Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “climate communication”

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 109 records · Page 6

Online real-time learning of dynamical systems from noisy streaming data

Abstract Recent advancements in sensing and communication facilitate obtaining high-frequency real-time data from various physical systems like power networks, climate systems, biological networks, etc. However, since the data are recorded by physical sensors, it is natural that the obtained data is corrupted by measurement noise. In this paper, we present a novel algorithm for online real-time learning of dynamical systems from noisy time-series data, which employs the Robust Koopman operator framework to mitigate the effect of measurement noise. The proposed algorithm has three main advantages: (a) it allows for online real-time monitoring of a dynamical system; (b) it obtains a linear representation of the underlying dynamical system, thus enabling the user to use linear systems theory for analysis and control of the system; (c) it is computationally fast and less intensive than the popular extended dynamic mode decomposition (EDMD) algorithm. We illustrate the efficiency of the proposed algorithm by applying it to identify the Van der Pol oscillator, the chaotic attractor of the Henon map, the IEEE 68 bus system, and a ring network of Van der Pol oscillators.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

ORBCOMM: Initial operations

ORBCOMM, a subsidiary of Orbital Sciences Corporation (OSC), has designed a system to provide low-cost mobile two-way data communications for worldwide commercial markets. The primary application areas are data communications and messaging. The ORBCOMM System has been designed so a user can compose, transmit, and receive messages; control and monitor assets; and collect data on hand-held subscriber communicators (SC's). With a constellation of 36 LEO satellites and terrestrial facilities, users in the temperature climate zones around the world will have a satellite in view over 98% of the time, and will have to wait less than two minutes the rest of the time to directly access a satellite. A message transmitted from a SC and received by the satellite is relayed down to a regional gateway earth station (GES). The GES then transmits the message via fiber land-lines to the network control center (NCC). The NCC then determines the location of the recipient of the message and routes the message accordingly. The NCC can receive and transmit messages from terrestrial networks via X.400 and X.25 gateways. The NCC can translate messages from widely used e-mail systems such as Internet, cc:Mail, and Microsoft Mail into X.400 messages for transmission to and from ORBCOMM SC's.

Schoen, David↗

Online Analytics for Remedy Support at DOE Environmental Management Sites

Environmental data is important for managing environmental restoration/waste site remediation, planning of monitoring efforts, addressing climate resilience, and engaging with stakeholders and regulators. A major challenge is how to manage the many different types and the large volume of environmental data in a way that allows practitioners and site managers to understand data implications and support decisions. The Suite Of Comprehensive Rapid Analysis Tools for Environmental Sites (SOCRATES, https://www.pnnl.gov/projects/socrates) is a web application that provides data access, visualization, and rapid analytics to help make sense of environmental data, support remedy decisions, and communicate information. Development of SOCRATES has been funded through the DOE Richland Operations Office (RL) to support communication and decision making for the Hanford Site, thus is only tied into Hanford environmental data. However, the capabilities of SOCRATES are more broadly applicable to DOE-EM sites engaged in environmental remediation and management. This report describes the work to develop mechanisms for bringing non-Hanford data into SOCRATES so that other DOE-EM sites could make use of the visualization and analysis capabilities to support communication and decision making related to managing environmental restoration/waste site remediation, optimization/exit strategies for pump-and-treat systems, planning monitoring efforts, addressing climate resilience, and/or engaging with stakeholders and regulators. The background, approach, data transfer formats, examples, and next steps for this new SOCRATES-EM software are described in this report.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Climate and infectious disease: use of remote sensing for detection of Vibrio cholerae by indirect measurement

It has long been known that cholera outbreaks can be initiated when Vibrio cholerae, the bacterium that causes cholera, is present in drinking water in sufficient numbers to constitute an infective dose, if ingested by humans. Outbreaks associated with drinking or bathing in unpurified river or brackish water may directly or indirectly depend on such conditions as water temperature, nutrient concentration, and plankton production that may be favorable for growth and reproduction of the bacterium. Although these environmental parameters have routinely been measured by using water samples collected aboard research ships, the available data sets are sparse and infrequent. Furthermore, shipboard data acquisition is both expensive and time-consuming. Interpolation to regional scales can also be problematic. Although the bacterium, V. cholerae, cannot be sensed directly, remotely sensed data can be used to infer its presence. In the study reported here, satellite data were used to monitor the timing and spread of cholera. Public domain remote sensing data for the Bay of Bengal were compared directly with cholera case data collected in Bangladesh from 1992-1995. The remote sensing data included sea surface temperature and sea surface height. It was discovered that sea surface temperature shows an annual cycle similar to the cholera case data. Sea surface height may be an indicator of incursion of plankton-laden water inland, e.g., tidal rivers, because it was also found to be correlated with cholera outbreaks. The extensive studies accomplished during the past 25 years, confirming the hypothesis that V. cholerae is autochthonous to the aquatic environment and is a commensal of zooplankton, i.e., copepods, when combined with the findings of the satellite data analyses, provide strong evidence that cholera epidemics are climate-linked.

Cholera/epidemiology↗

MSD CoP Webinar: AI and Extreme Events - Overcoming Data Challenges for Improved Characterization of Climate Extremes

Context: This webinar was hosted by the MultiSector Dynamics Community of Practice (MSD CoP; https://multisectordynamics.org). Abstract: Artificial Intelligence (AI) models require large volumes of data for training and testing. Data requirements present challenges for using AI to explore extreme events with limited observational data. This webinar will showcase two innovative methods developed by part of the European Climate Intelligence (CLINT) project to overcome data challenges and harness AI to improve our understanding of climate extremes. Dr. Ascenso will present his research on data augmentation methods to improve estimates of tropical cyclones using satellite data. His presentation will review established methods for data augmentation and explore opportunities and challenges for using generative AI to generate images of extreme, life-threatening tropical cyclones. Next, Dr. Plesiat will present his research on deep learning techniques to overcome limited observational data sets. His presentation will illustrate deep learning methods to develop AI reconstructions of four climate indices across Europe. Presenters : Dr. Guido Ascenso (post-doctoral researcher, Politecnico di Milano); Dr. Étienne Plésiat (German Climate Computing Centre - DKRZ) Moderator(s): Stefano Galelli (MSD CoP WG Co-Lead), David Gold (MSD CoP WG Co-Lead), Jillian Sturtevant (MSD CoP WG Communications Officer), Matteo Giuliani (Politecnico di Milano, MSD CoP WG Member, Moderator and Organizer) This webinar was held on: October 11, 2024 from 11AM - 1PM ET

AI↗

A HPC Theory-Guided Machine Learning Cyberinfrastructure for Communicating Hydrometeorological Data Across Scales

High-resolution predictions of hydrometeorological variables are critical for supporting hydropower generation decisions and flood control at hydroelectric power plants. Traditional climate and hydrologic models rely on the numerical simulation of detailed physical processes. Therefore, running these simulations is time-, labor-, and computation-intensive. Improving the spatial and temporal resolution in these modeling outputs could lead to cubic increases in both the simulation time and computational demands, rendering high-resolution hydrometeorological predictions expensive and impractical. Many past studies apply the super resolution (SR) technique to downscale climate models using deep learners. However, deep learners are deemed “black-boxes,” as their derivation processes from low-resolution outputs to high-resolution outputs are often hidden. Their results are difficult for domain scientists to interpret and validate. Thus, there is a need for an exploratory machine learning approach that can partially integrate domain-specific theory and knowledge into the data-driven mapping process between simulation outputs of different spatial scales. The domain-specific theory and knowledge can be incorporated into the data model through an inductive approach in which process-related environmental variables are used and analyzed as key drivers (i.e., environmental surrogates) to reflect the complex physical processes. Many of these variables, such as land use land cover, soil types, topography, digital elevation, air temperature, and various watershed characteristics, can be directly measured through sensors or remote sensing techniques. Additionally, SR applications that can downscale hydrological and hydrodynamics models to efficiently produce high-resolution (1 m) flood depth grids are still rare. Since the flood depth grid can be used to support critical decisions for flood control operation at hydroelectric power plants, it is crucial to enable an SR-based capability for interpolating high-resolution flood inundation maps.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗

Data-link alternatives for the NASA pilot data systems

There are several preliminary, or pilot, efforts for developing data systems for supporting NASA science research. The Pilot Data Systems consist of the Pilot Land Data System (PLDS), the Pilot Ocean Data System (PODS), the Pilot Climate Data System (PCDS), and the Pilot Planetary Data System (PPDS). The PLDS is likely to have the greatest communication needs of the various pilots. Communications issues and requirements are examined in the context of the mature PLDS as it may exist by 1990. The PLDS is seen as a distributed processing system linking resources at a number of NASA research centers and outside universities. Large image data sets, including LANDSAT scenes, are a major data type to be moved along the PLDS communications network. The unusually large size of these data files requires examining new technologies that may allow efficient and affordable communication at rates of up to 60 megabits per second. Potentially useful developments include portable satellite ground stations, and time division multiple access for sharing high-speed satellite links. Further pooling of communications for the various data systems into a single network would reduce costs and may make economic justification of access to the required data rates possible.

Likens, W. C.↗

Modeling and Observational Study of the Global Atmospheric Impacts of Antarctic Sea Ice Anomalies

A combined observational and modeling study considers the linkage between Antarctic sea ice and the climate of non-local latitudes. The observational component is based upon analyses of monthly station observations and the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP)/National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Reanalysis (NNR). The modeling component consists of simulations of the NCAR Community Climate Model versions 2 (CCM2) and 3 (CCM3) and the recent Community Atmosphere Model (CAM2). A convenient mechanism for communication between the Antarctic region (particularly the Ross Sea area) and the tropics and Northern Hemisphere is examined. The first evidence of this teleconnection came from CCM2 simulations performed during an earlier NASA supported project. Annual-cycle simulations with and without Antarctic sea ice show statistically- significant responses in monsoon precipitation over central and northern China during the month of September. The changes in monsoon precipitation are physically consistent with an intensified southwest Pacific (Northern Hemisphere) subtropical high in response to all Antarctic sea ice being removed and replaced with open water at -1.9"C. The intensified high is the northernmost component of three primary anomalies. The southernmost anomaly includes the Ross Sea area, where sea ice has been removed. An earlier study by Peng and Domros had also found a link between Antarctic sea ice and the East Asian monsoon circulation. The current project has helped to understand the teleconnection.

Bromwich, David H.↗

Extensible Traffic Management (xTM) - High-altitude Operations and Beyond

The technology development of balloons, airships, and high-altitude long-endurance (HALE) high-aspect-ratio wing aerial vehicles has expedited the deployment of high-altitude operations above Flight Level (FL) 600. It allows broader communication service area coverage than at ground level and enables efficient and precise earth observation to help address global climate change. Meanwhile, a record number of orbital launches were conducted in 2021. New mission concepts including those for small satellites, satellite constellations, suborbital tourism and point to point cargo transport are being developed. To enable efficient and safe operations of new-entrant vehicles and to alleviate the potential burden on air traffic controllers, the concept of Unmanned aircraft systems Traffic Management (UTM) explored a different approach requiring cooperative operations among operators/pilots through operational intent sharing and coordination. This concept has been extended and proposed by the community to handle traffic management for high-altitude operations. While the concept and basic system were tested in UTM, there are many critical capabilities needed for high-altitude operations. This talk will introduce the challenges brought by high-altitude operations and space operations and on-going research activities in developing critical capabilities for extensible traffic management at NASA.

Extensible Traffic Management↗

Schools of the Pacific rainfall climate experiment

The SPaRCE program is a cooperative rainfall climate field project involving high school and college level students and teachers from various Pacific island and atoll nations. The goals of the SPaRCE program are: (1) to foster interest and increase understanding among Pacific-area students and teachers of climate and climate change; (2) to educate the students and teachers as to the importance of rainfall in the Pacific area to climate studies; (3) to provide the students and teachers an opportunity of making a major contribution to the global climate research effort by collecting and analyzing Pacific rainfall data; and (4) to incorporate collected rainfall observations into a comprehensive Pacific daily rainfall data base to be used for climate research purposes. Schools participating in SPaRCE have received standard raingauges with which to measure rainfall at their sites. Students learned to site and use their raingauges by viewing a video produced at the University of Oklahoma. Four more videos will be produced which will include information on Earth's atmosphere, global climate and climate change, regional climate and implications of climate change, and how to analyze and use the rainfall data they are collecting. The videos are accompanied by workbooks which summarize the main points of each video, and contain concrete learning activities to help the student better understand climate and climate change. Following each video, interactive sessions are held with the students using the PEACESAT (Pan-Pacific Education And Communication Experiments by Satellite) satellite radio communication system.

Postawko, S. E.↗

Developing Coastal Adaptation to Climate Change in the New York City Infrastructure-Shed: Process, Approach, Tools, and Strategies

While current rates of sea level rise and associated coastal flooding in the New York City region appear to be manageable by stakeholders responsible for communications, energy, transportation, and water infrastructure, projections for sea level rise and associated flooding in the future, especially those associated with rapid icemelt of the Greenland and West Antarctic Icesheets, may be beyond the range of current capacity because an extreme event might cause flooding and inundation beyond the planning and preparedness regimes. This paper describes the comprehensive process, approach, and tools developed by the New York City Panel on Climate Change (NPCC) in conjunction with the region s stakeholders who manage its critical infrastructure, much of which lies near the coast. It presents the adaptation approach and the sea-level rise and storm projections related to coastal risks developed through the stakeholder process. Climate change adaptation planning in New York City is characterized by a multi-jurisdictional stakeholder-scientist process, state-of-the-art scientific projections and mapping, and development of adaptation strategies based on a risk-management approach.

Rosenzweig, Cynthia↗

Systemic stomatal responses in plants: Coordinating development, stress, and pathogen defense under a changing climate

To successfully survive, develop, grow and reproduce, multicellular organisms must coordinate their molecular, physiological, developmental and metabolic responses among their different cells and tissues. This process is mediated by cell-to-cell, vascular and/or volatile communication, and involves electric, chemical and/or hydraulic signals. Within this context, stomata serve a dual role by coordinating their responses to the environment with their neighbouring cells at the epidermis, but also with other stomata present on other parts of the plant. As stomata represent one of the most important conduits between the plant and its above-ground environment, as well as directly affect photosynthesis, respiration and the hydraulic status of the plant by controlling its gas and vapour exchange with the atmosphere, coordinating the overall response of stomata within and between different leaves and tissues plays a cardinal role in plant growth, development and reproduction. Here, we discuss different examples of local and systemic stomatal coordination, the different signalling pathways that mediate them, and the importance of systemic stomatal coordination to our food supply, ecosystems and weather patterns, under our changing climate. Importantly, we further discuss the potential biotechnological implications of regulating systemic stomatal responses for enhancing agricultural productivity in a warmer and CO 2 -rich environment.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Data-driven modeling of municipal water system responses to hydroclimate extremes

Sustainable western US municipal water system (MWS) management depends on quantifying the impacts of supply and demand dynamics on system infrastructure reliability and vulnerability. Systems modeling can replicate the interactions but extensive parameterization, high complexity, and long development cycles present barriers to widespread adoption. To address these challenges, we develop the Machine Learning Water Systems Model (ML-WSM) – a novel application of data-driven modeling for MWS management. We apply the ML-WSM framework to the Salt Lake City, Utah water system, where we benchmark prediction performance on the seasonal response of reservoir levels, groundwater withdrawal, and imported water requests to climate anomalies at a daily resolution against an existing systems model. The ML-WSM accurately predicts the seasonal dynamics of all components; especially during supply-limiting conditions (KGE > 0.88, PBias < ±3%). Extreme wet conditions challenged model skill but the ML-WSM communicated the appropriate seasonal trends and relationships to component thresholds (e.g., reservoir dead pool). The model correctly classified nearly all instances of vulnerability (83%) and peak severity (100%), encouraging its use as a guidance tool that complements systems models for evaluating the influences of climate on MWS performance.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

Stakeholder analysis for designing an urban air quality data governance ecosystem in smart cities

Cities, the world over, are fuelling economic growth. At the same time, rapid urbanization is a root cause of serious environmental damage. Recent WHO global air pollution guidelines highlight air pollution as a critical environmental threat along with climate change. To address these threats, smart cities and clean air programs are on a rise. In smart cities, data and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are major drivers of city transformations. The 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), big data, artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud computing have the potential to accelerate these transformations toward urban resilience. However, the success of smart cities and clean air programs depends on cohesive multi-sector stakeholder contributions. This study conducted interdisciplinary participative stakeholder analysis to understand the data, and sectorial challenges, to outline the technological opportunities to facilitate clean air programs in Indian smart cities. The research highlights gaps due to siloed stakeholder operations, lack of data calibration, non-alignment of smart city and air quality management services, non-availability of health exposure data, and difficulty in translating scientific data into implementable actions. Stakeholders expressed potential ‘fit for the purpose’ use of IoT devices, satellites, smartphones, and mobility data augmented by AI methods in bridging these gaps. In conclusion, the analysis points toward a need to develop an easily accessible and ubiquitous urban data governance ecosystem enabling seamless cross-sector data exchanges to build trusting relationships among the stakeholders across the air quality management value chain.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Industries in space to benefit mankind: A view over the next 30 years

New products, services, and energy sources are available to man through the exploitation of the useful attributes of space and space shuttle operations. Benefits include: (1) industrial fuel conservation through the use of electronic teleconferencing, high temperature turbines, and the space processing of materials; (2) improved health care through the use of biotelemetry, teleoperators, and weightless hospitals; (3) more efficient communication systems such as portable telephones, individual warning devices, and direct satellite broadcasting for educational purposes; (4) more abundant crop growth and controlled climate modification by the use of space-based reflectors to direct the light of the sun and moon to specific areas on earth; (5) solar energy utilization; and (6) reduction in radiation hazards through the use of space-based nuclear fusion reactors.

Source record↗

Science & Technology Review: Climate Change Comes into Focus

At Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, we focus on science and technology research to ensure our nation’s security. We also apply that expertise to solve other important national problems in energy, bioscience, and the environment. Science & Technology Review is published eight times a year to communicate, to a broad audience, the Laboratory’s scientific and technological accomplishments in fulfilling its primary missions. The publication’s goal is to help readers understand these accomplishments and appreciate their value to the individual citizen, the nation, and the world. The cover image shows a simulation run on the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) state-of-the-science Energy Exascale Earth Systems Model (E3SM), which leverages DOE’s advanced supercomputers for climate and earth science research. As the article beginning on p. 4 describes, the newly released version 2 will be used to simulate aspects of Earth’s variability at weather-scale resolution and investigate decadal changes in climate that will critically impact the United States in coming years.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

A perspective on iron (Fe) in the atmosphere: air quality, climate, and the ocean

As scientists engage in research motivated by climate change and the impacts of pollution on air, water, and human health, we increasingly recognize the need for the scientific community to improve communication and knowledge exchange across disciplines to address pressing and outstanding research questions holistically. Our professional paths have crossed because our research activities focus on the chemical reactivity of Fe-containing minerals in air and water, and at the air-sea interface. (Photo)chemical reactions driven by Fe can take place at the surface of the particles/droplets or within the condensed phase. The extent and rates of these reactions are influenced by water content and biogeochemical activity ubiquitous in these systems. One of these reactions is the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that cause damage to respiratory organs. Another is that the reactivity of Fe and organics in aerosol particles alter surficial physicochemical properties that impact aerosol-radiation and aerosol–cloud interactions. Also, upon deposition, aerosol particles influence ocean biogeochemical processes because micronutrients such as Fe or toxic elements such as copper become bioavailable. We provide a perspective on these topics and future research directions on the reactivity of Fe in atmospheric aerosol systems, from sources to short- and long-term impacts at the sinks with emphasis on needs to enhance the predictive power of atmospheric and ocean models.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

ESA's planning and coordination of the OLYMPUS propagation experiment

An overview of the organization of the OLYMPUS propagation experimenters group (OPEX) is given. Preparations, participation, and experiments are described. Some examples for first statistical results are also reported. OLYMPUS, a 3-axis stabilized communications satellite was launched in 1989 for providing experimental telecommunications payloads and a propagation beacon payload at 12, 20, and 30 GHz to the European Space Agency. From previous experience (OTS), the Agency undertook to carry out extensive preparations with an eye on obtaining the statistical results needed within the limited available lifetime of the spacecraft. The OLYMPUS propagation experiment was conceived as part of ESA's space telecommunications applications program (ESA/IPC/(79)83) with the emphasis on exploring the possibilities and limitations of Ka-band satellite communications. The objectives of the OLYMPUS propagation campaign were: (1) characterization of the slant-path propagation conditions at 20/30 GHz in the various climatic regions of Europe; (2) improvement of the understanding of the link between atmospheric observable (rain rate, cloud thickness, etc.) to propagation impairments such as attenuation, depolarization, scintillation, etc.; and (3) arrive at improved propagation prediction methods.

Arbesser-Rastburg, B.↗