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Indian Summer Monsoon

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Research Spotlight

Monsoon

Can Anthropogenic Absorbing Aerosols Affect the Indian Summer Monsoon?

The Asian monsoons affect the livelihood of billions of people. Rapid economic development over the region in the past decades unfortunately has also created abundance of air pollutants such as black carbon aerosols. The Wang group has studied the potential impacts of these particulate pollutants on the monsoonal circulation and precipitation pattern. Using an interactive aerosol-climate model combining with surface rainfall data, they have found that the anthropogenic absorbing aerosols could cause the Indian summer monsoon to come earlier and also a shift in monsoonal rainfall pattern, all in a coincidence with past observed trend.

Learn more about the Wang group’s research here.

Rwanda Climate Change Observatory

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Research Spotlight

Rwanda Observatory

Rwanda Climate Change Observatory

The Center for Global Change Science (Professor Ronald Prinn, Director) is collaborating with the Ministry of Education of Rwanda to establish a major Climate Change Observatory and develop educational and research programs in climate science that use the Observatory measurements. This involves: preparation and construction of sites for both a permanent observatory on Mt. Karisimbi, and for an interim observatory on Mt. Mugogo for testing and training; acquisition and installation of meteorological and atmospheric gas analyzing instruments; and training of technicians to operate and maintain the instruments and their data output. Dr. Kat Potter is the initial resident PI. The Rwandan Observatory is intended to become part of the international global AGAGE network (sponsored by NASA and several foreign governments’ agencies).

Learn more about the Center for Global Change Science here.

Joint Program

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Research Spotlight

JPwheel

The MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change

The Greenhouse Gamble™ wheels were developed by the MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change to better convey uncertainty in climate change prediction. The roulette-style spinning wheels depict the estimated probability, or likelihood, of potential temperature change (global average surface temperature) over the next 100 years. The face of each wheel is divided into colored slices, with the size of each slice representing the estimated probability of the temperature change in the year 2100 falling within that range.

Learn more about how to interpret the Greenhouse Gamble™ wheels here

Learn more about the Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change here.

Global Aircraft Emissions

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Research Spotlight:

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Global Aircraft Emissions

The Laboratory for Aviation and the Environment at MIT has developed an open source emissions inventory for global civil aviation based on flight schedules and modeling of aircraft performance and emissions. This emission inventory is now being used in atmospheric modeling work to improve our understanding of how aviation impacts the atmosphere. For example, recent work has shown that some flights create many times more tropospheric ozone than others. This implies that the environmental impact of a flight depends strongly on where (and when) it occurs – as well as its length.

Learn more about the Laboratory for Aviation and the Environment’s research.

Chemistry

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Department of Chemistry

Chemistry is truly the central science and underpins much of the efforts of scientists and engineers to improve life for humankind. MIT Chemistry is taking a leading role in discovering new chemical synthesis, catalysis, creating sustainable energy, theoretical and experimental understanding of chemistry at its most fundamental level, unraveling the biochemical complexities of natural systems, improving the environment, detecting and curing disease, developing materials new properties, and nanoscience.

Learn more about Chemistry

 

Aero Astro

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Aero Astro

AeroAstro is America’s  oldest and most respected university aerospace department. We have a tradition of strong scholarship and solving industrial-strength problems. Our community comprises people whose careers have included astronaut, fighter pilot, Air Force secretary, NASA associate administrator, Air Force chief scientist, aerospace executive, and corporate founder. Our alums are entrepreneurs, policy-makers, educators, and researchers pushing technology’s boundaries..

Learn more about Aero-Astro

 

ESD

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Departments Participating

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MIT Engineering Systems Division (ESD)

ESD aims to solve complex engineering systems problems by integrating approaches based on engineering, management, and social sciences—using new framing and modeling methodologies. ESD seeks to facilitate the beneficial application of engineering systems principles and properties by expanding the set of problems addressed by engineers, and to position its graduates as leaders in tackling society’s challenges.

Learn more about ESD

EAPS

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Departments Participating:

eaps

Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS)

The primary mission of our department is to educate students for a future in the earth, atmospheric, and planetary sciences. Specifically, we prepare undergraduate students for advanced graduate work and for jobs in government and industry, and we prepare graduate students for careers in fundamental and applied research.

Learn more about EAPS

 

CEE

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CEE

Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE)

The MIT Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) is dedicated to balancing the built environment with the natural world. In our research, we seek to understand natural systems, to foster the intelligent use of resources and to design sustainable infrastructure systems.

Learn more about CEE

 

 

Mercury in the Atmosphere

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Research Spotlight

Hg negotiation

Mercury in the Atmosphere

Research in the Selin group addresses the challenge of atmospheric mercury, which is emitted from anthropogenic sources and travels globally to affect ecosystems as toxic methylmercury far from its release. Mercury is the subject of a global treaty, the Minamata Convention, which was finalized in 2013. We use a variety of tools, such as global chemical transport modeling, integrated assessment modeling, and policy analysis, to inform decision-making strategies. A key finding is that mercury deposition results from a combination of local and global sources, meaning that regulation on multiple political scales is necessary to fully address the problem. We engage with decision-makers at local, regional, and global scale to translate our research results.

Learn more about the Selin group’s research here.