Last month, FFS Supervisory Research Chemist and Team Leader Wei Min Hao, Missoula, presented the results of “Arctic Deposition of Black Carbon from Biomass Burning in Northern Eurasia from 2002 to 2013” at the international scientific conference for the 21st United Nations Climate Convention in Paris, France. The study, led by Hao, demonstrates how deposited black carbon can accelerate the melting of ice and snow in the Arctic, and in turn raise sea levels.
This is a joint project between the RMRS Fire, Fuel and Smoke Science Program’s Smoke Emission and Dispersion Team and the Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA), the national laboratory in France. FFS team members include Physical Scientist Bryce Nordgren, Geospatial Architect Alex Petkov, GIS Specialist Rachel Corley, Cooperator Robin Silverstein, and Research Physical Scientist Shawn Urbanski. FS R&D, NASA, the State Department, and CEA’s high performance supercomputing facility support this project.