Harry is a Research Geologist specializing in micropaleontology as well as Project Chief of Geological Investigations of the Neogene and PRISM Projects. His research provides crucial information on how the Earth responds to changing conditions for citizens and policy-makers. Harry is an expert in paleontology, environmental reconstruction, stratigraphic correlation and climate change.
Harry is a Research Geologist specializing in micropaleontology as well as Project Chief of Geological Investigations of the Neogene and PRISM Projects. His research provides crucial information on how the Earth responds to changing conditions for citizens and policy-makers. Harry is an expert in paleontology, environmental reconstruction, stratigraphic correlation and climate change.
Dr. Dowsett's current research, Geological Investigations of the Neogene, is at the nexus of global scale geological data analysis and paleoclimate modeling, with special emphasis on environmental and ecological changes accompanying climate change along the eastern United States.
He is Co-Lead of the international Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project (PlioMIP). PlioMIP is an international climate modelling initiative to study and understand climate and environments of the Late Pliocene, and their potential relevance in the context of future climate change. PlioMIP operates under the umbrella of the Palaeoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project (PMIP), which examines multiple intervals in Earth history, the consistency of model predictions in simulating these intervals, and their ability to reproduce geological climate archives. PlioMIP currently involves 20 research institutions.
Dr. Dowsett leads the international PRISM effort which focuses on the most recent period in geologic history bearing a resemblance to environmental projections for the 21st century. Through better understanding of past, present and future change, PRISM provides products designed to assist in:
- Predicting the strength and frequency of El Nino events and the related risks of droughts and floods
- Defining the bathymetric causes of Arctic sea ice variability for national security studies
- Understanding the nature of upwelling and the effects on coastal and fishing industries
- Reconstructing vegetation patterns to inform farming practices and legislation
- Predicting potential sea level rise and the risk to population centers
- Tracking storms and predicting the hydrological impact of modified atmospheric and oceanic energy transport systems
- Identifying climate model biases and testing the accuracy of future climate models.
Science and Products
Geological Investigations of the Neogene
Pliocene Research, Interpretation and Synoptic Mapping (PRISM4)
Geological Investigations of the Neogene Project
PlioMIP (Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project) Strategy, Communications and Synthesis for the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report (IPCC AR5)
Science and Products
- Science
Geological Investigations of the Neogene
More than a third of the United States population lives in counties directly on the shoreline, making them vulnerable to hazards associated with changing sea level and storm surges associated with hurricanes and severe storms. The geologic record contains many examples of past intervals of warm climate and high sea level. "Geological Investigation of the Neogene" is examining proxy records of...Pliocene Research, Interpretation and Synoptic Mapping (PRISM4)
PRISM will help distinguish the USGS as a world leader in paleoclimate research, data generation and delivery for use in addressing the modern world's climate-related needs. We will be recognized for the passion of our researchers and partners in providing quality, innovative paleoclimate interpretation and data analysis to the science (climate change) community and to the public we serve.Geological Investigations of the Neogene Project
Geological Investigations of the Neogene explores past warmer-than-modern climates of the mid-Miocene (about 14-17 million years ago) and Piacenzian (about 3 million years ago) to assess the potential environmental and economic impacts to population centers along the US Atlantic coast under different rates and magnitudes of changes related to warmer temperatures. Specifically, we look at past...PlioMIP (Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project) Strategy, Communications and Synthesis for the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report (IPCC AR5)
USGS PRISM (Pliocene Research, Interpretation and Synoptic Mapping) Project global data sets of Pliocene conditions, which form the most comprehensive global reconstruction for any warm period prior to the recent past, are used to drive numerical climate model simulations designed to explore the impact of climate forcings and feedbacks during the Pliocene. The Pliocene world provides an unequaled - Data
- Publications