Podcast Summary
NASA's New Chief Scientist: A Climate Change Expert: NASA appoints Catherine Calvin, an Earth scientist with a focus on human civilization's impact on climate change, as its new Chief Scientist and Senior Climate Advisor, emphasizing the agency's commitment to climate research and advocacy.
NASA's new Chief Scientist, Catherine Calvin, is also the NASA Senior Climate Advisor. Calvin, an Earth scientist with a research focus on human civilization's influence on and impact from climate change, now leads science integration across NASA and represents it externally. Her role marks the continuation of climate-related individuals in the chief scientist position, but the first with a clear climate change focus. Calvin's appointment highlights NASA's dedication to addressing climate change and its implications for human civilization. This cosmic queries episode on StarTalk provides valuable insights into the role of NASA's Chief Scientist and the significance of Calvin's appointment in the context of climate change research and advocacy.
NASA's Role in Combating Climate Change: NASA gathers data, models climate, and develops technologies to combat climate change, but its primary focus is on observations and monitoring effects.
NASA plays a crucial role in combating climate change through data collection and analysis, climate modeling, and technology development. While NASA cannot directly fix the issue, it provides essential information to inform decisions and creates technologies to mitigate and adapt to climate change. Some concepts like moss towers or carbon dioxide scrubbers may still be in the realm of science fiction, but trees remain an effective way to remove carbon from the atmosphere. NASA's role is primarily focused on observations and monitoring the effects of climate change. Additionally, NASA's Climate Modeling Group is based in New York City, and the Goddard Institute For Space Studies houses the building featured in Seinfeld.
The impact of planting a tree on carbon emission reduction is complex and depends on various factors: Planting trees can help mitigate climate change by absorbing CO2, but the impact depends on factors like tree type, location, and what was there before. Climate change is already happening, and urgent action is needed to reduce its effects.
The impact of planting a tree on carbon emission reduction is not a simple matter and depends on various factors such as tree type, location, and what was there before. Trees also affect the Earth's surface energy reflection, and the ocean plays a crucial role in carbon absorption and climate change. The ocean and land form carbon pools, and moving carbon from one pool to another results in an equilibrium response. Climate change is already happening, and we're experiencing its effects such as heat extremes, wildfires, and changes in precipitation and water cycles. Some impacts like ice sheet melt and sea level rise are irreversible on human timescales, while others like heat extremes are reversible. Sarah Perry's question about the point of no return in climate change implies a sense of urgency, and it's essential to act now to mitigate the effects of climate change.
Melting ice is irreversible, producing more ice requires energy: Melting ice is an irreversible impact of climate change, producing more ice requires significant energy input, and finding a sustainable energy source is crucial
While reducing global mean temperature could help mitigate heat extremes, some impacts of climate change may not be reversible. For instance, melting ice cannot be remade. A potential solution to produce more ice, such as using battery-operated refrigerators with ice makers, would require significant energy input. Solar power could be a viable option, but it would need to be implemented in regions with minimal sunlight, like the polar regions. It's important to remember that there's no free ride in the world of thermodynamics, and producing ice requires energy. Nuclear energy, a scalable and potentially better alternative to many renewable energies, has not become mainstream due to various reasons, and we'll explore that further after the break. Catherine Calvin, NASA's chief scientist, emphasizes the importance of linking different scientific fields to understand the complex systemic nature of climate change.
Balancing Science and Public Opinion in Energy Discussions: Scientist Kate Gordon emphasizes providing complete and accurate info about nuclear power, acknowledging emotional resistance but leaving decision-making to others, and using science to inform decisions based on specific goals.
As a scientist and public servant, Kate's role is to provide unbiased, precise information about various energy options, including nuclear power. However, if people have deep emotional resistance to a solution like nuclear power due to past incidents, it can be challenging to balance the science with public opinion. Kate's approach is to provide complete and accurate information about nuclear power's effects and include it as an option in different scenarios. She emphasizes that her role is to characterize technologies without bias, leaving the decision-making to others. While science can't definitively say which energy source is the best or optimal, it can help inform decisions based on specific goals, such as limiting warming to a particular level. Ultimately, Kate's focus is on providing the most accurate and complete information possible to inform decision-making.
Human-induced greenhouse gas emissions driving unprecedented climate change: Scientific evidence shows rapid, human-caused climate change, posing challenges for ecosystems and people to adapt, and delaying the next ice age, while making adaptation more difficult and potentially severe.
While natural climate changes have occurred throughout Earth's history, the unprecedented rate of change over the last 150 years is primarily driven by human-induced greenhouse gas emissions. This is supported by scientific evidence from laboratory studies, other planets, and climate models. The current rate of change poses challenges for ecosystems and people to adapt, and if we continue on our current emissions path, we may delay the next ice age. However, the rapid pace of change makes it harder for adaptation, and the potential impacts could be severe. It's crucial for evidence-based thinking and action to address climate change and mitigate its impacts.
Understanding the Complex Effects of Terraforming: Terraforming can have far-reaching impacts on Earth's systems, including carbon absorption, reflectivity, water cycles, and temperature. While we study these effects, careful consideration and ongoing research are crucial to minimize unintended consequences.
While we may consider terraforming certain harsh land types on Earth, such as deserts, for potential benefits, it's crucial to understand the complex interconnections and potential consequences of such actions. Terraforming can impact various aspects of the Earth system, including carbon absorption, reflectivity, water cycles, and temperature. Changes in these factors can lead to both local and global effects, some of which may be unintended or unforeseen. As scientists, we use models, laboratory experiments, and satellite observations to study these effects and understand the potential outcomes of various land use changes. However, the complexity of the Earth system means that there are many variables to consider, and unintended consequences are always a possibility. Therefore, careful consideration and ongoing research are essential when making decisions about terraforming or other significant land use changes.
Scientists use NASA data to create climate change models: NASA data acts as constraints for climate change models, limiting potential damage and ensuring thorough understanding of complexities and implications of climate change solutions.
While scientists work tirelessly to develop models to understand and address climate change, they rely heavily on observations and data collected by organizations like NASA to help initialize, parameterize, and evaluate their models. These data points act as constraints, limiting the potential damage or "beastly" behaviors of the models. However, it's important to note that while some unconventional ideas, like geoengineering, may be proposed to help mitigate climate change, scientists are cautious and focus on understanding the potential risks and uncertainties associated with these ideas. For instance, stratospheric aerosol injection, which aims to reflect sunlight and reduce temperatures, might not address issues like ocean acidification. It's crucial for scientists to continue their research, ensuring a thorough understanding of the complexities and implications of climate change solutions.
Impact of Volcanic Eruptions on Climate Change and New Satellite NISAR: Large volcanic eruptions can inject sulfur into the atmosphere, causing temporary cooling, but the effects depend on the amount and height of the material released. A new satellite, NISAR, will provide detailed observations of the Earth's surface, contributing to climate science.
NASA's Chief Scientist, Dr. Kathryn Calvin, discussed the impact of volcanic eruptions on climate change and introduced NISAR, a new Earth observing satellite launching next year that will contribute to climate science. Dr. Calvin explained that large volcanic eruptions can inject sulfur into the atmosphere, causing temporary cooling, but the effects depend on the amount and height of the material released. She also noted that particles at different layers have different impacts, using ozone as an example. NISAR, a partnership with the Indian Space Research Organization, will provide detailed observations of the Earth's surface, enabling researchers to study ice sheet collapse and other important climate-related phenomena.
Individual actions contribute to collective efforts against climate change: Individual actions matter, but larger collective efforts are necessary to reverse climate change. Understanding natural climate variability is crucial to effective emissions reductions.
Individual actions, although they may not directly reverse climate change on their own, are still important as they contribute to collective action and engagement with the issue. The future implications of stopping fossil fuel emissions immediately are that climate will stay at its current level, but to reverse climate change, taking carbon out of the atmosphere is necessary. While it's essential to understand the impact of individual actions, it's also important to recognize that larger, collective efforts are needed to make a significant difference. The natural variability of climate also plays a role in temperature changes, and it's crucial to consider the effects of different emissions reductions or increases on temperature. Overall, every action counts, and it's essential to stay informed and engaged in the ongoing efforts to mitigate climate change.
NASA's Chief Scientist: Informing the Public and Decision-Makers: NASA's Chief Scientist role is about informing the public and decision-makers of scientific discoveries and data, vital for informed decisions. Appointment is not direct, but involves visibility, knowledge, and a multistage interview in an intergovernmental personnel act mobility program.
NASA's Chief Scientist, Dr. Calvin, prioritizes making sure the public is informed about NASA's scientific discoveries and data, as this knowledge is crucial for decision-making at all levels. He emphasized that NASA plays a vital role in providing information to those in power to help them make informed decisions. Dr. Calvin also shared that getting appointed to the position of NASA Chief Scientist is not something one can directly apply for, but rather, it involves being visible and knowledgeable in one's field, with NASA seeking out individuals who can contribute to elevating their climate science and representing the broader NASA science portfolio. The process involves a multistage interview, and the appointee serves in an intergovernmental personnel act mobility program, which allows for the easy transfer of expertise between the federal government and other eligible entities.
IPCC's Scientific Assessment Process Brings Together Top Experts: The IPCC's scientific assessment process effectively taps into a broader range of expertise, resulting in more comprehensive and accurate climate reports, which are crucial for informing policy decisions and global action. International cooperation is also emphasized through this collaborative approach.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Scientific Assessment Panels provide a valuable platform for bringing together top experts from around the world to collaborate on climate research. This efficient and effective process allows the IPCC to tap into a broader range of expertise than it might otherwise have access to within its own circle. The result is more comprehensive and accurate climate reports, which are essential for informing policy decisions and global action. The collaboration between scientists from various backgrounds and countries also highlights the importance of international cooperation in addressing complex global issues like climate change. Overall, the IPCC's scientific assessment process is a powerful tool for advancing our understanding of climate science and guiding global efforts to mitigate and adapt to its impacts.