Wanda R. Ferrell, Ph.D. Acting Director Climate and Environmental Sciences Division February 23, 2010

1. BERAC MeetingClimate and Environmental Sciences Division Office of Science Office of Biological and Environmental Research Wanda R. Ferrell, Ph.D. Acting Director Climate and Environmental Sciences Division February 23, 2010 Office of Science Office of Science Office of Biological and Environmental Research Office of Biological and Environmental Research

2. Current University Solicitations Research in Integrated Assessment Inter-Model Development, Testing and Diagnostics Regional and Global Climate Modeling Program: Modes of Low Frequency Variability in a Changing Climate DOE National Laboratories Only Climate Uncertainties at Regional and Global Scales, LAB 10-04 Earth System Modeling: Advanced Scientific Visualization of Ultra-Large Climate Data Sets, LAB 10-05 2BER BSSD Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research UPDATES ON DIVISION SOLICITATIONS 2BERAC Feb2010 Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research 2BER BSSD

3. UPCOMING SOLICITATIONS • Terrestrial Ecosystem Science • Subsurface Biogeochemical Research • Atmospheric System Research • NSF-USDA-DOE solicitation - “Decadal and Regional Climate Prediction using Earth System Models   (EaSM)”

4. 4BER BSSD Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Regional & Global Climate Modeling Causality of the Sea Level Oscillations – Early Glacial Period This is the first study to indicate that the status of the Bering Strait may have played an essential role on past climate changes. Hu, A, G. A. Meehl, B. L. Otto-Bliesner, C. Waelbroeck, W. Han, M-F. Loutre, K. Lambeck, J. X. Mitrovica and N. Rosenbloom, 2010, Influence of Bering Strait flow and North Atlantic circulation on glacial sea level changes, Nature Geosciences, doi:10.1038/NGEO729, 3, 118-121. 4BERAC Feb2010 Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research 4BER BSSD

5. Earth System Modeling • Early results show a successful simulation of the magnitude of the abrupt Bolling-Allerod warming • This is the 1st coupled CGCM simulation of the transient climate evolution since the Last Glacial Maximum (21,000 years ago) Liu et al., Science, 2009, partially supported by DOE Abrupt Change and INCITE

6. Integrated Assessment • New process for creating plausible scenarios for climate change research and assessment,  shaping among other things, this next round of IPCC. • Central to the new process is the concept that a diverse range of socioeconomic and technological development scenarios can achieve four potential radiative forcing pathways. • Climate modelers and socio-economic/ecological researchers will work to develop both climate scenarios and detailed socio-economic and environmental scenarios. Moss, R.H., et. al, 2010. "The Next Generation of Climate Scenarios." Nature (in press) DOI 10.1038/nature08823.

7. 7BER BSSD Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Climate Research Facility • In January new aircraft campaign to obtain a new and comprehensive set of in-cloud measurements about the size and number of ice crystals that make up cirrus clouds • AMF continuing its deployment in the Azores to study marine clouds 7BERAC Feb2010 Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research 7BER BSSD

8. 8BER BSSD Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research ARM Climate Research Facility • Recovery Act activities are on track and new instruments expected to be operational in September. • Experiments for 2011 are joint effort with NASA on precipitation, Madden Julian Oscillation experiment in Manus, AMF2 in Colorado, and AMF1 in Ganges Valley. 8BERAC Feb2010 Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research 8BER BSSD

9. 9BER BSSD Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Atmospheric System Research • Reported in Science, a team of researchers present a framework for interpreting the chemical transformations and physical characteristics common to organic aerosols from diverse human and natural sources. • This framework holds promise for enabling scientists to build model descriptions of the behavior of this important atmospheric component. Jimenez, J. L., et al. 2009. "Evolution of Organic Aerosols in the Atmosphere," Science326, 1525. 9BERAC Feb2010 Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research 9BER BSSD

10. 10BER BSSD Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Plans are proceeding for the next generation ecosystem experiment (arctic tundra warming) with infrastructure prototype development underway. Large-scale northern Minnesota bog warming/elevated-CO2 experiment is under construction -- joint effort between ORNL and U.S. Forest Service 10BERAC Feb2010 Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research 10BER BSSD

11. 11BER BSSD Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Terrestrial Ecosystem Research • A range of in situ warming and precipitation manipulation experiments are underway: eastern temperate forests, alpine tree line, western woodlands, boreal-temperate forest ecotone, western grasslands, and western and eastern insect populations (some laboratory studies too). • Plant community species composition is being affected by climate change treatments and mechanisms of drought-induced plant mortality are being elucidated. • Effects of warming on insect populations is being quantified at the genetic level 11BERAC Feb2010 Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research 11BER BSSD

12. Subsurface Biogeochemical Research • Lipid vesicles containing protein and redox active dyes were used to demonstrate electron transfer across a membrane and electron transport was measured using protein film voltammetry • The results demonstrate a biochemical mechanism for the microbial respiration of extracellular solid phases such as metal oxides. The mechanism is important for understanding bacterially-mediated metal and radionuclide reduction in subsurface environments. Hartshorne RS, CL Reardon, DE Ross, J Nuester, TA Clarke, AJ Gates, PC Mills, JK Fredrickson, JM Zachara, L Shi, AS Beliaev, MJ Marshall, M Tien, SL Brantley, JN Butt, and D Richardson.  (2009).  " Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 106 (52):22169-22174.  Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research 12BER Overview

13. Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory • Characterize uranium associated with reduced minerals produced by microbial activity in uranium-contaminated aquifers. • Analyses at the EMSL facility using a battery of analytical techniques (SEM/TEM, XRD, Mossbauer) and the APS (XANES) enabled identification of oxidized and reduced uranium on the pyrite surface. Qafoku, N, Kukkadapu, RK, McKinley, JP, Arey, BW, Kelly, SD, Wang, CM, Resch, CT, Long, PE (2009) Environ. Sci. Technol. 43(22):8528-8534 Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research 13BER Overview

14. Principal investigator meetings ASR – March 15-19 Marriott Bethesda North Hotel in Bethesda MD SESP – March 29-31 JW Marriott, Wash DC Climate Change Modeling Programs – Integrated Science Team Meeting – March 29-April 2 Gaithersburg Hilton Future workshops Climate Roadmapping 14BER BSSD Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Future CESD Activities 14BERAC Feb2010 Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research 14BER BSSD

15. Re-posted recruitment for an ecologist to backfill for Roger Dahlman (announcement closes March 1). Dr. Anjuli Bamzai has moved to the National Science Foundation. We are recruiting to backfill for Climate Modeling Program Manager position. Ms. Eileen Knox has joined BER as a Secretary for the Climate and Environmental Sciences Division. 15BER BSSD Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Personnel 15BERAC Feb2010 Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research Department of Energy • Office of Science • Biological and Environmental Research 15BER BSSD