Date: February 18th 2011

Feb 17, 2011

Trent Perrotto/Dwayne Brown Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0321/ 202-358-1726 trent j perrotto@nasa gov / dwayne c brown@nasa gov

MEDIA ADVISORY: M11-036

NASA HIGHLIGHTS AT AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE ANNUAL MEETING

WASHINGTON -- NASA researchers will discuss a wide range of scientific and space exploration topics at the 2011 annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) The meeting takes place Feb 17-21 at the Walter E Washington Convention Center, 801 Mount Vernon Pl NW, Washington

Media registration is open on site at the AAAS Newsroom Headquarters, Convention Center Room 204A For registration information, call 202-249-4004 NASA scientists and their colleagues who use NASA research capabilities will discuss:

Parks from Space: The Big Picture and New Initiatives Help Manage Protected Areas Gary Geller, deputy manager, NASA Ecological Forecasting Program, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif Friday, Feb 18, 8 a m , Convention Center Room 159AB

Managers of parks around the world have access to new tools that use remote-sensing data from satellites and aircraft to address challenges they are facing from ecological stresses such as climate change This talk highlights two new initiatives designed to allow managers to more easily solve problems and make more informed decisions

Climatic Effects of Regional Nuclear War Luke Oman, research physical scientist, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md , Friday, Feb 18, 8:30 a m , Convention Center Room 145B

Scientists using climate models estimate that a hypothetical war between emerging third-world nuclear powers would significantly cool the planet and decrease precipitation for years The impact on global climate would not, however, be as severe as those from "nuclear winter" scenarios involving a massive nuclear exchange between superpowers

Science in Space: Five Agencies Operating in Zero Gravity Sunita Williams, astronaut, NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston Friday, Feb 18, 3:30 p m , Convention Center Room 145A

Williams talks about international science programs from the perspective of spending more than 195 days aboard the International Space Station, where she worked on several science experiments from the many international partners who contribute to the orbiting laboratory

Kepler: Looking for Other Earths William J Borucki, Kepler principal investigator, NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif Martin D Still, director, Kepler Guest Observer Program, NASA's Ames Research Center Saturday, Feb 19, 8:30 a m , Convention Center Room 146C

Kepler is NASA's first mission capable of finding Earth-size planets in or near the "habitable zone," the region where liquid water can exist on the surface of a planet This talk highlights new discoveries and the accomplishments of the Kepler Guest Observer Program

Between Sound Bites and the Scientific Paper: Communicating in the Hinterland Gavin Schmidt, climatologist, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York Saturday, Feb 19, 9 a m , Convention Center Room 147A

A tiny fraction of climate change scientists contribute to the public debate on climate change, leaving the discussion largely in the hands of non-experts This talk asks why this occurs, what it means for a fuller public understanding of climate science, and what the scientific community might do to encourage more involvement in the public discourse

Greatest Hits and Grand Challenges in Astrobiology Michael Meyer, lead scientist, Mars Exploration Program, NASA Headquarters Saturday, Feb 19, 3 p m , Convention Center 146C

Recent findings in astrobiology have helped clarify our thinking in the search for extraterrestrial life This talk discusses major results and the leading questions driving the search for evidence of life on Mars and other solar system bodies The astrobiology investigations on the upcoming Mars Science Laboratory mission also will be presented

Preserving the Planets, Ours and Others: Planetary Protection in Space Exploration Cassie Conley, planetary protection officer, NASA Headquarters Saturday, Feb 19, 3:30 p m , Convention Center Room 146C

NASA's Planetary Protection Officer explains the importance of preventing harmful contamination of other planetary bodies and adverse changes in the Earth's environment because of returned material from space in accord with international agreements

Exploring the Planet Mercury: The MESSENGER mission Sean C Solomon, MESSENGER principal investigator, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington Sunday, Feb 20, 12 p m , Convention Center Room 207A

NASA's MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) spacecraft is the first space probe to visit Mercury in more than 30 years This topical lecture will present what has been learned from the mission's two flybys and the mission's upcoming observations from orbiting around the planet

Limiting Near-Term Climate Change While Improving Human Well-Being Drew Shindell, climatologist, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies

Sunday, Feb 20, 1:30 p m , Convention Center Room 101

Emissions control measures using existing technology or behavioral changes could substantially mitigate near-term global warming, increase food supplies and reduce premature deaths caused by air pollution This talk outlines the measures contained in a new United Nations Environmental Program assessment

International Discoveries of Exoplanets Wesley A Traub, chief scientist, NASA Exoplanet Exploration Program, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory Sunday, Feb 20, 1:30 p m , Convention Center Room 147A

With more than 1,000 exoplanets on the books, we now have glimpses of worlds where nature is showing off its ability to make possible the impossible This talk discusses ongoing international discoveries and future space missions that will expand our ability to detect and characterize exoplanets

Impacts of Black Carbon Pollution on Himalayan Glaciers Teppei Yasunari, research associate, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Sunday, Feb 20, 2 p m , Convention Center Room 101

Solar radiation absorbed by black carbon can lead to increased melting rates of some Himalayan glaciers It is not clear how much black carbon is reaching these glacier surfaces This talk discusses efforts to improve Himalayan black carbon observations

For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit:

http://www nasa gov

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