A new study by an NCAR researcher shows that small- to moderate-size volcanoes have helped slow down warming over the last decade, while industrial emissions of Sun-blocking sulfur dioxide over Asia have contributed relatively little to the slowdown.
Broadcast meteorologists are a leading source of information about the atmosphere for the public, but many avoid mentioning global warming. New research finds barriers that may keep them from addressing the science of climate change on the air.
As a step toward meeting the goal of providing earlier warnings, NCAR scientists and their colleagues are examining what enables poorly organized clusters of thunderstorms to develop into tropical storms and hurricanes.
A team of researchers, including NCAR scientist Carl Schmitt, are climbing high in the Peruvian Andes to assess the extent to which the white ice is being darkened by ash and other particulates that are emitted by nearby industrial operations. The dark particles can accelerate glacial melting, eventually threatening runoff that supplies water for millions of South American residents.
New research points to gravity waves, which ripple unseen through the atmosphere, as the culprit in many cases of clear-air turbulence. If those waves can be forecast, the research suggests that planes in many cases could be rerouted around them.
Studies show 63% of hurricane-related deaths occur inland. To help emergency managers prepare, NCAR scientists are pinpointing vulnerable populations using tropical storm winds, census data, and flood maps.
A new forecasting tool boosts the detail and accuracy of short-term wind forecasts, offering another way to increase the efficiency of wind energy production.
Cooler and drier air injected into a hurricane can put the brakes on its growth. Scientists are learning more about how this process works and how forecasters can watch for it.
After an earthquake and tsunami damaged the Daiichi nuclear power plant in Fukushima, Japan, on March 11, 2011, an unknown quantity of radioactive material was released into the surrounding air and sea.
Burning fossil fuels has led to a warmer, moister atmosphere and a shifting background for extreme weather and climate events, according to a study that analyzes noteworthy weather events from the last two years.
A new study finds that extremely warm summers are not only occurring more frequently in the contiguous United States, but are likely to become normal by mid-century.
A new study that provides the first comprehensive satellite analysis of Earth’s melting glaciers and ice caps has grave implications for sea level rise.
When a geomagnetic storm blasted Earth on January 24, commercial airlines redirected a handful of flights were originally routed to fly over the North Pole. Behind the scenes, NCAR scientists play a role in safety precautions such as these.
A new computer modeling study from NCAR investigates how an increase in shrubs in the Arctic may affect permafrost. Over the past few decades, a warming climate has meant that the Arctic’s grassy tundra is being increasingly overtaken by shrubs.
The effects of a warming climate on hail are largely unknown, as global climate models are too coarse in resolution to simulate hailstorms in detail. But a new modeling study now tackles this subject, looking at the future of hail in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains over the coming decades.
New research led by NCAR scientist Thomas Galarneau provides an in-depth analysis of two extreme weather events whose connection may come as a surprise: Russia’s intense heat wave in summer 2010 and the heavy rains that occurred simultaneously in Pakistan.
New research from NCAR is helping wind energy developers determine the best potential sites for capturing wind. Energy companies can lose money if they install turbines where winds are either too low to generate much power or so high that the turbines often need to be shut down to avoid damage.
NCAR scientists have performed one of the most detailed simulations ever of a massive tornado outbreak. They simulated two waves of tornadic storms that occurred on April 27,2011 in Alabama, the deadliest U.S. tornado day since 1925.
