February 2024 News and Press from SoMAS

Photo above: aerial photo of SoMAS buildings on South Campus taken by Arthur Mabaka on November 19. 2023 from a small private plane operated by Dean Shepson. The photo was a finalist in the Atmospheric category of the SoMAS Photo Competition.

 

Thanks to everyone who joined us today at Souper Bowl VIII, and to the contestants that provided an outstanding and varied repast:

Delaney Costante – Cheesy Potato Cauliflower Soup
Kaitlin Giglio – Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Maureen Murphy – Irish Soda Bread, Cornbread, and Shortbread Cookies
Erica Shannon – Corn Chowder
Tom Wilson – Chicken Tortilla Soup

After tasty and somewhat fattening deliberation and secure paper balloting by the attendees, the accounting firm of Lang and Price certified the following three entries for special recognition:

Bronze ladle – David Taylor – Sopa de Frijoles Negros Cubanos (Cuban Black Bean Soup)
Silver ladle – Karen Warren – Spiced Chickpea Stew with Coconut and Turmeric
Gold ladle – Jody Shepson – Tom Kha Gai (Thai Coconut Curry Soup)

Generous donations raised $238.00 for the Nuria Protopopescu Memorial Endowment, which funds our annual award for excellence in teaching by a SoMAS graduate student. The Nuria Protopopescu Memorial Fund Committee (Bob Aller, Christina Heilbrun, Quinzhi Zhu, and Tom Wilson) thanks everyone who helped make this event a success. See you next year!

 

Congratulations to the winners of the 2023-2024 SoMAS Photo Competition! Many thanks to Sara Cernadas-Martin for organizing the event, and for everyone who contributed their photos.

• Spirit winner: Jessica Esposito (Roseate Terns)
• Marine winner: Michael Fogg (Shortfin Mako)
• Sustainability winner: Tara Rider (Serengeti National Park)
• Atmospheric winner: Richard Murdocco (Smoky haze over Long Island)

 

Zhien Wang’s research group is getting ready for a large NSF field campaign, Cold Air Outbreak Experiment in the Sub-Arctic Region (CAESAR), based at Kiruna, Sweden to study Arctic cold air outbreak (CAO). The team will use the NSF/NCAR C-130, with in situ and remote sensors sampling Arctic air masses from the CAO origin at the ice edge throughout their transformation downstream. A rich array of airborne radars and lidars, aerosol, cloud, precipitation, and trace gas probes, deployed during CAO events over the open waters between northern Sweden and the Arctic ice edge for 45 days in early 2024, will provide a detailed characterization that will form the backbone of modeling studies across a range of scales and form a long-lasting legacy dataset.

Dr. Zhien Wang also has a new award from NASA “Characterizing Polar Mixed-phase Cloud Properties and Variations with CloudSat, CALIPSO, and Other A-Train Satellite Measurements” in the amount of $548,560.00 for the period 02/08/2024 – 02/07/2027.

A better understanding polar climate system is urgent because the Arctic is warming at approximately twice the pace of the rest of the globe and the changing arctic also impact low and middle latitude weather and climate (Coumou et al. 2018; Jung et al. 2020; Kennel and Yuaeva 2020).

 

Latest Seminar Videos

• Andrew Singer, Dean of the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Stony Brook University, OSAC seminar on February 2, 2024 “Acoustic Signal Processing and Communication Systems Through the Ocean, Soil, and Tissue“
• Shan He, SoMAS, TAOS seminar on February 7, 2024 “Inferring Causal Structure to Analyze, Model, and Predict Climate Variability“
• Nick Bassill, UAlbany, TAOS seminar on February 21, 2024 “Academic and Operational Relationships Between the UAlbany Weather Community and the State of New York“
• Jackie Collier, SoMAS, OSAC seminar on February 23, 2024 “Unusual biology of the model mangrove thraustochytrid Aurantiochytrium: carotenoids, unique organelles, latent ‘mirusviruses’“
• Alex Simpson, University of California, TAOS seminar on February 28, 2024 “Small river plume interaction with the surf zone via in situ and hyperspectral imaging“

 

Latest Publications

Lucca, B. M., & Warren, J. D. (2024). Experimental target strength measurements of pteropods and shrimp emphasize the importance of scattering model inputs. ICES Journal of Marine Science, fsad211.

Huang, X. L., Harmer, J., Schenk, G., & Southam, G. Inorganic Fe-O and Fe-S Oxidoreductases: Paradigms for Prebiotic Chemistry and the Evolution of Enzymatic Activity in Biology. Frontiers in Chemistry, 12, 1349020.

Schwaner, C., Barbosa, M., Espinosa, E. P., & Allam, B. (2024). Probing the role of carbonic anhydrase in shell repair mechanisms in the eastern oyster Crassostrea virginica under experimental acidification stress. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 572, 151990.

Lin, G., Wang, Z., Chu, Y., Ziegler, C., Hu, X. M., Xue, M., … & DeGraw, J. (2023). Airborne Measurements of Scale-Dependent Latent Heat Flux Impacted by Water Vapor and Vertical Velocity over Heterogeneous Land Surfaces During the CHEESEHEAD19 Campaign. Authorea Preprints.

Quinting, J., Grams, C. M., Chang, E. K. M., Pfahl, S., & Wernli, H. (2023). Warm conveyor belt activity over the Pacific: Modulation by the Madden-Julian Oscillation and impact on tropical-extratropical teleconnections. EGUsphere, 2023, 1-31.

Bower, E., & Reed, K. A. (2024). Using high resolution climate models to explore future changes in post-tropical cyclone precipitation. Environmental Research Letters, 19(2), 024042.

Czaja Jr, R., Espinosa, E. P., Cerrato, R. M., & Allam, B. (2024). Carryover effects and feeding behavior of Atlantic surfclams in response to climate change. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 573, 152002.

Leonardo, N. M., & Colle, B. A. (2024). Analysis of Snow Multi-Bands and Their Environments with High-Resolution Idealized Simulations. Monthly Weather Review.

Coggon, M. M., Stockwell, C. E., Claflin, M. S., Pfannerstill, E. Y., Lu, X., Gilman, J. B., … Mak, J. E., & Warneke, C. (2023). Identifying and correcting interferences to PTR-ToF-MS measurements of isoprene and other urban volatile organic compounds. EGUsphere, 2023, 1-41.

Bargahi, M., Yazici, A., Finn, D., & Tran, C. (2024). Assessment of accessibility and equality of access in Long Island libraries from the perspective of community resilience. Case Studies on Transport Policy, 101163.

 

Latest Press Headlines

Innovate LI: Technological tide is rising across maritime industries

• (Author of story Heidi Anderson is the executive director of Stony Brook University’s Clean Energy Business Incubation Portal). There’s lots to talk about, water-wise, regarding the New York Climate Exchange – a first-of-its-kind international center for developing and deploying dynamic solutions to our global climate crisis, anchored by Stony Brook University – and offshore wind farms situated between 15 and 30 miles from Long Island shore.

Times Beacon Record: SBU’s Oliver Shipley identifies new creature in deep Bahama waters

• Oliver Shipley recently shared one of the mysteries of the heavily photographed but lightly explored deep sea areas near the Bahamas’ Exuma Sound. A Research Assistant Professor at Stony Brook University, Shipley and his colleagues published a paper in the journal Zootaxa describing a new species of isopod they named Booralana nickorum.

Times Beacon Record: Editorial: Preserving the Long Island Sound for generations to come

• We must continue to uplift the work of the Setauket Harbor Task Force in Setauket and Port Jeff harbors. We must recognize the diligence and continued efforts from Stony Brook University researchers at SoMAS to the ongoing betterment of our beloved Sound.

Eos: We’ve Already Seen Category 6 Hurricanes—Now Scientists Want to Make It Official

• Kevin Reed, a climate and atmospheric scientist at Stony Brook University who was not involved in the new study, said that expanding the Saffir-Simpson scale would not only indicate increased risks from individual storms but highlight the worsening risks of climate change in general. “The reality is that hurricanes have changed already,” Reed said. “This creates the need to discuss whether the systems that we currently have in place are adequate for the future.” Also ran in Pune Media.

Stony Brook Media Group: Stony Brook Media Group Halftime Report – February 3, 2024

• Topics covered include Stony Brook faculty and staff honored for their service to Stony Brook, the faculty art show at the Zuccaire Gallery and Professor Kevin Reed named as MVP of the week.

East Hampton Patch: Lawmakers Implore Hochul To Save Ditch Plains From ‘Catastrophic Harm’

• Members of the East Hampton town board continue to visit the area to assess the magnitude of the damage and the need for immediate remedial action. By town board resolution, they have enlisted the services of Dr. Henry Bokuniewicz, Distinguished Service Professor of Oceanography at Stony Brook University, and the director of the Institute for Coastal Ocean Strategies, to consult on renourishment plans.

East Hampton Star: Thiele and Palumbo Seek Money for Storm Damage

• On Tuesday, the town board passed a resolution to approve a proposal by Henry Bokuniewicz of Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences for consulting services for the beach at Ditch Plain. Dr. Bokuniewicz is an internationally recognized expert on beach erosion, dredging, coastal groundwater issues, and pollution in the coastal ocean, according to a biography on the university’s website. He is to be paid up to $14,080.

Newsday: Moriches Bay scallops may offer hope for a restoration in the Peconic

• Part of the plan includes spawning the Moriches Bay scallops in the fall/winter period rather than their natural spring spawn, giving the scallops a chance to grow larger before being seeded in the wild without potential infection by a pathogen that Stony Brook University scientists discovered has contributed to the massive die-offs.

Riverhead Patch: Lawmakers Hold Environmental Roundtable, A ‘Unique Forum’ On LI

• Organizations in attendance at the event included the Long Island Pine Barrens Society, SUNY Stony Brook University, Peconic Land Trust, Long Island Farm Bureau, Suffolk County Department of Economic Development & Planning, the East Hampton International Dark Sky Association, Save the Sound, North Fork Environmental Council, Setauket Harbor Task Force, The Nature Conservancy, Suffolk County Community College Sustainability Program, PJ Citizens for Open Space, Peconic Baykeeper, and NY Sea Grant.

North American Clean Energy: Governor Hochul Announces $4 Million in Grants for Offshore Wind Training and Workforce Development

• The $20 million OWTI was launched in 2020 in collaboration with SUNY’s Farmingdale State College and Stony Brook University and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to advance offshore wind training programs and the educational infrastructure needed to establish a skilled workforce that can support the emerging national offshore wind industry. Also ran in North American Wind Power.

Duke Chronicle: Pratt School holds town hall on plans for $700 million NY Climate Exchange

• The Trust chose three finalists out of 12 initial responses: City University of New York’s Coastal Climate Center, Northeastern University’s Coastal Cities Impact Team, and Stony Brook University’s New York Climate Exchange. Duke joined the team backing Stony Brook’s plan, which was selected as the winning plan in April 2023.

Long Island Herald: New project is ‘Putting the Oyster Back in Oyster Bay’

• In a groundbreaking initiative aimed at restoring the once-thriving oyster populations of Oyster Bay and Cold Spring Harbor, the Town of Oyster Bay has embarked on a transformative project called “Putting the Oyster Back in Oyster Bay.” This collaborative effort brings together the town, SUNY Stony Brook, Adelphi University, and local environmental organizations such as the Oyster Bay-Cold Spring Harbor Protection Committee and Friends of the Bay.

Times Beacon Record: Clean water advocates embrace Suffolk measure

• The plan heading to Albany is a slightly altered version of the one that failed to pass the county Legislature last year — the new plan notably splits the funds evenly between installing sewers and replacing aging cesspools with smart septic systems. The plan that failed last year would have given about 75% of funds to septic systems, based on a Stony Brook University study on the proportion of pollution sources.

Newsday: Christine Suter, a ‘friend’ to Oyster Bay, takes helm of local environmental nonprofit

• “This past year we were involved with a grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. We’re working with two different professors from Adelphi who are monitoring the bay for Oyster Bay habitat suitability and recruitment sites, basically where oysters would establish themselves and reproduce. There’s also a big Stony Brook grant we’re involved with over the next couple of years, as well, to try to rebuild the oyster population in Oyster Bay.”

New York Magazine/Curbed: How Fire Island Was Saved — For Now After a winter of brutal storms, the Feds stepped in with a pile of very expensive sand. But it’s just a Band-Aid.

• While “Fire Island as an entity has a long time to go,” as Henry Bokuniewicz, a professor at Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, reassured the readers of Newsday last year as part of a deep dive the paper did on climate change’s effects, it’s clear that Fire Island as we know it will change whether we like it or not.

New York Times/Opinion: Like Many a Hero, Flaco the Owl Made His Choice

• The author of this op-ed is Dr. Carl Safina. an ecologist at the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

Newsday: Port Jefferson bluff damage, repairs raise questions about cost of protecting coastline areas

• Henry Bokuniewicz, a professor at Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, said retreating “doesn’t stop the erosion, it just lessens the threat.” He added that no solution is perfect, and communities must decide what assets and facilities they are willing to save — and what must be sacrificed.