Pacific Islands
Pacific Islands
Featured Project
Developing a Pacific Mangrove Monitoring Network (PACMAN) in Response to Sea Level Rise
Developing a Pacific Mangrove Monitoring Network (PACMAN) in Response to Sea Level Rise
The Pacific Islands Climate Adaptation Science Center (PI-CASC) spans the Pacific Basin from the Hawaiian Island archipelago to the US-affiliated islands of the South Pacific. The CASC focuses their efforts on developing science on drought, coastal adaptation and planning, forest conservation, and climate adaptation in low islands and atolls.
Pacific Islands CASC
Pacific Islands CASC
Learn more about the Pacific Islands Climate Adaptation Science Center below.
Filter Total Items: 105
Webinar: Recreational Seascapes: Integrating Human and Mechanical Observations on Hawaiʻi Island
View this webinar to learn how scientists explored how people on the seascape experienced climate and environmental changes in Hawai'i.
Changes in Water Flow through Hawaiian Forests due to Invasive Species and Changing Rainfall Patterns
Precipitation in Hawaiʻi’s higher elevation upland areas provides needed water to both people and ecosystems. Once it reaches the ground, rain can either run off and contribute to water flow in streams, or it can infiltrate into the ground and provide water for plants and recharge aquifers and groundwater. The exact route that water takes is controlled by many factors, including the...
Collecting Elevation Data to Understand Climate Change Effects in the Marshall Islands
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports that low-lying atolls (ring-shaped islands or island chains made of coral) in the Pacific Ocean are extremely vulnerable to high tide events (“king tides”), storm surge, tsunamis, and sea-level rise. The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) spreads over 29 atolls and has a population of over 50,000 people with homes and communities...
Effects of Drought on Soil Moisture and Water Resources in Hawai‘i
Droughts in the Hawaiian Islands can enhance wildfire risk, diminish freshwater resources, and devastate threatened and endangered species on land and in nearshore ecosystems. During periods of drought, cloud-water interception, or fog drip (the process by which water droplets accumulate on the leaves and branches of plants and then drip to the ground) in Hawai‘i’s rain forests may play...
Simulating and Projecting Future Impacts of Sea Level Rise on Majuro Atoll
The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) spreads over 29 atolls and has a population of over 50,000 people; over 27,000 of those people live on the Majuro Atoll, RMI’s capital. Sea level rise threatens the very existence of RMI as high-end projections of sea level rise by the end of the century exceed the average elevation of these low atoll reef islands. Already, waves wash over...
Understanding the Effect of Climate Change on the Migration of Marshallese Islanders
As one of the lowest-lying island nation-states in the world, the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) is acutely vulnerable to sea-level rise, flooding, and the associated intrusion of saltwater into crucial freshwater supplies. Persistent drought is further affecting agricultural production in the RMI. Many Marshallese communities are already experiencing these changes and are...
Webinar: Assessing the Relative Resilience Potential of Coral Reefs to Inform Management in the Northern Mariana Islands
Check out this webinar to learn more about how coral reef resilience is informing management in the Northern Mariana Islands.
Assessing the Sustainability of Culturally Important Marine Sites in Guam and CNMI
This project was designed to use climate models to produce projections of changes in sea temperatures and ocean chemistry for coastal marine areas in Micronesia as well as reports that describe the outlook of culturally important marine sites in Guam and CNMI. The projections and maps were expected show what the current state of climate science suggests the future holds for marine areas...
Building Capacity for Coordination of Strategic Science Research in the US-Affiliated Pacific Islands
Small Pacific islands are especially vulnerable to climate change. Challenges these coastal communities face include sea level rise, erosion, saltwater intrusion, flooding, droughts, and coral bleaching which in turn affect food and water security, infrastructure, and the health of humans and ecosystems. These small islands also have limited resources; therefore, managing them...
Cloud Water Interception in Hawaiʻi - Part 2: Mapping Current and Future Exchange of Water Between Clouds and Vegetation in Hawaiʻi's Mountains
Clouds often come in contact with vegetation (often named fogs) within a certain elevation range on Hawaiʻi’s mountains. Propelled by strong winds, cloud droplets are driven onto the stems and leaves of plants where they are deposited. Some of the water that accumulates on the plants in this way drips to the ground, adding additional water over and above the water supplied by rainfall...
Cloud Water Interception in Hawai‘i - Part 1: Understanding the Impact of Fog on Groundwater and Ecosystems and Future Changes to these Processes
On Hawai‘i’s mountains, cloud droplets, propelled by strong winds, are deposited on plants, where they accumulate and drip to the ground, adding water over and above that supplied by rainfall. Prior studies show that the amount of intercepted cloud water is substantial, and variable from place to place. Estimates of the spatial patterns of cloud water interception (CWI), the fog-related...
Influences of Climate Change, Climate Variability, and Drought on Human Communities and Ecosystems in Hawaiʻi
Over the past century, Hawaiʻi has experienced a pronounced decline in precipitation and stream flow and a number of severe droughts. These changes can have wide-reaching implications, affecting the water supply, native vegetation and wildlife, wildfire patterns, and the spread of invasive species. Several climate-related factors are influencing Hawaiˈi’s landscapes and contributing to...