Coring Expedition to Palmyra Atoll
Helping managers understand pre-human vegetation, climate variability, and sea level changes
Helping managers understand pre-human vegetation, climate variability, and sea level changes
National News Release: Study confirms age of oldest fossil human footprints in North America
Two new lines of evidence support the 21,000 to 23,000-year age estimate of the footprints first described and dated in 2021
Two new lines of evidence support the 21,000 to 23,000-year age estimate of the footprints first described and dated in 2021
What's it like to be a Climate Research and Development scientist?
Check out our "Day in the Life" video!
Check out our "Day in the Life" video!
The Glacier - Climate Connection
The story of the U.S. Geological Survey Benchmark Glacier Project, one of the longest running studies of glaciers on Earth
The story of the U.S. Geological Survey Benchmark Glacier Project, one of the longest running studies of glaciers on Earth
The National Climate Change Viewer (NCCV)
A tool that helps land managers and decision makers plan for climate change
A tool that helps land managers and decision makers plan for climate change
Climate Research and Development Program
The Climate Research and Development (Climate R&D) Program strives to advance the understanding of the physical, chemical, and biological components of the Earth system, the causes and consequences of climate and land use change, and the vulnerability and resilience of the Earth system to such changes.
Quick Links
Quick Links
Climate history, land cover and land surface data and models are vital for assessing the impacts of climate change, evaluating ecosystem status and health, understanding spatial patterns of biodiversity, and informing land use planning.
News
Extreme Low Flows Less Common with Warmer Winters and Wetter Summers
Extreme Low Flows Less Common with Warmer Winters and Wetter Summers
Earth Science Matters - Volume 18, Spring 2024
Earth Science Matters - Volume 18, Spring 2024
Past patterns of marine temperature and ecosystem health help predict future ecosystem behavior
Past patterns of marine temperature and ecosystem health help predict future ecosystem behavior
Publications
Polar paleoenvironmental perspectives on modern climate change
In today’s rapidly changing climate, society needs a better understanding of climate impacts on sea level, ice sheets and glaciers, sea ice, ocean circulation, ecosystems, biodiversity, and other aspects of planet Earth. Paleoenvironmental records provide a unique and invaluable source of insight into these complex issues, and place recent observations into a broader historical context. This essay
Soil elevation change in mangrove forests and marshes of the greater Everglades: A regional synthesis of surface elevation table-marker horizon (SET-MH) data
Coastal wetlands adapt to rising seas via feedbacks that build soil elevation, which lead to wetland stability. However, accelerated rates of sea-level rise can exceed soil elevation gain, leading to wetland instability and loss. Thus, there is a pressing need to better understand regional and landscape variability in rates of wetland soil elevation change. Here, we conducted a regional synthesis
Aquatic carbon export and dynamics in mountain headwater streams of the western U.S.
Mountain headwater streams actively cycle carbon, receiving it from terrestrial landscapes and exporting it through downstream transport and gas exchange with the atmosphere. Although their importance is now widely recognized, aquatic carbon fluxes in headwater streams remain poorly characterized. In this study, aquatic carbon fluxes were measured in 15 mountain headwater streams and were used in
Science
Glaciers and Climate Project
Mountain glaciers are dynamic reservoirs of frozen water closely coupled to ecosystems and climate. Glacier change in North America has major socioeconomic impacts, including global sea level change, tourism disruption, natural hazard risk, fishery effects, and water resource alteration. Understanding and quantifying precise connections between glaciers and climate is critical to decision makers...
South Cascade Glacier
South Cascade Glacier is located in the midlatitude maritime climate of the North Cascade Mountains of Washington State. Glacier observations began at this site in 1958.
Lemon Creek Glacier
Lemon Creek Glacier is located in the high-latitude maritime region of Alaska, at the southernmost tip of the Juneau Icefield. Glacier observations began at this site in 1953.