NOAA Magazine
Up Close: NOAA's Green Ship Initiative Led By Dennis Donahue And GLERL's Ship Operations Group
Thanks to the innovations put in place by NOAA marine superintendent, Dennis Donahue, and the 'Green Ships Initiative,' all three of NOAA's Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory large diesel research vessels operate fully on bio-based, vegetable products. The R/V Huron Explorer, R/V Shenehon and R/V Laurentian, all use 100 percent soy biodiesel for engine fuel, canola-based motor oil and vegetable-based hydraulic oil for its deck crane, winches, transmission, and steering gear. Not only is this a cost effective way to help reduce environmental emissions, but it also has improved both ship performance and crew health and safety. The ships are...
NOAA’s Special Agents and Enforcement Officers Undaunted By Mission
Considering the 3.44 million square miles that comprise federal waters, is twice the size of the entire land mass of the United States, protecting resources withing this marine zone could be seen as a daunting task. However, for the 220 NOAA employees within NOAA Fisheries Service’s Office of Law Enforcement, this is just everyday business.
Behind The Scenes: NOAA’s North Atlantic Hurricane Seasonal Outlook
While meteorologists at the NOAA National Hurricane Center predict the track and strength of individual storms, the annual Hurricane Seasonal Outlook is an official forecast product of NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center. It’s the job of NOAA’s seasonal hurricane forecasters to predict tropical storm and hurricane activity over the entire six-month season.
Summer Weather Can Promote Poor Air Quality – NOAA’s Air Quality Forecast Guidance Helps Predict It
In many parts of the country, the arrival of summer signals the start of air pollution season. Fortunately, the NOAA National Weather Service’s air quality forecast guidance, produced in partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, helps provide air quality forecasters and the public with information on predicted air quality conditions they need as they plan their daily activities. NOAA’s involvement in air quality forecasting stems from the fact that air quality and weather go hand in hand. Weather can promote both the formation or degradation of various airborne pollutants and can disperse/transport them from one part of the country...
All Eyes Are on the Sun After NOAA-Led Solar Cycle 24 Panel Predicts Upcoming Period of Intense Solar Storms
All eyes are on the sun now that the NOAA-led Solar Cycle 24 Prediction Panel released its official consensus solar cycle forecast at the Space Weather Workshop in Boulder, Colo., yesterday. “The next 11-year cycle of solar storms will most likely start next March and peak in late 2011 or mid-2012,” said Doug Biesecker, a solar physicist from the NOAA Space Environment Center in Boulder, Colo., who also chaired the NASA-funded 12-person panel.
