Tag: #atmospheric-science — 35 segments on Living on Earth

2026

• May 15, 2026: White House Accuses NCAR of "Climate Alarmism

  The federally funded National Center for Atmospheric Research, or NCAR, in Boulder, Colorado has been a leading agency for decades assessing the risks and possible responses to the changing climate. But in November, the Trump administration declared it was dismantling NCAR, citing its contribution to what the administration calls “climate alarmism.” University of Colorado - Boulder Professor Waleed Abdalati talks with Host Steve Curwood about the role of NCAR and why its parent organization has filed a lawsuit alleging a “campaign of retaliation against the State of Colorado.”

• March 27, 2026: The Story of CO2 is the Story of Everything

  Over billions of years of its history, the planet has frozen over almost completely and then lost all its ice as crocodiles basked in a balmy Arctic. Carbon-based life arose and adapted to all this change. And at the center of it all is the notorious greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide, the focus of journalist Peter Brannen’s book The Story of CO2 Is the Story of Everything: How Carbon Dioxide Made Our World. He joins Host Jenni Doering to describe the extreme climate whiplash of Earth’s past.

• February 20, 2026: Stormy Weather for Climate Science

  The Trump administration has declared scientists at places like the National Center for Atmospheric Research are promoting ‘climate hysteria’ by overstating the risks to public health and safety, so it’s moving to cut off funds for NCAR. Former TV weatherman Alan Sealls, president of the American Meteorological Society, joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss the important climate and weather modeling NCAR does and how the loss of funding could impact this research.

• February 13, 2026: Remembering Mike McElroy

  Harvard atmospheric science Professor Michael B. McElroy, a long-time board member of the World Media Foundation (which produces Living on Earth), passed away in January 2026. Host Steve Curwood offers a brief tribute to Mike’s groundbreaking contributions to research and education.

• January 09, 2026: EPA Ignores Climate Dangers

  This June the US Environmental Protection Agency proposed eliminating regulations that limit climate changing gases from power plants, about a quarter of US emissions. Harvard Law Professor Richard Lazarus, an environmental and constitutional law scholar and author of The Rule of Five: Making Climate History at the Supreme Court, speaks with Host Steve Curwood about the perils of the broader Trump administration effort to weaken federal environmental protections.

2025

• September 26, 2025: The EPA Wants to Ignore GHG Emissions

  The Environmental Protection Agency has proposed ending the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, which requires the biggest industrial facilities and power plants in the country to report their global warming emissions. David Cash, former EPA Administrator for Region One – New England, joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to discuss the potential consequences of this Trump Administration decision.

• July 11, 2025: Climate Disruption Worsens Flood Risks

  Catastrophic floods like the one that claimed at least 100 lives in Texas this July are becoming more likely because of climate disruption. Meteorologist Sean Sublette is the owner of Sublette Weather and Consulting. He joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to talk about the atmospheric and climate conditions that contribute to flood disasters, and the growing need to be weather aware

• June 27, 2025: Court Catalyzes Climate Action

  The nation's highest court handed environmentalists a historic victory, telling the EPA it can regulate greenhouse gas pollution. What will that mean for efforts to curb global warming? Living on Earth's Jeff Young reports the Supreme Court's decision is already making waves in industry and on Capitol Hill.

• June 06, 2025: Hurricane Forecasting in 2025

  The 2025 hurricane season is underway, and experts say the U.S. is likely to see higher than average activity. The past couple of years, extremely warm water in the Gulf of Mexico helped storms rapidly intensify into major hurricanes. Ryan Truchelut of consulting firm WeatherTiger talks with Host Aynsley O’Neill about what’s in store this season and how cuts to federal weather monitoring and hurricane modeling could leave the U.S. underprepared for strengthening storms.

• May 30, 2025: Turbulence and Climate Change

  Emerging research predicts that with rising global temperatures, climate change may increase clear-air turbulence by as much as four times along some of the most heavily traveled routes. Clear air turbulence as the name suggests is the kind of turbulence you can’t see on most radar. It can toss around large airplanes, damage aircraft and injure passengers and crew. Reporter Bob Berwyn of Inside Climate News joins Host Jenni Doering to explain how these changes tie into the jet stream.

• May 02, 2025: NOAA Climate Science Cuts

  A key climate modeling program within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or NOAA is slated for near-elimination, according to a draft White House memo. Abrahm Lustgarten investigated these planned cuts for ProPublica and discusses with Host Jenni Doering the potential impacts to weather forecasting, disaster preparedness, agriculture, military operations and more.

• April 11, 2025: Shrinking Clouds

  In terms of physics, global warming comes down to an energy imbalance as Earth is taking in more energy than it is releasing. A new study suggests that shrinking cloud cover is playing a big role in that imbalance. Jennifer Francis, an atmospheric scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center joined Host Aynsley O’Neill to discuss.

• April 11, 2025: Sneezing and Climate Change

  Warmer temperatures are causing plants to bloom earlier and longer, leading to longer and more intense pollen sneezing seasons for people susceptible to allergies. Dr. Neelu Tummala is an ear, nose, and throat physician at NYU Langone Health who has written on the impact of climate change on our allergies. She joined Host Aynsley O’Neill to talk about the connection between climate change and allergies.

• April 04, 2025: Tornadoes in a Hotter World

  Experts are still trying to piece together how tornado patterns have changed in the last century and are likely to keep changing as the world gets hotter. Meteorologist Ryan Truchelut of WeatherTiger joins Host Steve Curwood to explain the eastward shift of tornadoes in the US and how newly vulnerable populations can stay safe.

• February 14, 2025: Climate Whiplash" Between Extreme Wet and Dry

  Global warming is increasing the frequency and severity of “climate whiplash” events, which are rapid transitions between very wet and very dry conditions. One such event set the stage for the devastating L.A. wildfires in January 2025. Dr. Daniel Swain is a climate scientist with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources and joins Host Paloma Beltran to explain how climate whiplash works and what societies need to do to prepare.

• January 17, 2025: La Niña and El Niño Dance

  With the recent appearance of a flip from an El Niño back to a weak La Niña climate pattern, Hosts Aynsley O’Neill and Jenni Doering discuss what it could mean for U.S. and world weather patterns, as well as how the El Niño / La Niña oscillation is changing in the era of climate disruption.

2024

• November 15, 2024: Earth’s Fever

  Although the global average temperature has been steadily increasing for decades, in 2023 there was a sudden jump of 0.2 degrees Celsius. This has raised alarm among climate scientists about how fast the climate crisis is progressing. Dr. Jennifer Francis is Senior Scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center, and she joined Living on Earth’s Jenni Doering to discuss the temperature spike and its implications.

• October 11, 2024: Loading the Hurricane Dice

  Unusually warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico helped fuel the rapid intensification of Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Meteorologist Sean Sublette explains to Host Jenni Doering that as humans continue to pump climate-warming greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, we are loading the dice for stronger storms.

• August 09, 2024: Methane Tracking From Space

  A new satellite recently blasted off into Earth orbit with the important mission of tracking methane emissions from oil and gas infrastructure across the globe. Dr. Stephen Conley is an atmospheric scientist and joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain why free public access to the data from MethaneSAT is a game-changer for holding oil and gas companies accountable for climate pollution.

• April 26, 2024: The "Green Flash

  On rare occasions a green “flash” can appear on the horizon at sunrise or sunset. Living on Earth’s Explorer-in-Residence Mark Seth Lender has been lucky enough to catch it more than once.

• April 12, 2024: Supercharged Hurricane Season

  Some scientists are predicting this year’s Atlantic hurricane season will be extremely active as a La Niña develops amid ocean warmth linked to global warming. Meteorologist Ryan Truchelut of Weather Tiger joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss the science behind these factors and how people along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts can stay safe.

• March 22, 2024: Beyond the Headlines

  This week, Living on Earth Contributor Peter Dykstra and Host Aynsley O’Neill talk about a study that found safer lead levels in people living in federal public housing versus low-income private housing. Also, a $600,000 sand dune paid for by residents of Salisbury, MA washed away just days after being put in place. And in history they celebrate the birthday of French mathematician Jean Baptiste Joseph Fourier, who first proposed the existence of the greenhouse effect 200 years ago.

• March 15, 2024: Night

  The vastness of space can provoke fear but the perspective it brings can also bring inspiration and even comfort. Living on Earth’s Explorer in Residence Mark Seth Lender recounts the impact on his consciousness of a star-studded sky, planets in full view, and shooting stars.

• March 15, 2024: Methane Tracking From Space

  A new satellite recently blasted off into Earth orbit with the important mission of tracking methane emissions from oil and gas infrastructure across the globe. Dr. Stephen Conley is an atmospheric scientist and joins Host Aynsley O’Neill to explain why free public access to the data from MethaneSAT is a game-changer for holding oil and gas companies accountable for climate pollution.

• March 08, 2024: Vital Ocean Current Threatens Collapse

  As the climate crisis intensifies, a vital ocean current that includes the Gulf Stream seems to be falling apart, and thus could fail its mission to moderate the climate by bringing heat north from the tropics and cold back south. AP science and environment reporter Seth Borenstein joins Host Steve Curwood to explain the latest research and the potentially disastrous shutdown of this current.

• January 26, 2024: Fossil Fuel Deception

  The fossil fuel industry has known its products would cause dangerous warming for decades but chose to deceive the public to stall climate progress around the globe, says Naomi Oreskes, Professor of the History of Science at Harvard. She joined Host Steve Curwood to describe the fossil fuel industry’s decades-long disinformation campaign and what can be done to turn the climate conversation back towards the truth.

2023

• November 03, 2023: Warming Supercharges Hurricane Otis

  Exceptionally warm waters in the Eastern North Pacific off Acapulco, Mexico fed the rapid strengthening of Hurricane Otis into a deadly Category 5 storm that weather forecasters failed to understand in time to warn the public. MIT Professor of Atmospheric Science Kerry Emanuel joins Host Steve Curwood to explain the science behind the storm and share how needed improvements in weather forecasting can help communities better prepare for extreme storms.

• September 01, 2023: U.S. Primed for Climate Troubles

  Because of its unique geography, the United States is particularly vulnerable to nearly every kind of natural disaster: tornadoes, hurricanes, wildfires, blizzards, and more. And as Associated Press science writer Seth Borenstein explains to Host Aynsley O’Neill, these natural disasters are getting an unnatural boost with climate change.

• August 25, 2023: Methane Supercharges Climate Change

  Scientists are sounding the alarm about a recent uptick in methane emissions. Methane is roughly 85 times more potent than CO2 as a greenhouse gas when it’s first emitted and reducing methane releases now may be one of the fastest ways to slow down climate change. Kristofer Covey, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies and Sciences at Skidmore College, talks with Host Steve Curwood about the sources of this surge and how they can be addressed.

• May 05, 2023: Oceans Hotter Than Ever

  The average sea surface temperature of the world’s oceans is rising as the planet warms and global temperatures recently hit all-time highs. Now the La Niña weather pattern of the last 3 years is shifting to an El Niño cycle, warming the oceans even more. Kevin Trenberth is a Distinguished Scholar at the National Center of Atmospheric Research and joins Host Bobby Bascomb to explain why the rapid warming of the oceans puts the whole Earth at risk.

• May 05, 2023: U.S. Primed for Climate Troubles

  Because of its unique geography, the United States is particularly vulnerable to nearly every kind of weather-related disaster: tornadoes, hurricanes, wildfires, and more. And as Associated Press science writer Seth Borenstein explains to Living on Earth’s Aynsley O’Neill, these natural disasters are getting an unnatural boost with climate change.

• April 07, 2023: Beyond the Headlines

  Living on Earth contributor Peter Dykstra joins Host Jenni Doering to share news of the uptick in green burials and a new study that finds a link between climate change and the powerful supercell storms that can give rise to destructive tornadoes. And in the history calendar, they look back 75 years to the indictment of nine corporations for allegedly conspiring to shut down streetcar lines in Los Angeles and elsewhere and replace them with buses made or fueled with their own products.

• February 17, 2023: Note on Emerging Science: Electric Honeybees

  A recent study from the University of Bristol reveals how large insect swarms may affect the electrical charge of the atmosphere. Living on Earth’s Fern Alling explains the phenomenon and the findings.

• February 17, 2023: Big Oil Bid in Alaska

  A major plan by oil giant ConocoPhillips to drill in Alaska’s North Slope is poised to move ahead after preliminary approval by a federal agency, though it still needs President Biden’s final consent. The potentially lucrative Willow drilling project on federal land could dump millions of tons of climate disrupting carbon into the atmosphere over its lifetime and pose risks to the health of nearby Alaska Native communities and biological diversity. Andy Moderow is Alaska State Director for the Alaska Wilderness League and joins Host Steve Curwood to discuss.

• January 13, 2023: Extreme Weather and the Jet Stream

  Weather records are now routinely getting shattered across the United States, with recent severe rainstorms in California, freezing temperatures in Texas, and a warm January thaw for the northeast. Jennifer Francis, Senior Scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center, joins Host Steve Curwood to explain why a climate disrupted jet stream is behind much of this extreme weather.

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