Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences

The Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences ( CIRES ) is an environmental science research institute supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) and the University of Colorado Boulder (CU) . CIRES scientists study the earth system, including the earth's atmosphere , hydrosphere, cryosphere, biosphere and geosphere, and publish the research results for science and the public. It is one of 16 NOAA Cooperative Institutes.

History and research

Founded in 1967, CIRES is the oldest and largest of the NOAA Cooperative Institutes in the United States. There is an interdisciplinary collaboration between researchers from the University of Colorado in Boulder and the NOAA Office for Marine and Atmospheric Research (OAR), the National Environmental Satellite , the Data and Information Service and the American Weather Service .

CIRES has around 700 scientists, employees and students who publish around 500 articles a year. Research examples include the

• Monitoring of the earth's atmosphere with regard to the concentration of CFC, CO ₂ and NO ₂ ,
• measuring the ozone layer of the stratosphere,
• the observation of climate changes ,
• the review of the water and other critical resources of the earth, including to prevent forest fires,
• the observation of the melting polar ice and the air and water quality in the polar zones of the earth,
• the development of microbial agents to reduce environmental pollution,
• the prediction of earthquakes with seismographs

and providing decision-makers from politics and business with information for an effective risk assessment .

Departments

Cryosphere and polar regions

The cryosphere includes the arctic climate, ice sheets, glaciers, snow and permafrost. Research in this area combines the data collection of the data obtained, among other things, with the help of satellites, with models and with data analysis. This serves to better understand the effects of climate change on the cryosphere, the changes in the cryosphere and their influence on the entire earth.

Ecosystems

This research area deals with water quality, atmospheric changes, regional and global changes in ecosystems. The research covers topics such as:

• Bacteria that eat environmental toxins,
• Land use changes,
• Nutrition,
• Pollution in lakes and rivers,
• biogenic emissions of trace gases in the atmosphere,
• Protection of crops from frost.

Environmental chemistry

Include research areas

• the measurement and analysis of dust and naturally occurring compounds in the air,
• the development of analytical instruments taking into account the reaction kinetics,
• the elucidation of the causes of acid rain,
• the documentation of climate changes based on carbon dioxide and other emissions,
• the observation of ozone depletion in the stratosphere,
• research into the photochemical formation of oxidants in the troposphere

and the measurement of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Environmental observation, models and forecasts

This department deals with the growing understanding of interactive processes in the environment and the natural and anthropogenic changes in the earth. The main focus is on the greenhouse effect and the theoretical prediction of climate change.

Earth sciences

Current research in the field of geophysics deals with

• Earthquake forecasts,
• Studies of the size, shape and dynamic movements of the earth,
• of isotope geochemistry,
• the movement of the earth and the mantle.

This research requires the use of seismographs , analytical and numerical models, and geodetic techniques , such as lasers , satellites and interferomagnetic observations of radio waves from space. An important component of research in geodesy at CIRES is the participation in a multi-university consortium that coordinates the application and development of instrument packages that determine the distance between two points on the earth's surface with the aid of radio signals from GPS satellites. The scientific benefit is to observe the changes in the earth's crust in tectronically active areas, such as volcanoes.

Weather and climate

This department is concerned with understanding the global processes that affect weather and climate, observing the mesosphere from the troposphere. This includes measurements and theoretical work on air layers, e.g. B. the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the effect on climate prediction, waves and turbulence in the stratosphere and turbulence in the planetary system.

Centers and Programs

CIRES supports four centers that link NOAA and the 11 departments of the University of Colorado at Boulder:

• the center for limnology, which observes lakes, streams and wetlands,
• the center for science and technology surveillance in research, which provides information to decision-makers,
• the Earth Science Center,
• the center for snow and ice data, dealing with permafrost , ice, glaciers and snow.

The scientists specialize in atmospheric research , meteorology , climate , water, ecology , law and education and work with many decision-makers in the western United States on information relevant to climate change .

Web links

• Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES)
• [1]

Individual evidence

1. ^ Cooperative Institutes . NOAA Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research. Retrieved April 26, 2014.