Here’s the latest news and press headlines from July at the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at Stony Brook University!
Paul Shepson, PhD, Distinguished SUNY Professor and Dean of the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS) at Stony Brook University, has received a $1.725 million grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to conduct flights with a specially equipped aircraft to complete air sampling and modeling analysis of greenhouse gas emissions from the Northeast urban corridor of the United States. The project, which runs through February of 2026, is expected to produce data to increase and improve scientists’ quantitative knowledge of carbon dioxide and methane emission rates for cities such as New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, DC.
Shepson and his collaborators will set a series of flights to quantify greenhouse gas emission rates over the Northeast urban corridor. Two platforms will be used – the Purdue University Airborne Laboratory for Atmospheric Research (ALAR) and the SoMAS R/V Seawolf, an ocean-going research vessel that has the same instrument as the ALAR aircraft to measure carbon dioxide and methane as it cruises coastal Northeast urban areas. The team will use a range of atmospheric modeling approaches to interpret the data collected from the aircraft missions. They will combine this data with towers that measure greenhouse gases located in the Northeast, including one at SoMAS’ Flax Pond Marine Laboratory on Long Island.
“We expect to conduct ongoing aircraft sampling across the region with the ALAR aircraft, with inverse modeling analysis for emission rate determination for each of the urban cores, across all seasons, and days of the week,” says Shepson, an atmospheric scientist who has conducted research with aircrafts he has piloted for more than 20 years. “Then we will begin connecting our measurements from the aircraft to those from satellite-based instruments over New York City.”
Shepson explains that on a broader scale information about greenhouse gas emission rates from the flights and methods to analyze the information can help scientists better observe and follow the progress of the New York State Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, legislation with the goal to greatly reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the coming years.
Shepson and a team of international researchers have already published several papers based on aircraft-conducted atmospheric measurements. A more recent research article from 2022 revealed that methane emissions from New York City are currently underestimated.
Key collaborators of the current NIST-supported project include Anna Karion and David Allen from the NIST; Xinrong Ren from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Russ Dickerson, University of Maryland; and Joe Pitt, University of Bristol in England.
Dr. Marat Khairoutdinov has received a new award (subcontract) from BNL, in support of the project entitled “Implementation of Entrainment Zoon and Surface Roughness into SAM-Chamber”, in the amount ($27,480.00), for the period (~now – Sept. 15, 2023).
Cloud formation and dissipation play a crucial role in energy balance and hydrological cycle on Earth. However, cloud evolution is controlled by key microphysical processes (e.g., droplet activation, condensational growth, collisional growth, entrainment, and mixing) which are still not fully understood at the fundamental level and thus cause uncertainties in future climate projection. These microphysical processes cannot be easily explored under atmospheric cloud conditions due to the complex interactions and feedbacks among dynamics, radiation, and microphysics therein. A laboratory facility would provide the optimal settings to address these knowledge gaps under well- controlled conditions. Recently, BNL is working on a DOE-NSF co-funded project entitled “A community Laboratory Facility for Exploring and Sensing of Aerosol-Cloud-Drizzle Processes: The Aerosol-Cloud-Drizzle Convection Chamber” (acronym name, ACDC2). One objective of ACDC2 involves activities related to the design of a large cloud chamber suitable for drizzle formation using large-eddy simulations. This subcontract research will serve the ACDC2 project by developing an advanced numerical model for chamber simulations that can be served as a digital twin of chamber research and design.
SAM-Chamber, which is adapted and modified from the well-established System for Atmospheric Modeling (SAM), has been used to simulate cloud formed in the Michigan Tech Pi Cloud Chamber (Yang et al., 2022). However, the current SAM-Chamber is not ready to simulate the entrainment experiments in which cloud microphysical properties are influenced by a dry air flow entered from the top region of the Pi chamber. In addition, the SAM-Chamber cannot simulate the surface roughness experiment where the chamber surface is roughed artificially such that the turbulence inside the Pi chamber is enhanced. The objective of this project is to modify the SAM-Chamber to have the capability to simulate entrainment and surface roughness experiments to explore aerosol-cloud- turbulence interactions under different conditions. The outcome of this project will benefit the ACDC2 project, providing timely input as we approach the final stages of the design.
Dr. Sara Hamideh has been awarded the President’s Service Award from the International
Dr. Michael French has been awarded the “Editor’s Award” for the journal Monthly Weather Review by the American Meteorological Society “for providing numerous extremely thorough, thoughtful and constructive reviews over many years.” The formal presentation of the award will occur at the 104th AMS Annual Meeting to be held in late January 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland.
The world lost professor emeritus Charles Wurster, the last surviving founding trustee of the Environmental Defense Fund. Malcolm Bowman wrote a fitting tribute to Charles on TBR News Media.
Latest SBU News
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Latest Publications
Cuesta, F., Carilla, J., LLambí, L. D., Muriel, P., Lencinas, M. V., Meneses, R. I., … Yager, K. & Tovar, C. (2023). Compositional shifts of alpine plant communities across the high Andes. Global Ecology and Biogeography.
Cao, C., Gentner, D. R., Commane, R., Toledo-Crow, R., Schiferl, L. D., & Mak, J. E. (2023). Policy-Related Gains in Urban Air Quality May Be Offset by Increased Emissions in a Warming Climate. Environmental Science & Technology.
Hajny, K. D., Lyon, D. R., Armstrong, A., Floerchinger, C. R., Jayarathne, T., Kaeser, R., … Lopez-Coto, I., & Shepson, P. B. (2023). Assessing the bias and uncertainties in the aircraft mass balance technique for the determination of carbon dioxide emission rates. Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene, 11(1).
Simpfendorfer, C. A., Heithaus, M. R., Heupel, M. R., MacNeil, M. A., Meekan, M., Harvey, E., … Peterson, B., … Warren, J., & Wirsing, A. J. (2023). Widespread diversity deficits of coral reef sharks and rays. Science, 380(6650), 1155-1160.
Brianik, C. J., Bopp, J., Piechocki, C., Liang, N., O’Reilly, S., Cerrato, R. M., & Allam, B. (2023). Infection prevalence, intensity, and gill coverage by the parasitic flatworm, Bdelloura candida, in the American horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus). Hydrobiologia, 1-15.
Tettelbach, S. T., Czaja Jr, R. E., Tobi, H., Hughes, S. W., Peterson, B. J., Heck, S. M., … Pales-Espinosa, E., & Allam, B. (2023). Collapse of the New York Bay scallop fishery despite sustained larval and juvenile recruitment. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 714, 45-56.
Lachlan, K. A., Hutter, E., Gilbert, C., & Spence, P. R. (2023). The impact of rumination on information seeking, depressive symptomology, and protective actions in response to COVID-19. Journal of Emergency Management, 21(3), 223-232.
Stephens, R. B., Shipley, O. N., & Moll, R. J. (2023). Meta‐analysis and critical review of trophic discrimination factors (Δ13C and Δ15N): Importance of tissue, trophic level and diet source. Functional Ecology.
van Herpen, M. M. J. W., Li, Q., Saiz-Lopez, A., Liisberg, J. B., Röckmann, T., Cuevas, C. A., Fernandez, R. P., Mak, J. E., Mahowald, N. M., Hess, P., Meidan, D., Stuut, J. W., and Johnson, M. S. (2023). Photocatalytic chlorine atom production on mineral dust–sea spray aerosols over the North Atlantic. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 120(31).
Brianik, C., & Allam, B. (2023). The need for more information on the resistance to biological and environmental stressors in triploid oysters. Aquaculture, 739913.
Hill, D., Dunham, C., Larsen, D. A., & Collins, M. (2023). Operationalizing an open-source dashboard for communicating results of wastewater-based surveillance. MethodsX, 102299.
van de Lindt, J. W., Kruse, J., Cox, D. T., Gardoni, P., Lee, J. S., Padgett, J., … & Hamideh, S. (2023). The interdependent networked community resilience modeling environment (IN-CORE). Resilient Cities and Structures, 2(2), 57-66.
Tovar, C., Hudson, L., Cuesta, F., Meneses, R. I., Muriel, P., Hidalgo, O., … Yager, K., & Viruel, J. (2023). Strategies of diaspore dispersal investment in Compositae: the case of the Andean highlands. Annals of Botany, mcad099.
Barosa, B., Ferrillo, A., Selci, M., Giardina, M., Bastianoni, A., Correggia, M., … Price, R., … & Giovannelli, D. Mapping the microbial diversity associated with different geochemical regimes in the shallow-water hydrothermal vents of the Aeolian Archipelago, Italy. Frontiers in Microbiology, 14, 1134114.
Latest Press Headlines
Manhasset Press: Leeds Pond, Battleground
- However, Christopher Gobler, who is a distinguished SUNY professor at Stony Brook University, director of the New York State Center for clean water technology and an endowed chair within the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at Stony Brook, spoke at the BZA meeting to address concerns about nitrogen and other contaminants this amount of fill could deposit into Leeds Pond.
New York Post: Long Island shark attacks on record-setting pace after 5 swimmers bit so far this summer
- “Step back a little from the hysteria,” said Bradley Peterson, a professor at the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at Stony Brook University. “You have to realize that you had a beautiful holiday Fourth weekend, you had hundreds of thousands of people standing in the water on the beaches of New York and two people got scratched on their leg,” he noted. “We’re not talking about anybody losing their life. No one lost their limb. No one was taken to the hospital.” Also ran in The US Sun, Olite, Techno Trenz and several others.
Times Beacon Record: Amid shark encounters, Suffolk County beaches add drone training and surveillance
- Sharks go “wherever there’s salt water” and they often follow bunker fish, which can come closer to shore, said Christoper Paparo, Southampton Marine Science Center manager at Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences. People encounter sharks around Independence Day because “there are more people around state parks on the Fourth of July weekend.” Despite potential hysteria and concern about the dangers posed by sharks, most of the encounters around Long Island are “minor” and “not life threatening,” Paparo added.
East End Beacon: This Morning’s Bulletin — 7.11.23
- Progressive East End Reformers and the Long Island Association are hosting a panel on Climate & Candidates featuring progressive candidates and climate activists, this Thursday, July 13 at 6:30 p.m. via Zoom. The panel includes Tela Troge of Shinnecock Kelp Farm, Christopher Gobler of Stony Brook University and candidates Kenneth Colon, Islip Supervisor and Michael Iasilli, Southampton Town Board.
Vox: New York’s shark-infested waters are a good thing. Yes, really.
- “Sharks are a sign of a healthy ecosystem,” said Chris Paparo, a shark expert at Stony Brook University in Long Island. “I look at that as a sign of successful conservation.” Also ran in MSN and Globe Echo.
Hindustan Times: ‘It was a bit spooky’: Video shows paddleboarder’s chilling encounter with a great white shark in San Diego waters
- Bradley Peterson, a professor at the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at Stony Brook University, said that during this season, sharks and other predators also hunt bunker fish. The sharks lead the bunker fish into shallow waters where it becomes harder for them to escape the predators.
Times Beacon Record: When the humans are away, gentoo penguins head to the post office
- “Antarctica is seen as a mostly pristine place where humans have very little impact,” said Clare Flynn, a PhD student in the lab of Heather Lynch, the Institute for Advanced Computational Sciences Endowed Chair for Ecology & Evolution at Stony Brook University.
Indonesia Posts English: Can Fish Feel Pain Like Humans?
- “When you are a fish, no one can hear you scream,” said Carl Safina, a marine ecologist from Stony Brook University, New York, United States in an article published in The Guardians.
USA Today: Dramatic flooding was rare in Vermont’s capital. Expect it more amid climate change.
- Just because a similar event might have happened in 1927, does not mean that this week’s event in Vermont wasn’t impacted by climate change, said Kevin Reed, an associate dean for research at Stony Brook University’s School for Marine and Atmospheric Sciences. “In fact, you could argue that if the 1927 event was to have happened in 2023 it could have rained more than it did in 1927.” Also ran in MSN, AOL News and several others.
Newsday: Seven turtles that likely drowned in crab traps wash up on Southold beach, officials say
- Hundreds of terrapins and tens of thousands of fish were found dead on a beach near Flanders Bay that year. Scientists from Cornell University, Stony Brook University, DEC and other institutions later determined the likely cause was a rare neurotoxin, known as saxitoxin, from an algal bloom. That discovery was published in the April 2017 issue of the science journal Toxicon.
Times Beacon Record: Global environmental hero and former SBU professor Wurster dies at 92
- Charles F. Wurster, professor emeritus of environmental science, School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook University, last surviving founding trustee of the Environmental Defense Fund, died on July 6 at the age of 92.
Health Digest: You Should Avoid This Type Of Canned Tuna, According To The FDA
- Mercury levels might also depend on where your fish is caught. SUNY Stony Brook Professor of Marine and Atmospheric Science Nicholas Fisher, Ph.D., told Consumer Reports that tuna caught in the Pacific Ocean have rising levels of mercury because China and India burn more coal, which releases mercury into the air. Mercury levels in the Atlantic Ocean are slightly dropping because of efforts to reduce emissions from coal-fired plants. Also ran in MSN.
Newsday: These Long Islanders are making a living on the water
- The group now works with several partners including Stony Brook University, the Sisters of St. Joseph and the regenerative farming nonprofit GreenWave. “This beautiful kelp, it’s a gift.” Genia said. “It’s the best of both worlds to be able to help clean the waters and pass that down to your children …. We are dead serious about taking care of the seven generations. This is our way, one solution.” —ANDI BERLIN
Newsday: Canadian wildfire smoke causes poor air quality across New York State
- “When the ‘smoke’ is transported from the source of the fire to somewhere else it ‘cooks’ under sunlight, and ozone as well as more particles can be produced,” explained Paul Shepson, dean of Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, in an email. “It is chemistry in the air that produces ozone and particulate matter, and that chemistry goes faster when it is warmer, and when it is more humid.”
Business of Fashion/Wazup Naija: How I Became… An Omnichannel CRM Director in Fashion
- Following a “fascination with the construction of clothing, and branding and storytelling,” Jackie Wong started his fashion career in New York shortly after graduating from Stony Brook University with a degree in Environmental Studies and a focus on Economics and Business Management.
Post Online Media: Previously unknown supercolony of Adélie penguins discovered in Antarctica
- “Until recently, the Danger Islands weren’t known to be an important penguin habitat,” says co-PI Heather Lynch, Associate Professor of Ecology & Evolution at Stony Brook University. These supercolonies have gone undetected for decades, she notes, partly because of the remoteness of the islands themselves, and partly the treacherous waters that surround them. Even in the austral summer, the nearby ocean is filled with thick sea ice, making it extremely difficult to access.
Northforker: North Fork breweries build community ties
- One evening, David Taylor, an assistant professor of sustainability studies at Stony Brook University, was giving a PowerPoint presentation of his kayak trip circumnavigating Long Island. The twist? He wasn’t in his campus classroom, but at Riverhead’s übergeek Brewing Company, delivering one of their signature Geek Talks, and his audience wasn’t filled with students taking notes but rather locals of all ages taking sips of cold brews with names like Space Age Times Stone Age Minds, Cabin Fever and A Casualty of Circumstance.
Smithtown Patch: Director Heidi Hunter Talks RADIOACTIVE: THE WOMAN OF THREE MILE ISLAND on THE SOUNDS OF FILM
- Heidi Hutner, a multi-award-winning film director, writer, producer, and professor at Stony Brook University, is a scholar of ecofeminism, nuclear and environmental history, literature, and film. Hutner chaired the Sustainability Studies Program for six years and was Associate Dean in the School of Marine, Atmospheric Science, and Sustainability.
NewsBreak Original: Stony Brook University to Take the Helm of New York Climate Exchange Initiative on Governors Island
- In a remarkable demonstration of Stony Brook University’s unwavering commitment to environmental sustainability, the prestigious institution has emerged victorious in a highly competitive selection process to lead the groundbreaking New York Climate Exchange on Governors Island. This exceptional opportunity sets the stage for innovative solutions in combatting climate change at a local level, empowering New York State to take a pioneering role in addressing global challenges.
Philadelphia Inquirer: Charles F. Wurster, environmental pioneer and science professor emeritus, has died at 92
- Charles F. Wurster, 92, of Silver Spring, Md., formerly of Philadelphia, cofounder of the Environmental Defense Fund and professor emeritus of environmental science at Stony Brook University in New York, died Thursday, July 6, of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at his home. Also ran in Norway News Today.
Newsday: Long Island water quality has hit a low point, environmentalist says
- Just a few feet away, Christopher Gobler, a professor at Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, stood with local environmentalists and unveiled troubling data that showed water quality hitting an “all-time low” on Long Island since he started monitoring it about a decade ago.
Newsday: Long Island Marine Monitoring Network report says LI water quality at an all-time low (video)
- According to a report by the Long Island Marine Monitoring Network, water quality in Long Island’s bays, harbors and estuaries reached an all-time low this week, with water bodies awash in fish kills, dead zones, toxic algal blooms, and fecal bacteria. Stony Brook University Professor Christopher Gobler explains why.
- Environmentalists say Long Island’s water quality is in danger. Dr. Chris Gobler, of Stony Brook University, says recent water testing shows local bays, harbors and estuaries are experiencing the worst fish kills, harmful algae blooms and water quality impairments on record.
Long Island Advance: Water quality is at an ‘all time low’
- Dr. Chris Gobler, of Stony Brook University’s Gobler Laboratory, met with Citizens Campaign for the Environment and the Nature Conservancy earlier today at Mascot Dock in Patchogue Village to debrief the current Long Island water quality.
Dispatchist: Long Island water quality has hit a low point, environmentalist says
- Christopher Gobler, a professor at Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, unveiled the troubling data. He cited on-site septic systems as one source of the problem.
WSHU-FM/NPR: Scientists will fly over New York City to sample greenhouse gas emissions
- A group of scientists from Stony Brook University has received a $1.7 million grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology to take to the skies to look at the big picture to see if these goals are being met from the Northeast urban corridor of the United States. The plane is equipped with air sampling over the New York City metro area.
WSHU/NPR: The health of Long Island waterways reaches an all-time low
- Chris Gobler is a marine biologist at Stony Brook University. He said recent rain events combined with the heat have exacerbated these issues. “The signs of climate change are everywhere,” Gobler said. “Everything I was taught about it when I was in school is coming true now, and it’s only going to intensify.”
- Airports are a “very important source of PFAS,” with firefighting foams that have the chemical, said Arjun Venkatesan, associate director for drinking water initiatives at The Center for Clean Water Technology, which is funded by the state and based at Stony Brook University.
Smithtown Patch: Director Heidi Hutner Talks RADIOACTIVE: THE WOMAN OF THREE MILE ISLAND on THE SOUNDS OF FILM
- Heidi Hutner, a multi-award-winning film director, writer, producer, and professor at Stony Brook University, is a scholar of ecofeminism, nuclear and environmental history, literature, and film. Hutner chaired the Sustainability Studies Program for six years and was Associate Dean in the School of Marine, Atmospheric Science, and Sustainability.
Boston Globe: Charles Wurster, environmentalist cofounded EDF save birds from DDT, dies
- Woodwell said he advocated for Wurster to be appointed to the faculty at Stony Brook University in New York. Wurster began teaching there in 1965, and remained on its faculty until 1995. He was awarded an honorary degree from the institution in 2009.
Newsday: Proposed Suffolk sales tax hike for sewer expansion won’t be on ballot
- “I’m here today to tell you that the plan that you’re considering right here is based on the best available science,” Christopher Gobler, professor in the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at Stony Brook University, told lawmakers at the hearing. “This referendum in front of you today will set the course for protecting ecosystems, human health and economy in Suffolk County for generations to come,” Gobler said.
WSHU-FM/NPR: Approval of a Suffolk County ballot referendum on septic upgrades stalls
- “I am confident this is the most scientifically robust plan of any county in this nation,” said Chris Gobler, the endowed chair of coastal ecology and conservation at Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences.
Spectrum News: Hurricanes will likely produce heavier rain in the future
- Hurricane Florence produced over 30 inches of rain in some locations near Wilmington. A study at Stony Brook University, published in Science Advances, found that a warming climate enhanced Florence’s extreme rainfall. Climate scientists have shown that a warmer atmosphere will lead to more frequent heavy precipitation events, even in nontropical systems.
Washington Post: Charles Wurster, scientist who battled to ban pesticide DDT, dies at 92 (PDF)
- In 1965, Dr. Wurster took a new job as an assistant professor of biological sciences at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and poured his energy into fighting DDT alongside other scientists and conservationists. His anger spilled out in a letter to the editor of the Long Island Press in which he castigated the commissioner of the Suffolk County’s mosquito control board. Also ran in Japan News.
Times Beacon Record: Letters to the Editor – July 27
- Legislator Bontempi refers to “a false sense of urgency.” Last summer and this summer, there have been record fish kills, algal blooms and other water quality impairments. According to the Gobler Laboratory at Stony Brook University, “Excessive nitrogen coming from household sewage that seeps into groundwater and ultimately into bays, harbors and estuaries or, in some cases, is directly discharged into surface waters, is a root cause of these maladies.”
Vineyard Gazette: Cyanobacteria Reaches Red-Grade Status in Four Ponds
- The foundation teamed up with the Gobler Laboratory at Stony Brook University to take advantage of that expertise. While Mr. Bouck can identify the presence of a bloom with his lab equipment, researchers at Stony Brook are able to identify individual species — no easy feat when it comes to cyanobacteria.
New Hampshire Union Leader: Charles Wurster, scientist who battled to ban pesticide DDT, dies at 92.
- In 1965, Wurster took a new job as an assistant professor of biological sciences at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and poured his energy into fighting DDT alongside other scientists and conservationists. His anger spilled out in a letter to the editor of the Long Island Press in which he castigated the commissioner of Suffolk County’s mosquito control board.
Futurity: Sahara dust removes methane from the atmosphere
- Coauthor John E. Mak, professor in the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at Stony Brook University, and colleagues used a combination of global modeling and field and laboratory observations in their work.
On the Water: Get to Know Spanish Mackerel
- With a degree in marine biology from LIU/Southampton, Chris Paparo is the manager of Stony Brook Southampton’s Marine Sciences Center. He is also an award-winning member of the Outdoor Writers Association of America and the NYS Outdoor Writers Association.
