The Science & Society Distinguished Public Talks series presents 'Toward Prediction of North American Droughts’ with David Gtuzler on Thursday, Feb. 11 at 5 p.m. in rm. C of the UNM Conference Center located at 1634 University Blvd. N.E. A meet and greet will also be held prior to the talk at 4:30 p.m. The lecture is free and open to the public. Plenty of free parking is available.
Photo: David Gutzler
Gutzler is a professor in UNM’s Earth and Planetary Sciences Department specializes in climatology, meteorology, interactions between Earth's atmosphere and its hydrosphere, biosphere, cryosphere and lithosphere and predictability of weather and climate.
Gutzler will discuss efforts to improve climate prediction capabilities across a wide range of time scales. He’ll focus on prediction of drought with the understanding that “drought” can be a very difficult concept to quantify.
Recent severe drought across the western United State has motivated a coordinated study of the physical mecahnims that may cause prolonged drought conditions in the U.S. These studies were mandated by Congress as part of a 2006 bill authorizing the development of an integrated drought information system.
Using a combination of historical data analyses, sensitivity studies using dynamic models of the atmosphere, and scenarios of long-term climate change, researchers have found that extended periods of cold tropical Pacific Ocean temperature or ‘La Niña’, can generate droughts across the southern tier of the U.S. via changing continental precipitation patters, especially when amplified by forcing warm Atlantic Ocean temperatures. Researchers have also found that projected 21st Century temperature increases (from global warming) would generate widespread drought in the continental interior by increasing evaporation rates, even if precipitation increases.
The Science & Society Distinguished Public Talks series are co-sponsored by Albuquerque Section of the Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineers (IEEE), Sigma Xi (the Scientific Research Society), the Department of Physics & Astronomy, College of Arts & Sciences, University Honors Program, and the Division of Continuing Education.
Media Contact: Steve Carr, (505) 277-1821; e-mail: scarr@unm.edu