSC-EGIS in a preliminary study to evaluate public access points within the buffer zone. The SSC-EO has also expressly used the SSC-EGIS to assess noise pollution modeling, land management/wetland mitigation assessment, environmental hazards mapping, and protected areas mapping for archaeological sites and for threatened and endangered species habitats. The SSC-EO has several active and planned projects that will also make use of the SSC-EGIS during this and the coming fiscal year.

Lovely, Janette↗

Sm-Nd Age and Initial Sr-87/Sr-86 for Yamato 980318: An Old Cumulate Eucrite

The complex pyroxene exsolution texture of the Moore County cumulate eucrite was interpreted by Miyamoto and Takeda as indicating initial cooling at 160 C/Ma followed by a sudden temperature rise and final cooling at 0.35 C/yr. They suggested initial cooling at a depth of approx. 8 km near the base of Vesta s crust, followed by impact excavation to its surface. Young Sm-Nd ages of approx. 4456, 4460, and 4410 Ma, respectively, for the Moore County, Moama, and Serra de Mag cumulate eucrites are puzzling because closure to Nd isotopic exchange would occur in only a few Ma at the above initial cooling rate. The exception to young ages among the cumulate eucrites is EET87520, with a 147Sm-147 - Nd-143 age of 4547-4598 Ma. We report here initial results of a combined mineralogical/chronological study of the Yamato 980318 feldspar-cumulate eucrite.

Nyquist, L. E.↗

Economic Impact of Water Allocation on Agriculture in the Lower Chattahoochee River Basin

The relative value of irrigation water was assessed for three important crops (corn, cotton, and peanuts) grown in the southeastern United States. A decision tool was developed with the objective of allocating limited available water among competing crops in a manner that would maximize the economic returns to the producers. The methodology was developed and tested for a hypothetical farm located in Henry County, Alabama in the Chattahoochee river basin. Crop yield - soil moisture response functions were developed using Monte Carlo simulated data for cotton, corn, and peanuts. A hydrologic model was employed to simulate runoff over the period of observed rainfall the county to provide inflows to storage facilities that could be used as constraints for the optimal allocation of the available water in the face of the uncertainty of future rainfall and runoff. Irrigation decisions were made on a weekly basis during the critical water deficit period in the region. An economic optimization model was employed with the crop responses, and soil moisture functions to determine the optimum amount of water place on each crop subject to the amount of irrigation water availability and climatic uncertainty. The results indicated even small amounts of irrigation could significantly benefit farmers in the region if applied judiciously. A weekly irrigation sequence was developed that maintained the available water on the crops that exhibited the most significant combination of water sensitivity and cash value.

Limaye, Ashutosh S.↗

NAS Demand Predictions, Transportation Systems Analysis Model (TSAM) Compared with Other Forecasts

The current work incorporates the Transportation Systems Analysis Model (TSAM) to predict the future demand for airline travel. TSAM is a multi-mode, national model that predicts the demand for all long distance travel at a county level based upon population and demographics. The model conducts a mode choice analysis to compute the demand for commercial airline travel based upon the traveler s purpose of the trip, value of time, cost and time of the trip,. The county demand for airline travel is then aggregated (or distributed) to the airport level, and the enplanement demand at commercial airports is modeled. With the growth in flight demand, and utilizing current airline flight schedules, the Fratar algorithm is used to develop future flight schedules in the NAS. The projected flights can then be flown through air transportation simulators to quantify the ability of the NAS to meet future demand. A major strength of the TSAM analysis is that scenario planning can be conducted to quantify capacity requirements at individual airports, based upon different future scenarios. Different demographic scenarios can be analyzed to model the demand sensitivity to them. Also, it is fairly well know, but not well modeled at the airport level, that the demand for travel is highly dependent on the cost of travel, or the fare yield of the airline industry. The FAA projects the fare yield (in constant year dollars) to keep decreasing into the future. The magnitude and/or direction of these projections can be suspect in light of the general lack of airline profits and the large rises in airline fuel cost. Also, changes in travel time and convenience have an influence on the demand for air travel, especially for business travel. Future planners cannot easily conduct sensitivity studies of future demand with the FAA TAF data, nor with the Boeing or Airbus projections. In TSAM many factors can be parameterized and various demand sensitivities can be predicted for future travel. These resulting demand scenarios can be incorporated into future flight schedules, therefore providing a quantifiable demand for flights in the NAS for a range of futures. In addition, new future airline business scenarios are investigated that illustrate when direct flights can replace connecting flights and larger aircraft can be substituted, only when justified by demand.

Viken, Jeff↗

Utilizing Traveler Demand Modeling to Predict Future Commercial Flight Schedules in the NAS

The current work incorporates the Transportation Systems Analysis Model (TSAM) to predict the future demand for airline travel. TSAM is a multi-mode, national model that predicts the demand for all long distance travel at a county level based upon population and demographics. The model conducts a mode choice analysis to compute the demand for commercial airline travel based upon the traveler s purpose of the trip, value of time, cost and time of the trip,. The county demand for airline travel is then aggregated (or distributed) to the airport level, and the enplanement demand at commercial airports is modeled. With the growth in flight demand, and utilizing current airline flight schedules, the Fratar algorithm is used to develop future flight schedules in the NAS. The projected flights can then be flown through air transportation simulators to quantify the ability of the NAS to meet future demand. A major strength of the TSAM analysis is that scenario planning can be conducted to quantify capacity requirements at individual airports, based upon different future scenarios. Different demographic scenarios can be analyzed to model the demand sensitivity to them. Also, it is fairly well know, but not well modeled at the airport level, that the demand for travel is highly dependent on the cost of travel, or the fare yield of the airline industry. The FAA projects the fare yield (in constant year dollars) to keep decreasing into the future. The magnitude and/or direction of these projections can be suspect in light of the general lack of airline profits and the large rises in airline fuel cost. Also, changes in travel time and convenience have an influence on the demand for air travel, especially for business travel. Future planners cannot easily conduct sensitivity studies of future demand with the FAA TAF data, nor with the Boeing or Airbus projections. In TSAM many factors can be parameterized and various demand sensitivities can be predicted for future travel. These resulting demand scenarios can be incorporated into future flight schedules, therefore providing a quantifiable demand for flights in the NAS for a range of futures. In addition, new future airline business scenarios are investigated that illustrate when direct flights can replace connecting flights and larger aircraft can be substituted, only when justified by demand.

Viken, Jeff↗

The Washington DC Metro Area Lightning Mapping Array

During the spring and summer of 2006, a network of eight lightning mapping stations has been set up in the greater DC metropolitan area to monitor the total lightning activity in storms over Virginia, Maryland and the Washington DC area. The network is a joint project between New Mexico Tech, NASA, and NOAA/National Weather Service, with real-time data being provided to the NWS for use in their forecast and warning operations. The network utilizes newly available portable stations developed with support from the National Science Foundation. Cooperating institutions involved in hosting mapping stations are Howard University, Montgomery County Community College in Rockville MD, NOAA/NWS's Test and Evaluation Site in Sterling, VA, College of Southern Maryland near La Plata MD, the Applied Physics Laboratory of Johns Hopkins University, Northern Virginia Community College in Annandale, VA, the University of Maryland at Baltimore County, and George Mason University (Prince William Campus) in Manassas, VA. The network is experimental in that its stations a) operate in the upper rather than the lower VHF (TV channel 10, 192-198 MHz) to reduce the radio frequency background noise associated with urban environments, and b) are linked to the central processing site via the internet rather than by dedicated wireless communication links. The central processing is done in Huntsville, AL, and updated observations are sent to the National Weather Service every 2 min. The observational data will also be available on a public website. The higher operating frequency results in a decrease in signal strength estimated to be about 15-20 dB, relative to the LMA networks being operated in northern Alabama and central Oklahoma (which operate on TV channels 5 and 3, respectively). This is offset somewhat by decreased background noise levels at many stations. The receiver threshold levels range from about -95 dBm up to -80 dBm and the peak lightning signals typically extend 15-20 dB above the threshold values. Despite having decreased sensitivity, the network locates lightning in plan position over all of Maryland and Delaware, much of Virginia, and into Southern Pennsylvania and New Jersey. 3-D coverage is provided out to 100-150 km range from the Sterling WFO including the 3 major DC commercial airports (Reagan National, Dulles International, and Baltimore Washington International). The network will eventually consist of 10 or more stations, which will extend and improve its coverage.

Krehbiel, Paul↗

Modeling Influenza Transmission Using Environmental Parameters

Influenza is an acute viral respiratory disease that has significant mortality, morbidity and economic burden worldwide. It infects approximately 5-15% of the world population, and causes 250,000 500,000 deaths each year. The role of environments on influenza is often drawn upon the latitude variability of influenza seasonality pattern. In regions with temperate climate, influenza epidemics exhibit clear seasonal pattern that peak during winter months, but it is not as evident in the tropics. Toward this end, we developed mathematical model and forecasting capabilities for influenza in regions characterized by warm climate Hong Kong (China) and Maricopa County (Arizona, USA). The best model for Hong Kong uses Land Surface Temperature (LST), precipitation and relative humidity as its covariates. Whereas for Maricopa County, we found that weekly influenza cases can be best modelled using mean air temperature as its covariates. Our forecasts can further guides public health organizations in targeting influenza prevention and control measures such as vaccination.

Soebiyanto, Radina P.↗

Information Systems Coordinate Emergency Management

The rescue crews have been searching for the woman for nearly a week. Hurricane Katrina devastated Hancock County, the southernmost point in Mississippi, and the woman had stayed through the storm in her beach house. There is little hope of finding her alive; the search teams know she is gone because the house is gone. Late at night in the art classroom of the school that is serving as the county s emergency operations center, Craig Harvey is discussing the search with the center s commander. Harvey is the Chief Operating Officer of a unique company called NVision Solutions Inc., based at NASA s Stennis Space Center in Bay St. Louis, only a couple of miles away. He and his entire staff have set up a volunteer operation in the art room, supporting the emergency management efforts using technology and capabilities the company developed through its NASA partnerships. As he talks to the commander, Harvey feels an idea taking shape that might lead them to the woman s location. Working with surface elevation data and hydrological principles, Harvey creates a map showing how the floodwaters from the storm would have flowed along the topography of the region around the woman s former home. Using the map, search crews find the woman s body in 15 minutes. Recovering individuals who have been lost is a sad reality of emergency management in the wake of a disaster like Hurricane Katrina in 2005. But the sooner answers can be provided, the sooner a community s overall recovery can take place. When damage is extensive, resources are scattered, and people are in dire need of food, shelter, and medical assistance, the speed and efficiency of emergency operations can be the key to limiting the impact of a disaster and speeding the process of recovery. And a key to quick and effective emergency planning and response is geographic information. With a host of Earth-observing satellites orbiting the globe at all times, NASA generates an unmatched wealth of data about our ever-changing planet. This information can be captured, analyzed, and visualized by geographic information systems (GIS) to produce maps, charts, and other tools that can reveal information essential to a wide variety of applications including emergency management. Knowing precise, real-time information about the size, location, environmental conditions, and resulting damage of an event like a flood or wildfire as well as the location and numbers of emergency responders and other resources contributes directly to the effectiveness of disaster mitigation. The need for such information is also evident when responding to homeland security threats, such as a terrorist attack. Recognizing the value of its geospatial information resources for this and other purposes, in 1998 Stennis and the state of Mississippi partnered to form what became the Enterprise for Innovative Geospatial Solutions (EIGS) industry cluster, supporting the growth of remote sensing and GIS-based research and business. As part of EIGS, several companies partnered with NASA through dual use and Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contracts. Among those was NVision.

Source record↗

Situational Lightning Climatologies for Central Florida, Phase 2, Part 3

The threat of lightning is a daily concern during the warm season in Florida. The forecasters at the Spaceflight Meteorology Group (SMG) at Johnson Spaceflight Center in Houston, TX consider lightning in their landing forecasts for space shuttles at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC), FL Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF). The forecasters at the National Weather Service in Melbourne, FL (NWS MLB) do the same in their routine Terminal Aerodrome Forecasts (TAFs) for seven airports in the NWS MLB County Warning Area (CWA). The Applied Meteorology Unit created flow regime climatologies of lightning probability in the 5-, 10-, 20-, and 30-n mi circles surrounding the Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF) and all airports in the NWS MLB county warning area in 1-, 3-, and 6-hour increments. The results were presented in tabular and graphical format and incorporated into a web-based graphical user interface so forecasters could easily navigate through the data and to make the GUI usable in any web browser on computers with different operating systems.

Bauman, William H., III↗

Using Remotely Sensed Data and Watershed and Hydrodynamic Models to Evaluate the Effects of Land Cover Land Use Change on Aquatic Ecosystems in Mobile Bay, AL

Alabama coastal systems have been subjected to increasing pressure from a variety of activities including urban and rural development, shoreline modifications, industrial activities, and dredging of shipping and navigation channels. The impacts on coastal ecosystems are often observed through the use of indicator species. One such indicator species for aquatic ecosystem health is submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV). Watershed and hydrodynamic modeling has been performed to evaluate the impact of land cover land use (LCLU) change in the two counties surrounding Mobile Bay (Mobile and Baldwin) on SAV stressors and controlling factors (temperature, salinity, and sediment) in the Mobile Bay estuary. Watershed modeling using the Loading Simulation Package in C++ (LSPC) was performed for all watersheds contiguous to Mobile Bay for LCLU scenarios in 1948, 1992, 2001, and 2030. Remotely sensed Landsat-derived National Land Cover Data (NLCD) were used in the 1992 and 2001 simulations after having been reclassified to a common classification scheme. The Prescott Spatial Growth Model was used to project the 2030 LCLU scenario based on current trends. The LSPC model simulations provided output on changes in flow, temperature, and sediment for 22 discharge points into the estuary. These results were inputted in the Environmental Fluid Dynamics Computer Code (EFDC) hydrodynamic model to generate data on changes in temperature, salinity, and sediment on a grid throughout Mobile Bay and adjacent estuaries. The changes in the aquatic ecosystem were used to perform an ecological analysis to evaluate the impact on SAV habitat suitability. This is the key product benefiting the Mobile Bay coastal environmental managers that integrates the influences of temperature, salinity, and sediment due to LCLU driven flow changes with the restoration potential of SAVs. Data products and results are being integrated into NOAA s EcoWatch and Gulf of Mexico Data Atlas online systems for dissemination to coastal resource managers and stakeholders. Objective 1: Develop and utilize Land Use scenarios for Mobile and Baldwin Counties, AL as input to models to predict the affects on water properties (temperature,salinity,)for Mobile Bay through 2030. Objective 2: Evaluate the impact of land use change on seagrasses and SAV in Mobile Bay. Hypothesis: Urbanization will significantly increase surface flows and impact salinity and temperature variables that effect seagrasses and SAVs.

Al-Hamdan, Mohammad↗

Flood Analysis of the Thomas Flood in California Using NASA Data in a GIS

In December 2017, the Thomas Fire burned areas in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties in California, consuming 281,893 acres (440 square miles), and becoming the largest wildfire in California history. On January 8, 2018, a winter storm made landfall in Santa Barbara County, releasing more than 5 inches of rain onto the same scarred area, causing San Ysidro and Montecito Creeks to overflow and leading to devastating flash flooding and debris flows by January 9, 2018. Several areas that were not typically prone to flooding were at risk due to the higher than usual flows in the nearby streams and creeks. The unprecedented flooding killed at least 20 people and left several others missing. NASA's Earth Observing System Data Information System (EOSDIS) manages Earth Observation satellites and the Distributed Active Archive Centers (DAACs), where the data is stored and processed. This poster presents the use of satellite data from NASA's inventory that have the potential for use in identification and analysis of forest fire risk and subsequent after-effects within a geographic information system (GIS).

science↗

Assessment of the 2013-2014 Drought on Ecosystems of the California Central Coast

Calendar year 2013 was the driest on record in California, with a total of just 30 percent of average statewide precipitation. The objective of this present study was to assess the impacts of the historic 2013-2014 drought on ecosystems of the Central Coast region using a combination of satellite image analysis and in situ measurements of soil moisture. According to differences in Landsat NDWI and NDVI between May of 2010 and 2013, the geographic areas within the study region that were most severely impacted by the 2013 drought were the inland Carmel Valley in northern Monterey County, and the coast zones around San Simeon Point and Cambria in northern San Luis Obispo County. For more detailed examination of drought impacts, the entire study region was separated into the three predominate vegetation types (grasslands, shrublands, and forests) to examine changes in Landsat NDWI and NDVI in the context of differing plant community response to severe drought.

Normalized Differences Vegetation Index (NDVI)↗

New York City Panel on Climate Change 2019 Report Chapter 9: Perspectives on a City in a Changing Climate 2008-2018

Cities experience multiple environmental shifts, stresses, and shocks—such as air and water pollution—and a variety of extreme events simultaneously and continuously. Current urban programs have focused on limiting the impacts of these conditions through a portfolio of multifaceted strategies, such as regulations and codes, management and restoration projects, and citizen engagement. Global climate change represents a new environmental dynamic to which cities now have to respond. While global climate change by definition has impacts world wide, residents and managers of cities, like New York, typically perceive changes in their own local environments. In most cities, temperature is warming with increasingly hotter and longer heatwaves, and heavier downpours are leading to more frequent inland flooding. In coastal cities, sea levels are rising, exacerbating coastal flooding. Analyzing and understanding the impacts of climate change on cities is important because of the dramatic growth in urban populations throughout the world. An estimated nearly 4.0 billion people reside in urban areas, accounting for 52% of the world’s population (UN, 2017). That percentage will increase dramatically in the coming decades as almost all of the growth to take place up to 2050 will be in urban areas (UN, 2017). The New York City metropolitan region (NYMR)—the five boroughs (equivalent to counties) of New York City and the adjacent 26 counties in the states of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut—is an ideal model of an urban agglomeration. Approximately 8.6 million people live in the five boroughs and more than 15 million people live in the neighboring smaller cities, towns, and villages (City of New York, 2018a; US Census, 2017). The population of the five boroughs is projected to add 1 million people by 2030, while the total region is projected to reach 26.1 million (NYTC, 2015).

Solecki, William↗

Fire Analysis of the Thomas Fire in California Using NASA Data in a GIS

These maps are an analysis of the Thomas Fire that occurred in California during December 2017. Using a variety of NASA Earth science data from five National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) sources (including four Earth Observing System Data and Information System Distributed Active Archive Centers and NASA Fire Information for Resource Management System), as well as ancillary data from Ventura County, Santa Barbara County, and the Department of Homeland Security, this analysis sought to identify forest fire risk zones, create a fire occurrence density map, examine the vegetation and subsequent burn scar, capture the affected parcels, and capture the affected vegetation.

Bagwell, Ross↗