Earth System Research Laboratory
Encyclopedia
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration , pronounced , like "noah", is a scientific agency within the United States Department of Commerce focused on the conditions of the oceans and the atmosphere...
(NOAA)/Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research
Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research
The Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research is a division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . OAR is also referred to as NOAA Research....
(OAR).
ESRL combines six separate NOAA labs under one umbrella organization to provide a more effective and coordinated management structure into four Divisions - Global Monitoring, Physical Sciences, Chemical Sciences, and Global Systems. The former labs falling into ESRL are the Aeronomy Laboratory
Aeronomy Laboratory
The Aeronomy Laboratory was an atmospheric laboratory in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration /Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research . In October 2005, it was merged with five other NOAA labs to form the Earth System Research Laboratory.-External links:*...
, the Climate Diagnostics Center
Climate Diagnostics Center
The Climate Diagnostics Center was a project of the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences , itself a joint project of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the University of Colorado at Boulder. In October 2005, it was merged with five other NOAA labs to...
, the Climate Monitoring and Diagnostics Laboratory
Climate Monitoring and Diagnostics Laboratory
The Climate Monitoring and Diagnostics Laboratory was a climate laboratory in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration /Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research...
, the Environmental Technology Laboratory
Environmental Technology Laboratory
The Environmental Technology Laboratory was a laboratory in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration /Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research...
, the Forecast Systems Laboratory
Forecast Systems Laboratory
The Forecast Systems Laboratory was a meteorological research and development laboratory in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration /Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research...
, and the Surface Radiation Research Branch of the Air Resources Laboratory
Air Resources Laboratory
The Air Resources Laboratory is an air quality and climate laboratory in the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research which is an operating unit within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the UNited States...
.
Mission
ESRL's mission is to observe and understand the Earth system and to develop products that will advance NOAA's environmental information and services on global-to-local scales. The lab will achieve this goal by understanding the roles of gases and particles in climate change, assisting water managementWater resources
Water resources are sources of water that are useful or potentially useful. Uses of water include agricultural, industrial, household, recreational and environmental activities. Virtually all of these human uses require fresh water....
decisions with climate information, improving weather prediction, studying recovery of the ozone layer
Ozone layer
The ozone layer is a layer in Earth's atmosphere which contains relatively high concentrations of ozone . This layer absorbs 97–99% of the Sun's high frequency ultraviolet light, which is potentially damaging to the life forms on Earth...
, and developing air quality forecast models
Air Quality Index
Air quality is defined as a measure of the condition of air relative to the requirements of one or more biotic species or to any human need or purpose. Air quality indices are numbers used by government agencies to characterize the quality of the air at a given location...
.
Global Monitoring Division (GMD)
The goal of the GMD is to conduct long-term continuous measurement of atmospheric gasses, particles and radiation on a global scale in order to understand climate forcing, ozone depletionOzone depletion
Ozone depletion describes two distinct but related phenomena observed since the late 1970s: a steady decline of about 4% per decade in the total volume of ozone in Earth's stratosphere , and a much larger springtime decrease in stratospheric ozone over Earth's polar regions. The latter phenomenon...
and air quality. This information will be used to support global and regional decisions, climate projections and carbon management.
Physical Sciences Division (PSD)
The PSD conducts research to understand the physical environment: the atmosphere, ocean, cryosphereCryosphere
The cryosphere is the term which collectively describes the portions of the Earth’s surface where water is in solid form, including sea ice, lake ice, river ice, snow cover, glaciers, ice caps and ice sheets, and frozen ground . Thus there is a wide overlap with the hydrosphere...
, and land in order to improve local to global weather and climate predictions.
Chemical Sciences Division (CSD)
The CSD studies chemical processes in the Earth's atmosphere that affect climate, air quality, and the ozone layer.Global Systems Division (GSD)
The GSD conducts research and development to provide global environmental information and forecast products ranging from short-term weather predictions to longer-term climate forecasts.Research partners
- Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental SciencesCooperative Institute for Research in Environmental SciencesThe Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences is a research institute that is sponsored jointly by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration /Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research and the University of Colorado at Boulder.- Quick facts :* Established in 1967 as...
(University of Colorado) - Cooperative Institute for Research in the AtmosphereCooperative Institute for Research in the AtmosphereThe Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere provides a mechanism to link the scientific and technical resources of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration /Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research and Colorado State University.The CIRA research themes are:* Global and...
(Colorado State University) - National Center for Atmospheric ResearchNational Center for Atmospheric ResearchThe National Center for Atmospheric Research has multiple facilities, including the I. M. Pei-designed Mesa Laboratory headquarters in Boulder, Colorado. NCAR is managed by the nonprofit University Corporation for Atmospheric Research and sponsored by the National Science Foundation...
- National Aeronautics and Space AdministrationNASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
- United States Department of EnergyUnited States Department of EnergyThe United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...