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2 Contributions of the Atmospheric Sciences to the National Well-Being
Pages 17-27

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From page 17...
... As a consequence, this nation has been a leader in developing the understanding and technological capability to provide forecasts of the continually changing weather and warnings of severe weather events such as floods, tornadoes, and hurricanes. Atmospheric information and forecasts are provided in the United States through a four-way partnership: 17
From page 18...
... These capabilities are expanding rapidly, for both traditional weather impacts and new ones, including applications to environmental quality, to solar events that affect satellites in Earth orbit, communications, to power transmission and changes in weather patterns associated with E1 Nino events. Today, the nation is reaping significant benefits from its investments in atmospheric observations and prediction capabilities.
From page 19...
... TABLE 1.2.2 Reported Fatalities from Representative Hurricanes in th States (1900-1995) e United Year Ranka Location Fatalities First Half of Twentieth Century 1900 1 Galveston>8,000 1909 6 Louisiana and Mississippi406 1915 4 Texas and Louisiana550 1919 9 Florida, Texas, Louisiana287 1928 2 Florida1,836 1935 5 Florida414 1938 3 Southern New England600 Second Half of Twentieth Century 1961 25 Texas46 1965 16 Southern Louisiana75 1969 11 Southern States to West Virginia256 1972 14 Florida to New York122 1979 Caribbean Islands to New York22 1980 Texas Coast2 1989 20 Carolinas56 1992 Florida and Louisiana (Andrew)
From page 20...
... Although it is difficult to estimate accurately the relative effectiveness of implementing these three strategies, it seems that improving severe weather warnings, despite requiring investments in observational technology and forecast capabilities, might be the least expensive and most feasible of
From page 21...
... New facilities include a national Doppler weather radar network, major weather satellite improvements, the enhanced Automated Surface Observation System (ASOS) surface network, and a computerized network of weather display and prediction systems (Automated Weather Interactive Processing System AWIPS)
From page 22...
... Theory suggests that increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases will result in a warming of the planetary surface and that the direct effects may be amplified by feedback mechanisms, including absorption and re-emission of infrared radiation by atmospheric water vapor, itself a greenhouse gas. The observed concentrations of carbon dioxide (and other greenhouse gases such as methane)
From page 23...
... Aerosols Anthropogenic aerosols created by the burning of some fossil fuels are another example of environmental consequences of human activities. These tiny particles can limit visibility, cause lung problems, foul delicate machinery, reduce the intensity of the sunlight reaching the Earth' s surface, and contribute to acid rain.
From page 24...
... The atmospheric sciences thus contribute to decision making in both public and private domains and help lubricate the national economic engine. A more effective contribution to enhancing national economic vitality will require improved collaboration between providers and users of atmospheric and environmental information to ensure that needs, decision processes, capabilities, and constraints on alternative actions are fully explored.
From page 25...
... Even though forecasts of precipitation rates can assist in managing flood control facilities, the damage from severe and widespread floods is largely independent of forecast accuracy. Agricultural damage from an extended drought may be severe, even though both long-term outlooks and short-term forecasts were accurate.
From page 26...
... Improved understanding, modeling, and prediction of the interactions between solar phenomena and near-Earth space will help reduce damage to satellites in orbit and perhaps reduce disruptions of communications and electrical power networks. Although weather and climate forecasts may not provide for mitigation of all harmful effects, the use of climate data and extreme-value statistics, along with impact assessments, design studies, and possibly appropriate codes or standards, can significantly reduce the adverse consequences of severe weather events.
From page 27...
... Such chaotic behavior of nonlinear systems is now known to be common rather than rare, and this discovery has resulted in a new paradigm for phenomena occurring in almost every field of science. It has also resulted in a widely accepted theory of atmospheric predictability and has led to a deeper understanding of the mathematical structure of atmospheric motion and the nature of strategies required to predict the statistics that describe climate.


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