Dec 4, 2009

Stephen Cole Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0918 stephen e cole@nasa gov

RELEASE: 09-281

NASA TO SPOTLIGHT SHRINKING ARCTIC SEA ICE AND UNPRECEDENTED GLACIER STUDY AT COPENHAGEN

WASHINGTON -- NASA will take its Earth science research and educational programs before a world-wide audience Dec 7-18 during the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change conference in Copenhagen, Denmark NASA is one of several U S government agencies supporting the first-ever U S Center, an outreach initiative housed in Copenhagen's Bella Conference Center

Organized by the U S Department of State, the U S Center will host more than 60 events during the conference The center's meeting room is a 100-seat auditorium where U S and international leaders in the fight against climate change will headline presentations on a wide range of critical initiatives, policies, and scientific research The center's reception room serves as a welcome area where visitors can learn more about U S climate actions and programs

The reception room will feature displays and videos using data from U S satellites, including NASA's fleet of Earth-observing research spacecraft Some of this imagery will be shown on the "Science On a Sphere" projection system, a six-foot, computer-driven globe that displays animated images of the Earth's land, oceans, and atmosphere NASA scientists also will be on hand to discuss agency research and programs with visitors

The U S Center, which is open from 9 a m to 7 p m local time daily, is located in Hall C5 of the Bella Conference Center NASA is sponsoring the following presentations during the Copenhagen conference:

State of the Science: Earth's Changing Polar Ice Cover The presentation will feature the latest observations and research findings on shrinking Arctic sea ice and the rapidly changing ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica Speaker: Waleed Abdalati, University of Colorado (Dec 7, meeting room)

Climate Change Impacts on Civilizations: Lessons from Space Archaeology NASA is pioneering the use of satellite observations to read the clues of how ancient civilizations reacted to changes in climate Speakers: Tom Sever, University of Alabama; Ron Blom, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (Dec 7, meeting room)

"Extreme Ice" Multimedia Presentation See images from the most wide-ranging glacier study ever conducted using ground-based, real-time photography Speaker: James Balog, Extreme Ice Survey (Dec 7, meeting room; Dec 9 and 16, reception room)

Student Climate Research Campaign This is a showcase of research projects by secondary school students from around the world conducted through the NASA-sponsored Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) program Speaker: Donna Charlevoix, University of Colorado (Dec 8, reception room)

International Global Climate Change Observation from Space NASA plays a leadership role in the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites The committee's international member agencies operate and plan missions to measure critical components of climate change Speakers: Jack Kaye, NASA's Earth Science Division; Makoto Kajii, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Dec 11, meeting room)

The World's Forests as Carbon Sinks and Sources This presentation will feature the latest scientific knowledge on how forests absorb and release carbon, and how human activities have changed that balance Speaker: Jeffery Masek, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (Dec 11, meeting room)

Many of the meeting room events will be webcast live on the State Department conference Web site For a complete schedule of events, visit:

http://cop15 state gov

Regular updates on events during the conference will be posted at:

http://www facebook com/usdos cop15

NASA has released a new multimedia climate change resource reel for journalists showcasing downloadable videos, data visualizations, animations, and still images that illustrate key climate change concepts and discoveries It is available online at:

http://svs gsfc nasa gov/ClimateEssentials

For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit:

http://www nasa gov

-end-

To subscribe to the list, send a message to: hqnews-subscribe@mediaservices nasa gov To remove your address from the list, send a message to: hqnews-unsubscribe@mediaservices nasa gov

The following information is a reminder of your current mailing list subscription:

You are subscribed to the following list: [list_name]

using the following email: example@example.com

You may automatically unsubscribe from this list at any time by visiting the following URL:

http://www aus-city com/cgi-bin/dada/mail cgi/u/NASA_REPORTS/

If the above URL is inoperable, make sure that you have copied the entire address Some mail readers will wrap a long URL and thus break this automatic unsubscribe mechanism

You may also change your subscription by visiting this list's main screen:

<[program_url]/list/[list]>

If you're still having trouble, please contact the list owner at:

<mailto:[list_owner_email]>

The following physical address is associated with this mailing list:

[physical_address]