Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “EARTH SCIENCE > ATMOSPHERE >”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 379 records · Page 21
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2003

The Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) Mission

This viewgraph presentation gives a general overview of The Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) Mission. The contents include: 1) The Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO); 2) Why Measure CO2?; 3) An Uncertain Future; 4) Monitoring CO2 from Space; 5) Validation Program Ensures Accuracy and Minimizes Spatially Coherent Biases; 6) The OCO Instrument; 7) The OCO Spacecraft; 8) Mission Operations and Data Downlink; 9) OCO Data Products; 10) OCO Data Product Summary; 11) OCO in the A-Train; 12) Summary; and 13) Simulated Performance.

Pathfinder Program↗
NASA NTRS2012

Atmospheric Research 2011 Technical Highlights

The 2011 Technical Highlights describes the efforts of all members of Atmospheric Research. Their dedication to advancing Earth Science through conducting research, developing and running models, designing instruments, managing projects, running field campaigns, and numerous other activities, is highlighted in this report.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1975

Interim Report of the Astronomy Spacelab Payloads Study: Ultraviolet and Optical Astronomy - Volume 2

The Space Shuttle will comprise NASA's primary transportation system into near-earth orbit during the 1980s. The Shuttle will provide the astronomical community with a major new capability to send a wide variety of instrumentation into orbit, to utilize it there under manned or automatic control for periods from seven to thirty days, and to return it to the ground. To this end the European Space Research Organization (ESRO) is developing Spacelab, an array of interchangeable components -pressurized manned modules, unpressurized pallets and related support systems - to be mounted in the Shuttle payload bay. Spacelab will offer important opportunities to carry out astronomical research with instruments optimized for specific objectives. With a high flight frequency and with the ability to modify or interchange telescopes and instruments between flights, one will not need to make rigid long-term commitments to specific and compromised telescope/instrument/ detector combinations as is the case for automated satellites. Observational techniques demanding the physical return of data and equipment - in particular the use of photographic film, instruments requiring tight calibration controls, cryogens, high-risk detectors and degradeable optical coatings -will open research areas not readily addressed by automated satellites. Although Shuttle flight duration will be limited to periods from seven to thirty days, substantial data can be obtained with a single instrument on short missions, if targets are carefully selected and prioritized, and a large number of instruments can be accommodated on a single flight. Important astronomical data are regularly obtained on sounding rocket flights of five minutes duration. Spacelab will provide far longer observing periods for large and small telescopes, with resources greatly exceeding those of sounding rockets, while retaining much of the sounding rocket philosophy in terms of instrument flexibility, simplicity, reliability assurance and development costs. The Ultraviolet and Optical Astronomy Program on Spacelab is being planned to provide optical astronomers with relatively simple and regular access to the extended wavelength coverage, the superior image quality and the darkness of the night sky available above the earth's atmosphere. In a rapidly evolving science one cannot predict what problems will be timely in the 1980s. Extrapolating from the current epoch, however, one can envision a continuing interest in such areas as the structure, composition and phenomenology of planetary surfaces and atmospheres; the composition and physical nature of the interstellar medium; the composition, structure and life history of stars, especially those in advanced stages of evolution; the stellar population of other galaxies; such enigmatic phenomena as X-ray binary black holes, pulsars, active galactic nuclei and quasars; large scale interactions between galaxies and the nature of the intergalactic medium; precise calibration of the Hubble law for the expansion of the universe; the average density of the universe; and the existence of extraterrestrial life.

Source record↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

GEWEX SRB Release 4: Public Release

The NASA/GEWEX Surface Radiation Budget (SRB) project produces 3-hourly shortwave and longwave surface and top of atmosphere radiative fluxes for the 1983-nearpresent time period. Here we announce the public availability of the new Release 4 Integrated data product (R4-IP). R4-IP uses the newly recalibrated and processed ISCCP HXS product as its primary input for cloud and radiance data, replacing ISCCP DX with a ninefold increase in pixel count (10km instead of 30km). This version retains a 1°x1° resolution but benefits from a much larger number of samples per grid box than the SRB Release 3. ISCCP also provides an atmospheric temperature and moisture dataset known as nnHIRS which we use here, along with Seaflux and Landflux surface and near-surface meteorological parameters constituting an “Integrated Product” for energy and water cycle studies. In addition to the input data improvements, several important algorithm improvements have been made since Release 3. These include recalculated shortwave (SW or solar wavelengths) atmospheric transmissivities and reflectivities yielding a somewhat less transmissive atmosphere. Both SW and LW (longwave or thermal infrared) also include variable aerosol composition and radiative properties, allowing for the use of a detailed aerosol history from the Max Planck Institute Aerosol Climatology (MAC). Both LW and SW algorithms now produce pristine sky fluxes, allowing the aerosol flux effects to be quantified. For SW, ocean albedo and snow/ice albedo are improved from Release 3. Total solar irradiance is now variable, and reduced to an average of 1361 Wm-2. The radiative treatment of ice cloud is improved. For the LW, a climatological monthly varying spectral surface emissivity is added.Here we analyze the new SW SRB datasets, comparing them to the previous Release 3, BSRN and PMEL surface measurements. Validation results show improved agreement compared to Release 3. Comparisons to ERBE and CERES TOA and surface satellite datasets before and after overlap periods show the long-term agreement with radiometric uncertainty. Monthly anomalies at global and zonal regions show very good correlation with the shorter ERBE and CERES flux anomalies linking those to the longer term. The uncertainties are discussed and periods of potential issues in inputs and/or algorithms are identified.

Earth energy budget↗
NASA NTRS2024

Observational Constraint on A Feedback From Supercooled Clouds Reduces Projected Warming Uncertainty

The increase of carbon-dioxide-doubling-induced warming (climate sensitivity) in the latest climate models is primarily attributed to a larger extratropical cloud feedback. This is thought to be partly driven by a greater ratio of supercooled liquid-phase clouds to all clouds, termed liquid phase ratio. We use an instrument simulator approach to show that this ratio has increased in the latest climate models and is overestimated rather than underestimated as previously thought. In our analysis of multiple models, a greater ratio corresponds to stronger negative cloud feedback, in contradiction with single-model-based studies. We trace this unexpected result to a cloud feedback involving a shift from supercooled to warm clouds as climate warms, which corresponds to greater cloud amount and optical depth and weakens the extratropical cloud feedback. Better constraining this ratio in climate models – and thus this supercooled cloud feedback – impacts their climate sensitivities by up to 1 ˚C and reduces inter-model spread.

Climate and Earth system modelling↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

ncompare: A Python Package for Comparing netCDF Structures

Earth science researchers and data engineers have a common problem: they often need to compare data files to see what is different between them. A lot of time is spent developing code to test differences. When it comes to comparing multidimensional data file formats like netCDFs (Network Common Data Form), this is particularly challenging and time-consuming, since there is frequently a need to evaluate the differences between dimension sizes, variable structures, and variable attributes, especially for regression testing. Since netCDFs are widely used in Earth science — with climate models, oceanographic or atmospheric reanalyses, and observational data — improved means of evaluating netCDF files can help enable a wide range of applications. We have developed a reusable open source approach through `ncompare`, which is a Python package for comparing netCDF structures [[https://github.com/nasa/ncompare]]. The `ncompare` tool compares the structure of two Network Common Data Form (NetCDF) files at the command line. It facilitates rapid comparisons by generating a formatted display of the matching and non-matching groups, variables, and associated metadata between two NetCDF datasets. The user has the option to colorize the terminal output for ease of viewing, and `ncompare` can optionally save comparison reports in text, comma-separated value (CSV), and/or Microsoft Excel formats. Despite the availability of tools (such as ncmpidiff or nccmp) that compare the values of variables, there was not previously a readily available, Python-based tool for rapid visual comparisons of group and variable structures, attributes, and chunking. `ncompare` was developed at NASA’s Atmospheric Science Data Center (ASDC) and is a collaboration with NASA Openscapes [[https://nasa-openscapes.github.io]] mentors across 11 of NASA’s data centers. Openscapes’ overarching vision is to support scientific researchers using NASA Earthdata as they migrate their workflows to the cloud. Relevant links: - https://github.com/nasa/ncompare - https://github.com/pyOpenSci/software-submission/issues/146 - https://nasa-openscapes.github.io

Daniel Kaufman↗
NASA NTRS2016

NASA SNPP SIPS - Following in the Path of EOS

NASA's Earth Science Data Information System (ESDIS) Project has been operating NASA's Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership (SNPP) Science Data Segment (SDS) since the launch in October 2011. At launch, the SDS focused primarily on the evaluation of Sensor Data Records (SDRs) and Environmental Data Records (EDRs) produced by the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS), a National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration (NOAA) Program, as to their suitability for Earth system science. During the summer of 2014, NASA transitioned to the production of standard Earth Observing System (EOS)-like science products for all instruments aboard Suomi NPP. The five Science Investigator-led Processing Systems (SIPS): Land, Ocean, Atmosphere, Ozone, and Sounder were established to produce the NASA SNPP standard Level 1, Level 2, and global Level 3 products developed by the SNPP Science Teams and to provide the products to NASA's Distributed Active Archive Centers (DAACs) for archive and distribution to the user community. The processing, archiving and distribution of data from NASA's Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES) and Ozone Mapper/Profiler Suite (OMPS) Limb instruments will continue. With the implementation of the JPSS Block 2 architecture and the launch of JPSS-1, the SDS will receive SNPP data in near real-time via the JPSS Stored Mission Data Hub (JSH), as well as JPSS-1 and future JPSS-2 data. The SNPP SIPS will ingest EOS compatible Level 0 data from the EOS Data Operations System (EDOS) element for their data processing, enabling the continuous EOS-SNPP-JPSS Satellite Data Record.

near real time↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

ML/AI Applications to the Atmosphere Science Data and Simulations (Demonstration and Vision)

Artificial Intelligence has been recognized as one of the most powerful tools for scientific research. It has a wide range of applications in atmospheric science and plays a significant role in advancing our understanding of the Earth-Atmosphere system, as well as improving our ability to monitor, predict, and respond to atmospheric observations and simulations. Different AI architectures can help us handle various problems according to our research goals. In this presentation, we will introduce several use cases and models for applying computer vision to active remote sensing data from CALIOP, analyzing cloud dynamical relationships for climate model parameterizations, and building surrogate models for lidar simulations. The presentation will highlight the advantages that AI offers compared to traditional analytical methods. By assembling pieces of the multidimensional atmospheric science puzzle, we can integrate our knowledge from observations to simulations.

Shan Zeng↗
NASA NTRS2009

Scientific Benefits of Space Science Models Archiving at Community Coordinated Modeling Center

The Community Coordinated Modeling Center (CCMC) hosts a set of state-of-the-art space science models ranging from the solar atmosphere to the Earth's upper atmosphere. CCMC provides a web-based Run-on-Request system, by which the interested scientist can request simulations for a broad range of space science problems. To allow the models to be driven by data relevant to particular events CCMC developed a tool that automatically downloads data from data archives and transform them to required formats. CCMC also provides a tailored web-based visualization interface for the model output, as well as the capability to download the simulation output in portable format. CCMC offers a variety of visualization and output analysis tools to aid scientists in interpretation of simulation results. During eight years since the Run-on-request system became available the CCMC archived the results of almost 3000 runs that are covering significant space weather events and time intervals of interest identified by the community. The simulation results archived at CCMC also include a library of general purpose runs with modeled conditions that are used for education and research. Archiving results of simulations performed in support of several Modeling Challenges helps to evaluate the progress in space weather modeling over time. We will highlight the scientific benefits of CCMC space science model archive and discuss plans for further development of advanced methods to interact with simulation results.

Kuznetsova, Maria M.↗
NASA NTRS2000

Ecosystem Modeling of Biological Processes to Global Budgets

From an ecological perspective, the search for life on distant planets begins from several key assumptions. The first of these is that, viewed from a remote location in space, the signature of life on a distant planet will be the result of net gas exchange of organisms with their environment. On the basis of extensive biogeochemical measurements and biogenic trace gas fluxes in modem Earth environments, it is probable that certain groups of organisms both produce and consume the same trace gas(es) within a single bioprofile of Solid (porous) substrate or surface water. The net gas exchange rate with the atmosphere measured at the living surface is frequently the result of competing metabolic reactions, which may carried out by different functional groups of organisms located at dissimilar 'climatic' or chemical microsites within the same bioprofile. Biogenic gases produced at one (deep) level of a bioprofile may be consumed by another functional group of organisms located closer to the level of surface exchange with the atmosphere. A second key assumption is that the net biogenic fluxes of atmospheric gases on Earth can be used to infer relative abundance and functional composition of the major organisms on a distant planet. Examples of this principle include the presence of methanogenic microorganisms abundant today in freshwater ecosystems worldwide, which are major source of atmospheric methane and its seasonal variability in Earth's atmosphere. A third assumption is that scaling up biogenic gas fluxes from a single biological community to the planetary level requires flux measurements at the whole ecosystem level. This implies that measurements of biogenic gas exchange with the global atmosphere cannot be easily inferred from measurements of gas production rates of single organisms, which may have been isolated in some manner from the setting of their native ecosystem. Hence, the unit of biological organization used in modern Earth Science for scaling up to biosphere effects on atmospheric composition is the ecosystem level. These assumptions are the foundation for developing modern emission budgets for biogenic gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, carbon monoxide, isoprene, nitrous and nitric oxide, and ammonia. Such emission budgets commonly include information on seasonal flux patterns, typical diurnal profiles, and spatial resolution of at least one degree latitude/longitude for the globe. On the basis of these budgets, it is possible to compute 'base emission rates' for the major biogenic trace gases from both terrestrial and ocean sources, which may be useful benchmarks for defining the gas production rates of organisms, especially those from early Earth history, which are required to generate a detectable signal on a global atmosphere. This type of analysis is also the starting point for evaluation of the 'biological processes to global gas budget' extrapolation procedure described above for early Earth ecosystems.

Christopher, Potter S.↗
NASA NTRS2013

Ablator Response Model Development: From Flight Data Back to Fundamental Experiments

The successful Mars atmospheric entry by the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL-Curiosity) combined with the success of the Earth atmospheric entry by the Stardust capsule have established PICA as a major Thermal Protection Systems (TPS) material. We expect that this class of materials will be on the short list selected by NASA for any atmospheric entry missions and that it will be the lead of that list of materials in any planning, feasibility studies or flight readiness studies. In addition to NASAs successes, the Dragon capsule, the successful commercial space vehicle built by SpaceX, uses PICA-X, while the European Space Agency is considering ASTERM for its exploration missions that involve atmospheric entries, both of these materials are of the same family as PICA. In the talk, a high-fidelity model will be detailed and discussed. The model tracks the chemical composition of the gases produced during pyrolysis. As in the conventional models, it uses equilibrium chemistry to determine the recession rate at high temperatures but switches to in-volume finite-rate ablation for lower temperatures. It also tracks the time evolution of the porosity of the material. Progress in implementing this high-fidelity model in a code will be presented. In addition, a set of basic experimental data being supported for model validation will be summarized. The validation process for the model development will be discussed. Preliminary results will be presented for a case where detailed pyrolysis product chemistry is computed. Finally, a wish list for a set of validation experiments will be outlined and discussed.

Mansour, Nagi N.↗
NASA NTRS2004

NASA's Earth Observing System (EOS): Observing the Atmosphere, Land, Oceans, and Ice from Space

The Earth Observing System (EOS) is a space-based observing system comprised of a series of satellite sensors by which scientists can monitor the Earth, a Data and Information System (EOSDIS) enabling researchers worldwide to access the satellite data, and an interdisciplinary science research program to interpret the satellite data. During this year, the last of the first series of EOS missions, Aura, was launched. Aura is designed exclusively to conduct research on the composition, chemistry, and dynamics of the Earth's upper and lower atmosphere, employing multiple instruments on a single spacecraft. Aura is the third in a series of major Earth observing satellites to study the environment and climate change and is part of NASA's Earth Science Enterprise. The first and second missions, Terra and Aqua, are designed to study the land, oceans, atmospheric constituents (aerosols, clouds, temperature, and water vapor), and the Earth's radiation budget. The other seven EOS spacecraft include satellites to study (i) land cover & land use change, (ii) solar irradiance and solar spectral variation, (iii) ice volume, (iv) ocean processes (vector wind and sea surface topography), and (v) vertical variations of clouds, water vapor, and aerosols up to and including the stratosphere. Aura's chemistry measurements will also follow up on measurements that began with NASA's Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite and continue the record of satellite ozone data collected from the TOMS missions. In this presentation I will describe how scientists are using EOS data to examine the health of the earth's atmosphere, including atmospheric chemistry, aerosol properties, and cloud properties, with a special but not exclusive look at the latest earth observing mission, Aura.

King, Michael D.↗
NASA NTRS2005

NASA's Earth Observing System (EOS): Observing the Atmosphere, Land, Oceans, and Ice from Space

The Earth Observing System (EOS) is a space-based observing system comprised of a series of satellite sensors by whch scientists can monitor the Earth, a Data and Information System (EOSDIS) enabling researchers worldwide to access the satellite data, and an interdisciplinary science research program to interpret the satellite data. During this year, the last of the first series of EOS missions, Aura, was launched. Aura is designed exclusively to conduct research on the composition, chemistry, and dynamics of the Earth's upper and lower atmosphere, employing multiple instruments on a single spacecraft. Aura is the third in a series of major Earth observing satellites to study the environment and climate change and is part of NASA's Earth Science Enterprise. The first and second missions, Terra and Aqua, are designed to study the land, oceans, atmospheric constituents (aerosols, clouds, temperature, and water vapor), and the Earth's radiation budget. The other seven EOS spacecraft include satellites to study (i) land cover & land use change, (ii) solar irradiance and solar spectral variation, (iii) ice volume, (iv) ocean processes (vector wind and sea surface topography), and (v) vertical variations of clouds, water vapor, and aerosols up to and including the stratosphere. Aura's chemistry measurements will also follow up on measurements that began with NASA's Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite and continue the record of satellite ozone data collected from the TOMS missions. In this presentation I will describe how scientists are using EOS data to examine the health of the earth's atmosphere, including atmospheric chemistry, aerosol properties, and cloud properties, with a special look at the latest earth observing mission, Aura.

King, Michael D.↗
NASA NTRS2002

The Southern African Regional Science Initiative (SAFARI 2000). Dry-Season Campaign: An Overview

The Southern African Regional Science Initiative (SAFARI 2000) is an international science project investigating the southern African earth-atmosphere-human system. The experiment was conducted over a two-year period March 1999 - March 2001. The dry season field campaign (August-Steptember 2000) was the most intensive activity and involving over 200 scientists from 18 different nations. The main objectives of this campaign were to characterize and quantify the biogenic, pyrogenic and anthropogenic aerosol and trace gas emissions and their transport and transformations in the atmosphere and to validate the NASA Earth Observing System (EOS) satellite Terra within a scientific context. Five aircraft, namely two South African Weather Service aircraft, University of Washington CV-580, the UK Meteorological Office C-130 and the NASA ER-2, with different altitude capabilities, participated in the campaign. Additional airborne sampling of southern African air masses that had moved downwind of the subcontinent was conducted by the CSIRO over Australia. Multiple observations were taken in various sectors for a variety of synoptic conditions. Flight missions were designed to maximize synchronous over-flights of the NASA TERRA satellite platform, above regional ground validation and science targets. Numerous smaller-scale ground validation activities took place throughout the region during the campaign period.

Swap, R. J.↗
NASA NTRS2004

AIRS Data Subsetting Service at the Goddard Earth Sciences (GES) DISC/DAAC

The AIRS mission, as a combination of the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), the Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit (AMSU) and the Humidity Sounder for Brazil (HSB), brings climate research and weather prediction into 21st century. From NASA' Aqua spacecraft, the AIRS/AMSU/HSB instruments measure humidity, temperature, cloud properties and the amounts of greenhouse gases. The AIRS also reveals land and sea- surface temperatures. Measurements from these three instruments are analyzed . jointly to filter out the effects of clouds from the IR data in order to derive clear-column air-temperature profiles and surface temperatures with high vertical resolution and accuracy. Together, they constitute an advanced operational sounding data system that have contributed to improve global modeling efforts and numerical weather prediction; enhance studies of the global energy and water cycles, the effects of greenhouse gases, and atmosphere-surface interactions; and facilitate monitoring of climate variations and trends. The high data volume generated by the AIRS/AMSU/HSB instruments and the complexity of its data format (Hierarchical Data Format, HDF) are barriers to AIRS data use. Although many researchers are interested in only a fraction of the data they receive or request, they are forced to run their algorithms on a much larger data set to extract the information of interest. In order to better server its users, the GES DISC/DAAC, provider of long-term archives and distribution services as well science support for the AIRS/AMSU/HSB data products, has developed various tools for performing channels, variables, parameter, spatial and derived products subsetting, resampling and reformatting operations. This presentation mainly describes the web-enabled subsetting services currently available at the GES DISC/DAAC that provide subsetting functions for all the Level 1B and Level 2 data products from the AIRS/AMSU/HSB instruments.

Vicente, Gilberto A.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Science Objectives of the ACCP/AOS Millimeter- and Submillimeter-Wave Radiometers

Passive microwave radiometers provide highly useful information regarding the Earth system by measuring thermal emission (from the surface and atmosphere) that is reflected, absorbed, and scattered by the surface and the atmosphere. As such, radiometers have been instrumental across Earth-observing concepts with heritage tracing back to the Nimbus era, and clouds and precipitation have been key geophysical phenomena these sensors have targeted. As millimeter-wave (particularly ≥85 GHz) and submillimeter-wave technologies have advanced, the applicability of microwave radiometers has expanded to encompass falling snow and ice clouds, respectively. Given the strong heritage of microwave radiometry and the emergence of submillimeter-wave sensors for sensing falling snow and ice clouds, the National Academies’ 2017 Decadal Survey for Earth Science and Applications from Space recommended passive sensors covering these wavelengths be included in observing systems that address the Aerosols, Clouds, Convection, and Precipitation (ACCP) combined designated observable. To showcase the capabilities for addressing the ACCP science objectives, we will provide an overview of the passive microwave capabilities envisioned for the Atmosphere Observing System (AOS, part of the recently unveiled NASA Earth System Observatory), including descriptions of the radiometers for the inclined and polar orbits and the primary geophysical variables of interest related to ice-phase clouds and precipitation. We will also discuss secondary science objectives, such as precipitation mapping, that can be achieved with the ACCP/AOS radiometers. Examples from the analyses performed for the ACCP/AOS architecture study and subsequent sensor definition exercises will be presented, outlining the basis for the radiometer configuration within the context of the overarching ACCP/AOS goals to elucidate the connections between atmospheric dynamics, weather (including extreme events), air quality, and climate.

Ian S Adams↗
NASA NTRS2001

Electronic-Theater 2001: Visions of Our Planet's Atmosphere, Land and Oceans

The NASA/NOAA/AMS Electronic Theater presents Earth science observations and visualizations in a historical perspective. Fly in from outer space to Wisconsin, Madison and the Monona Terrace Center. Drop in on the Kennedy Space Center and Park City Utah, site of the 2002 Olympics using I m IKONOS "Spy Satellite" data. Go back to the early weather satellite images from the 1960s pioneered by UW. Scientists and see them contrasted with the latest US and International global satellite weather movies including hurricanes & tornadoes. See the latest spectacular images from NASA/NOAA remote sensing missions like Terra GOES, TRMM, SeaWiFS, Landsat 7 that are visualized & explained. See how High Definition Television (HDTV) is revolutionizing the way we communicate science in cooperation with the American Museum of Natural History in NYC. See dust storms in Africa and smoke plumes from fires in Mexico. See visualizations featured on Newsweek, TIME, National Geographic, Popular Science covers & National & International Network TV. New visualization tools allow us to roam & zoom through massive global images eg Landsat tours of the US, Africa, & New Zealand showing desert and mountain geology as well as seasonal changes in vegetation. See animations of the polar ice packs and the motion of gigantic Antarctic Icebergs from SeaWinds data. Spectacular new visualizations of the global atmosphere & oceans are shown. See massive dust storms sweeping across Africa. See vortices and currents in the global oceans that bring up the nutrients to feed tiny plankton and draw the fish, whales and fisherman. See the how the ocean blooms in response to these currents and El Nina/La Nina climate changes. The demonstration is interactively driven by a SGI Onyx 11 Graphics Supercomputer with four CPUs, 8 Gigabytes of RAM and Terabyte of disk. With five projectors on a giant IMAX sized 18 x 72 ft screen. See the city lights, fishing fleets, gas flares and bio-mass burning of the Earth at night observed by the "nightvision" DMSP military satellite.

Hasler, Authur↗