E-Newsletter Vol. 14 – 2008

Welcome Back ! The Spring 2008 semester officially begins on Monday, January 27th.

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” speaker is Professor Marvin Geller from the Institute for Terrestrial and Planetary Atmospheres, SoMAS. His seminar entitled, “Middle Atmosphere Advances During the 1960s and Foundations They Established for Contemporary Research,” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, January 30 in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Professor Geller, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Professor Joseph Warren from Stony Brook Southampton. He will present a seminar entitled, “Trophic dynamics in the nearshore Antarctic ecosystem: Do different foraging strategies of krill predators decrease competition for the available food resource ?” on Friday, February 1 at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Josie Aller, at 2-8655.

Beginning February 1, Friday Weather Discussions will be held weekly at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic will be announced on day of discussion.

There will be a seminar at Brookhaven National Laboratory on Friday, February 1, at 11:00 a.m. in the conference room of Building 815. Ed Luke will present a seminar entitled, “Enhanced Information Extraction from Doppler Cloud Radar Spectra — What Do We Gain?” This seminar is open to the public, however, a photo ID is required for entrance onto the BNL site.

Faculty News

During the winter break, Professors Minghua Zhang and Marat Khairoutdinov participated in the Science Team Meeting of the Center for Multiscale Modeling of Atmospheric Processes (CMMAP) at UCLA. Professor Zhang also attended in the 88th Annual American Meteorological Society (AMS) Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, and Professor Khairoutdinov represented the National Science Foundation on visits to two NSF Science and Technology Centers.

On Friday, January 25, ITPA faculty, graduate students and scientists from Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) held their second workshop on NY Blue Climate Science, focusing on using the BlueGene supercomputer for collaborative research. This workshop was held at SoMAS, and the first workshop was held during the summer at BNL.

Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Robert D. Cess, was the subject of an article in the Litchfield County Times in Connecticut entitled, “Nobel Thinking in Litchfield.” [Article link]

Student News

Congratulations to Kelly Lombardo, this year’s recipient of the Wu Xiangding Memorial Award for the academic year 2007-08. The $500 award was established as a tribute to Professor Wu who passed away in May 1996 while visiting ITPA. The winner is selected based on academic achievements while enrolled in the ITPA graduate program, with particular emphasis on performance in the departmental exam and core courses. Please join us in congratulating Kelly.

President Shirley Strum Kenny is seeking nominations for a variety of awards recognizing excellence among undergraduates. For details, please access http://www.stonybrook.edu/uaa. The University’s Undergraduate Excellence and Outstanding Achievement Awards Ceremony will be held on April 28th at 7:00 p.m. in the Student Activities Center.

Miscellaneous

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center’s (GFSC) Earth Sciences Division, in collaboration with the Goddard Earth Sciences and Technology Center of the University of Maryland-Baltimore County, is offering graduate student research opportunities through its Graduate Student Summer Program (GSSP). GSSP provides students with the opportunity to conduct an intensive research project at GSFC’s Earth Sciences laboratories. Deadline for applications is February 28. Details may be found at http://www.umbc.edu and on the ITPA bulletin board in Endeavour Hall.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Friday, January 25, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Dr. Gabriel Vecchi from NOAA’s Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, Princeton University. His seminar entitled, “Effect of Remote Sea Surface Temperature Change on Tropical Cyclone Potential Intensity,” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, February 6 in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Dr. Vecchi, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Jacob Kritzer from the Oceans Program of Environmental Defense in New York City. The seminar (title to be announced) will take place on Friday, February 8. at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Steve Munch, at 2-3087.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

Congratulations to Professor Edmund Chang and Ward Melville high school student, Yang Li, who was recently selected as an Intel national semi-finalist. Professor Chang, mentor to Yang Li, worked on a project entitled, “Enhancement of Winter Mid-latitude Precipitation over North American by Upper Level Waves Propagating from the Pacific Ocean.”

Student News

Jae Lee will present a paper entitled, “The role of solar forcing in the tropical circulation,” at the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) Science Meeting which takes place in Santa Fe, New Mexico, from February 5-7.

As a reminder, please sign the January attendance roster which, starting February 4th, is located in the main office.

Miscellaneous

SUNY Maritime College is seeking applications for an adjunct meteorology instructor to teach undergraduate meteorology lab and possibly some other related science courses. For details, please see the ITPA bulletin board in Endeavour Hall, or contact Marie DeAngelis atmdeangelis@sunymaritime.edu.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Friday, February 1, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Dr. Benjamin Zaitchik from the Hydrological Sciences Group, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. His seminar entitled, “Climate and Vegetation in the Middle East: Interannual Variability and Drought Feedbacks” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, February 13, in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Dr. Zaitchik, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Stephen Baines from the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook University. His seminar entitled, “Variations in the Elemental Stoichiometry of Marine Protists from Two Iron Limited Regions and their Ecological and Biogeochemical Implications,” will take place on Friday, February 15 at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Nick Fisher, atnfisher@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

In connection with the Friends of Flax Pond 2008 Winter Lecture Series, Fred Mushacke, Heather Young, Kirk Cochran and Chris Schubert will present a seminar entitled, “Study of Wetland Loss in Four Long Island Saltmarshes.” The lecture takes place at the Child’s Mansion from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 10. For additional information, please contact the moderator, Professor Malcolm Bowman at mbowman@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

All are welcome to attend two seminars at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) this week. On Wednesday, February 13, Jeffrey Pierce from Carnegie Mellon University will present a seminar entitled, “Ultrafine Atmospheric Aerosols, Clouds and Climate. On Friday, February 15, Pedro Bueno from the University of Maryland will present a seminar entitled, “Optical Analysis of Coated and Uncoated Soot: Data for Global Climate Change. Both seminars take place in the Building 815 conference room. A photo ID is required for entrance onto the BNL site.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

Please join us in congratulating Professor Edmund Chang who was promoted from Associate to Full Professor.

This week, Professor Minghua Zhang will attend the NCAR Atmospheric Model Working Group meeting in Boulder, CO. Professor Zhang is one of the co-chairs of this working group.

Last week, Professor Daniel Knopf presented an invited talk at Rutgers University entitled, Atmospheric Heterogeneous Chemistry: Oxidation of Organic Mixtures and Monolayers by O₃ and NO₃ and N₂0₅ Hydrolysis on Liquid Surfaces Coated by Organic Surfactants.”

Student News

As a reminder, please send your contact information to Owen Doherty (odieoss@gmail.com) or Tara Duffy (taduffy@ic.sunysb.edu) for inclusion on the new SoMAS website. The following information is needed, along with a head shot if desired: Your institution affiliation (Marine Sciences, ITPA, Waste Management), office location, email address, personal website link, office and/or lab telephone number, research topic, advisor’s name, previous institution(s), and degree.

Miscellaneous

The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) announces an Advanced Study Program Summer Colloquium on Numerical Techniques for Global Atmospheres Models from June 1-13 in Boulder, Colorado. For details, please access http://www.asp.ucar.edu/colloquium/2008. Additional details may also be found on the ITPA bulletin board.

A New York State Safe Boating class will be held at the Marine Station at Southampton this Spring. It will consist of 4 evening sessions, approximately 3 hours each. If you are interested in participating, please contact Dick McIntyre at 2-5020.

The National Geographic special, “Six Degrees Could Change the World,” will air on Sunday, February 10 at 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. For details, please accesshttp://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/sixdegrees/

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Friday, February 8, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Dr. Paul Roundy from the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University at Albany. His seminar entitled, “Associations of Atmospheric and Oceanic Equatorial Kelvin Waves with the Madden Julian Oscillation and Mid-Latitude Weather,” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, February 20, in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Dr. Roundy, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is John Marra from the City University of New York. His seminar entitled, “Interpreting Photosynthesis Measurements in the Ocean,” will take place on Friday, February 22 at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Robert Armstrong at 2-3088.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

Photos from the International Climate and Weather of the Sun-Earth System (CAWSES) Symposium may be accessed at http://www.stelab.nagoya-u.ac.jp/cawses/index.html. For user ID, enter cawses. The password is 2007.

All are invited to attend a reception for prospective faculty member, Silke Severman, on Monday, February 18, at 3:00 p.m. in the Okubo Room. Professor Severman has been offered an Assistant Professor position at SoMAS.

Student News

There will be a meeting of all graduate students on Friday, February 22, from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 120. ITPA students are encouraged to attend, as they have been underrepresented in the past. Specific agenda items may be sent to the ITPA GPC student representative, Owen Doherty,odoherty@ic.sunysb.edu. Also, the 2008 Fantasy Baseball League is now forming. If you would like to participate, please email Owen Doherty as well.

Please be sure to respond to Christina Fink’s notice (placed in your mailboxes) concerning office assignments. You must confirm your office location by February 18. Failure to do so may result in your office being assigned to someone else.

Miscellaneous

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Friday, February 15, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Dr. Michael Previdi from Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory. His seminar entitled, “Hadley Cell Expansion Under Global Warming” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, February 27, in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Dr. Previdi, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Ray Sambrotto from Columbia University. His seminar entitled, “The Plankton Ecology of the Marginal Sea-Ice Zone and its Future in a Warmer Arctic,” will take place on Friday, February 29 at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, David Black at 2-8676.

All are invited to attend a seminar at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) on Friday, February 29 at 11:00 a.m. in the conference room of building 815. Professor Jeffrey Pierce from Carnegie Mellon University will present a seminar entitled, “Ultrafine Atmospheric Aerosols, Clouds and Climate. A photo ID is required for entrance to the BNL site.

The Spring seminar schedule for New York University’s Center for Atmosphere-Ocean Science (CAOS) may be accessed at http://caos.cims.nyu.edu/page/events_colloquium. Seminars take place on Wednesday afternoons at 3:30 in Warren Weaver Hall, 251 Mercer Street in New York City. For more information, please contact Shafer Smith at shafer@cims.nyu.edu. The seminar list is also posted on the ITPA bulletin board in Endeavour Hall.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

Professor Kamazima Lwiza will host a symposium on Water, Health and Climate Change for Tanzania on Wednesday, February 27 at 9:15 a.m. in Endeavour 120. At this symposium, Professor Minghua Zhang will present a talk entitled, “Effects of Climate Change on Water Availability.” For complete details, please access http://www.msrc.sunysb.edu/news/Tanzania.html.

Congratulations to Professor Marvin Geller who became the fourth faculty member from the Institute for Terrestrial and Planetary Atmospheres to share in the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore for his participation in the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). For the complete story, follow this link.

ITPA faculty planning to be out of town should notify Gina Gartin (ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu) one week prior to traveling. This information is for inclusion in the weekly newsletter and for the purpose of responding to inquiries regarding availability for meetings.

The University requires that the Educational Programs Office maintain a file of syllabi for current courses. Please email a copy of your course syllabus to Christina Fink at cfink@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Student News

Tara Duffy is coordinating a First Aid Certification Course to be offered at SoMAS by Maryann Walsh from Student Health Services. The course will focus on basic first-aid, and is designed for those who have been certified for CPR within the last two years. It will be held at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, March 12, in Endeavour 113. Faculty, staff and students are invited to participate. For further details or to register, please contact Tara at tduffy@ic.sunysb.edu.

Miscellaneous

The Max-Planck Institute in Germany is seeking to recruit a postdoctoral researcher for a position within the project, Civil Aircraft for the Regular Investigation of the Atmosphere Based on an Instrumented Container (CARIBIC), to develop equipment for atmospheric trace gas analysis, to deploy this on the CARIBIC aircraft, and to apply the results to atmospheric chemistry research. Additional information may be accessed at http://www.caribic-atmospheric.com. Application information is also posted on the ITPA bulletin board.

As a result of a recent payroll audit, new guidelines have been imposed regarding paycheck distribution. Please be sure to pick up your paycheck or pay stub from the Main Office within two weeks of a payday. Failure to do so will result in your paycheck/pay stub being returned to Human Resources. It will then be sent to the Office of the State Controller.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Monday, February 25, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Dr. Christian Hogrefe from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation in Albany. His seminar entitled, “Simulations of Ozone and Fine Particles Over New York State for Air Quality Planning, Forecasting, and Climate Change Impact Assessment” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, March 5, in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Dr. Hogrefe, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Salina Heppell from Oregon State University. Her seminar entitled, “Saving Sea Turtles One Equation at a Time: Theory, Conservation and Species Recovery Planning,” will take place on Friday, March 7 at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Stephan Munch at 2-3087.

All are invited to attend a lecture at Stony Brook-Southampton on Friday, March 7, at 7:30 p.m. in Duke Lecture Hall/Chancellors Hall. SoMAS Professor Anne McElroy will present a seminar entitled, “Critical Issues Facing Long Island’s Marine Waters.” Reception to follow lecture.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

In connection with this year’s retreat/new student weekend, faculty members serving as counselors to any admitted students should contact them by email as soon as possible to encourage them to attend this event. Also, please set aside time on March 28 to meet with them. This year’s retreat coordinators, Mark Fast and Brad Peterson, will be sending out a detailed agenda shortly.

The Village Times Herald recently published a thank-you letter from the 2008 InSTAR winners to their mentors, one of whom was Professor Edmund Chang. To view the letter, please access page 13 of the newspaper at
http://www.threevillages.com/picpaperframe.lasso?-token.issue=2008-02-21.
A copy is also posted on the ITPA bulletin board.

Student News

Please remember to sign the February research attendance roster located in the main office.

Students are requested to participate in this year’s retreat/new student weekend scheduled for March 28-30. Please mark your calendars for this important event. Additional details will be provided in a future newsletter.

Congratulations to former student, Tiehan Zhou and his wife, proud parents of a new baby daughter, Amy Jennifer Zhou, who arrived on February 22.

Miscellaneous

As a reminder, Stony Brook Day in Albany takes place on Tuesday, March 4. To register, please access http://www.stonybrook.edu/albany.

The Atmospheric Science and Global Change Division at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is seeking a postdoctoral or post-masters scientist to assist with the analysis and application of measurements from the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program. Applications are being accepted online at http://jobs.pnl.gov (ID#114647). Additional details are posted on the ITPA bulletin board in Endeavour Hall. Information regarding the Atmospheric Science and Global Change Division can be found at http://www.pnl.gov/atmospheric/ and by contacting Dr. Sally McFarlane atsally.mcfarlane@pnl.gov.

The Department of Athletics invites you to attend a basketball double-header on Saturday, March 1. At 2:00 p.m. the Stony Brook men’s basketball team vs. Binghamton University, and at 4:30 p.m., the Stony Brook women’s basketball team vs. Boston University. For tickets and additional information, please contact Jordan Vardell at 2-9556 or john.vardell@stonybrook.edu.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Thursday, February 28, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Professor Bob Chant from the Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences at Rutgers University. His seminar entitled, “Estuarine Boundary Layer Mixing Processes: Insights from Dye Experiments,” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, March 12, in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Professor Chant, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Mack McFarland from DuPont. His seminar entitled, “The Path to the Montreal Protocol” will take place on Friday, March 14 at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Marvin Geller at 2-8686.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

This week, Professor Minghua Zhang will be in Norfolk, Virginia, to attend the DOE Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program (ARM) Science Team Meeting.

Professor Daniel Knopf will be attending the American Physical Society meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, this week, and will present a talk entitled, “A Novel Flow Reactor for Studying the Hydrolysis of N₂0₅ on Aqueous H₂SO₄ Solutions Coated with Organic Surfactants.” For details regarding this meeting, please access http://www.aps.org/meetings/march/index.cfm.

This week, Professor Edmund Chang will be in China visiting Beijing University and the Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He will present a talk entitled “Storm Track Dynamics and Variability”at Beijing University, and another talk on “Wave Packets and Explosive Cyclogenesis Over Western Pacific” at IAP.

Faculty are invited to a free event hosted by the University Bookstore on Wednesday, March 12, from 12:00 to 2:00 p.m. Don’t miss this opportunity to meet with local representatives from major publishing houses, view and discuss updated textbook editions and new titles, preview the latest technology in the textbook industry, and order desk copies and course materials for future teaching. Lunch will provided, however, you must RSVP to the University Bookstore at 2-4890.

Student News

Please remember to sign the February research attendance roster located in the Main Office. Also, it is important to pick up your paychecks/pay stubs from the Main Office in a timely manner. We are no longer permitted to hold State paychecks and pay stubs beyond two weeks of a payday.

The Graduate Student Organization is accepting applications for the positions of 2008-09 GSO President, Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary. Each position carries a stipend and position descriptions can be viewed at http://sbgso.org/files/u1/forms/officer_elections.pdf. Deadline for applications is 5:00 p.m. on March 31.

This year’s Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URECA) celebration will be held from April 13 through 18. This celebration provides a professional setting for students to present their research and to see what is happening in other departments. There will be a poster session, oral presentations, musical performances and an art exhibition. For more information, please accesshttp://www.stonybrook.edu/ureca/celebration.shtml.

Graduate student, He Zhang, from the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, arrived at SoMAS last week and will be working with Professor Minghua Zhang to analyze and develop new physical parameterizations in the Community Atmospheric Climate Model (CAM) of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). His office is located in Endeavour 197. Please stop by to introduce yourself and welcome him to SoMAS.

Miscellaneous

George Carroll has posted a photo gallery of the 2008 Bay Scallop Bowl which can be accessed athttp://www.somas.stonybrook.edu/news/bsb08.html.

We are still in need of volunteers for the New Student Recruitment weekend scheduled for March 28 – 30. To volunteer, please contact Mark Fast at 2-9251 or Brad Peterson at 2-9233.

The Department of Physiology and Biophysics, along with the Stony Brook Scuba Squad, presents, “Around the World Under the Sea,” a digital still image and video presentation on Wednesday, April 2, at 5:00 p.m. in lecture hall 2 of the Wang Center. Refreshments will be served at 4:30 in the theater lobby. For more information, please contact Peter Brink at 4-3124.

Information regarding the faculty-staff campaign, “Its About Us,” is available athttp://www.stonybrook.edu/itsaboutus. Please consider donating to support vital initiatives across campus including unrestricted funds, scholarships, fellowships, and programs at the medical center and veterans home. A copy of the booklet, “A Guide to Giving,” may be obtained by contacting Rich Guarino, Director of Annual Giving, at 2-4873.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Friday, March 7, 2008 by George E. Carroll

Due to Spring break, there will be no Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences seminar, Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium, or Friday Weather Discussion. Enjoy the break !

Faculty News

This week, Professor Edmund Chang will be in China visiting Beijing University and the Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He will present a talk entitled, “Storm Track Dynamics and Variability at Beijing University, and another talk on “Wave Packets and Explosive Cyclogenesis Over Western Pacific” at IAP.

Professor Daniel Knopf requests that all faculty members submit feedback to him regarding the SoMAS website. Information is needed regarding faculty research interests for the design of the new website.

Student News

ITPA Graduate Student, Jae Lee, will defend her dissertation, “Changes in Atmospheric Circulation Between Solar Maximum and Minimum Conditions in Winter and Summer,” on Wednesday, March 19, at 10:30 a.m. in Endeavour Hall 113.

There will be two workshops for international students this week. The first workshop, “Immigration Options after Graduation,” takes place on Tuesday, March 18, at 1:00 p.m. in the Computer Science Building, room 2311. The second workshop is geared towards international students who are employed and require information on how to file tax returns. This workshop will take place on Monday, March 17, at 10:30 a.m. in the Student Activities Center, room 306. For more information regarding these workshops, please contact the International Services Office at 2-4685.

Miscellaneous

In connection with the Suffolk County section of the Science Teachers Association of New York State (STANYS) and the Long Island Group Advancing Science Education (LIGASE), Professor Malcolm Bowman will present a seminar entitled, “Do New York City and the Eastern Seaboard Have a Watery Future?” This “Spring into Science” conference takes place on April 5 at 8:00 a.m. in the Wang Center. For more information, please access http://www.sunysb.edu/ligase.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Friday, March 14, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Professor Kyle Swanson from the Department of Mathematical Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. His seminar entitled, “Impact of Scaling Behavior on Tropical Cyclone Intensities,” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, March 26, in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Professor Swanson, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Evan Ward from the University of Connecticut. His seminar entitled, “Benthic-Pelagic Interactions: Suspension Feeders, Aggregates and Coupling,” will take place on Friday, March 28 at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Bassem Allam at 2-8745.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

This week, Professor Minghua Zhang will be attending the US Department of Energy Meeting, “Identifying Outstanding Grand Challenges in Climate Change Research: Guiding DOE’s Strategic Planning.” in Washington, DC.

Student News

Volunteers are still needed for this year’s recruitment weekend which begins on Friday, March 28. To volunteer, please contact Owen Doherty at odoherty@ic.sunysb.edu.

Miscellaneous

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Thursday, March 27, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Professor Gang Chen from NOAA’s Climate and Global Change Program, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His seminar entitled, “Understanding the Poleward Shift of Southern Hemisphere Surface Westerlies: Observations and Idealized Models,” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, April 2, in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Professor Chen, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Bernard Boudreau from Dalhousie University. His seminar entitled, “Motion in a Veiled World: Animals and Bubbles in Sediments,” will take place on Friday, April 4 at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Bob Aller, at 2-8746.

In connection with the Stony Brook Southampton Spring Lecture Series, Professor Roger Flood will present a seminar entitled, “Critical Issues Facing Long Island’s Marine Water,” on Friday, April 4, at 7:30 p.m. in the Duke/Chancellors Lecture Hall on the Southampton campus. Reception will follow lecture.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

Please remember to submit March timesheets on the SOLAR system.

The Department of Student Activities is coordinating the application process for the Senior Leadership and Service Awards. Faculty are asked to nominate graduating seniors who qualify for this award. For details, contact Mary Scranton at 2-8735 or click here.

On March 24, NBC did a feature on Stony Brook Southampton’s Environmental Studies Program. To view the video clip, please click here.

On March 25, Professor Edmund Chang was invited to attend a screening of the movie, “An Inconvenient Truth,” at Port Jefferson High School. Following the movie, Professor Chang discussed how global warming may affect the New York/Long Island area and answered questions from students and teachers.

Later this week, Professor Minghua Zhang will attend a National Science Foundation meeting on strategic planning of the national hurricane forecast project.

Student News

Please remember to sign the March research attendance roster located in the Main Office.

The Stony Brook University Chapter of Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society, is pleased to announce that it is accepting applications for awards in (1) Excellence in Research and (2) Educationally-related Travel. Deadline for submission is April 11. For more information, please contact Larry Swanson at 2-8704.

Quantitative Environmental Analysis, LLC is offering scholarship assistance to graduate students pursuing environmental studies. Deadline for applications is June 1. For more information, please access http://www.qeallc.com/html/Activities_80.htm.

On Monday, March 31, in MAR 595 from 12:50 to 1:45 p.m., Professor Minghua Zhang will lead a discussion on how to write an effective research proposal. All are welcome to attend.

Last week, ITPA graduate student, Jie Gong, and Professor Marvin Geller attended the SPARC DynVar gravity wave workshop in Toronto, Canada. SPARC DynVar is an international climate modeling project that studies the influence of the stratospheric circulation on the global climate system. Jie presented two posters: “Source Spectra Information Derived from US High-Resolution Radiosonde Data,” and “Indication of Convective and Spontaneous Emission Sources for Gravity Waves from US High-Resolution Radiosonde Data.”

Leslie Taylor is now accepting applications for the 2008 J.R. Schubel Graduate Fellowship Program. The program provides an annual stipend supplement for SoMAS graduate students committed to translating science into forms that are accessible to the public. The fellowship is available to M.S. and Ph.D. graduate students who are in good academic standing. Deadline for submission is April 11. For more information or an application, please contact Leslie at 2-8615.

Owen Doherty is recruiting players for the SoMAS Softball Team. If you are interested, please contact Owen at 2-3185.

Miscellaneous

The Stony Brook Alumni Association requests your assistance in identifying outstanding Stony Brook alumni who have distinguished themselves professionally and through service to Stony Brook University. Awards will be presented at a special on-campus event (tentatively scheduled for November 14) at the Wang Center. To submit a nomination, please click here.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Monday, March 31, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Professor Shuhua Li from the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI), Earth Institute at Columbia University. His seminar entitled, “Multi-Model Ensembles in Seasonal Climate Forecasts at IRI,” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, April 9, in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Professor Li, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Nancy Denslow from the University of Florida. Her seminar entitled, “Gene Expression Fingerprints in Fish Exposed to Environmental Contaminants,” will take place on Friday, April 11, at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Anne McElroy, at 2-8488.

All are welcome to attend a seminar at Brookhaven National Laboratory on Friday, April 11, at 11:00 a.m. in the conference room of building 815. Markus Ammann of the Paul Scherrer Institute in Switzerland will present a seminar entitled, “Phase Transfer Properties, Ozonolysis and Photochemistry of Organic Films of Atmospheric Relevance.” Photo ID is required for entrance to the BNL site. For more information, please contact Nancy Warren at nwarren@bnl.gov.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

In connection with Earthstock activities, the President and Provost will host a plaque presentation, panel discussion and reception honoring SoMAS Professors Robert Cess, Edmund Chang, Marvin Geller, and Minghua Zhang as co-recipients of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, (shared with Al Gore and the IPCC). All are welcome to attend on Thursday, April 17, at 3:30 p.m. in lecture hall 2 of the Wang Center. For additional information regarding Earthstock, please accesshttp://www.stonybrook.edu/earthstock.

Please submit your April timesheets on the SOLAR system for David Conover’s approval.

Student News

All are welcome to attend Jie Gong’s proposal defense, “Characteristics of Two Gravity Wave Sources in the U.S. High-Resolution Radiosonde Data,” on Tuesday, April 8, at 9:30 a.m. in Endeavour Hall 113.

Miscellaneous

There will be a New York State Controller’s Environmental Advisory Webcast on Monday, April 7, from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. in room 301 of the Wang Center. The purpose is to identify the most significant environmental issues facing New York State. This is an opportunity for faculty and students with an interest in state environmental issues to hear what’s happening from the people on the front lines of these concerns. For more information, please contact Liz Kerins in the Office of Conferences and Special Events at 2-6320.

As a reminder, paychecks and stubs must be picked up from the Main Office in a timely manner or they will be returned to the Payroll Office.

Mark your calendars for “Take Our Sons and Daughters to Work Day,” on Thursday, April 24. Registration takes place during the welcoming breakfast at 8:45 a.m. in the Wang Center.

To coincide with Earth Day, the University’s 21st Annual Spring Pride Patrol takes place on April 18. Pride Patrol is a volunteer effort that is dedicated to beautifying the campus grounds. To participate, please contact Christine Quinn at 2-6320 for a registration form.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Friday, April 4, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Professor Philip Li-Fan Liu from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Cornell University. His seminar entitled, “Recent Advancement in Understanding of Water Wave and Muddy Seafloor Interactions,” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, April 16, in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Professor Liu, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

There will be a special TAOS seminar on Thursday, April 17, at 10:00 a.m. in Endeavour Hall 120. John Dennis from NCAR’s Scientific Computing Division will present a seminar entitled, “Challenges and Progress of Running CCSM on Massively Parallel Supercomputers.” All are welcome to attend.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Andy Pershing from the University of Maine. His seminar entitled, “Operational Zooplankton Models for Right Whale Conservation and Ocean Understanding,” will take place on Friday, April 18, at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Joe Warren at 2-5045.

“Birdwalking in Flax Pond” takes place on Sunday, April 13, from 3:00 to 5:30 p.m. as part of the Friends of Flax Pond Winter Lecture Series. This event is for adults and children. For additional information please access http://www.flaxpondfriends.org.

All are welcome to attend the Robert L. de Zafra Student Symposium on May 9 beginning at 9:00 a.m. in Endeavour Hall 120. This annual symposium creates an opportunity for ITPA graduate students to report progress on their research projects in the past year. With the exception of first-year students, all ITPA students will make 20-minute presentations (first-year students are required to attend).

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

Congratulations to Professor Marvin Geller who was selected to receive the 2008 COSPAR International Cooperation Medal for his outstanding contributions to the development of international scientific cooperation in the field of space research. This award will be presented to Professor Geller during the inaugural ceremony of the 37th COSPAR Scientific Assembly on Monday, July 14, in Montreal, Canada.

Congratulations to Professor Daniel Knopf who received a 3-year grant from the NOAA Atmospheric Composition and Climate Program entitled, “The Role of the Organic Aerosol Fraction on Ice Nucleation in the Atmosphere.” SoMAS Professor Josie Aller is a Co-PI on this project.

Reminder: In connection with Earthstock activities, the President and Provost will host a plaque presentation, panel discussion and reception honoring SoMAS Professors Robert Cess, Edmund Chang, Marvin Geller, and Minghua Zhang as co-recipients of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, (shared with Al Gore and the IPCC). All are welcome to attend on Thursday, April 17, at 3:30 p.m. in lecture hall 2 of the Wang Center. For additional information regarding Earthstock, please accesshttp://www.stonybrook.edu/earthstock.

Faculty are requested to nominate student leaders and student organizations for the Campus Life Awards. This is an annual event that honors individuals and student groups for their outstanding contributions to university life in the areas of leadership, campus programming, and advising. The awards ceremony takes place on Wednesday, May 7, at 5:30 p.m. in the Student Activities Center auditorium. For additional information, please contact Jeffrey Barnett at 2-7320.

Student News

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science, Keyi Chen will present a seminar entitled, Statistical Analysis of Satellite Data to Investigate Asian Dust Transport to North America,” on Tuesday, April 15, at 2:00 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 120. All are welcome to attend.

The Graduate School is preparing their annual report on Graduate Student Achievements. Information from SoMAS graduate students for the academic year 2007-08 and summer 2007 is needed. For each submission, participants will be given a lottery ticket worth a cash prize of $100. For further information or a submission form, please contact Christine Fink in the Educational Programs Office at 2-8680.

Students interested in environmental issues are invited to attend the Third Annual Student Summit of the Environmental Consortium entitled, “Engaging the Unengaged: Spreading the Green Message Beyond the Choir,” on Friday, April 25, from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m. at Vassar College. This event is free and includes dinner. For additional information, please access
http://environmentalconsortium.org/taskforces/student/student_events.htm.

Miscellaneous

There will be a South Campus blood drive on Friday, April 18, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The Bloodmobile will be located in the parking lot in front of Endeavour Hall.

The Earth Sciences Division at NASA Goddard is planning to fill multiple positions in research areas spanning the Earth Sciences: atmospheric aerosols, atmospheric composition, atmospheric water cycle, carbon cycle, climate modeling and analysis, oceanography, polar climate change, terrestrial water cycle, and weather and short term climate. Please visit the Earth Science Division website for details, http://pita.gsfc.nasa.gov/metadot/index.pl?iid=2911&isa=Category.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Friday, April 11, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Dr. V. Ramanathan from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California at San Diego. His seminar entitled, “Atmospheric Brown Clouds and Global Warming: A Double Threat for Asia?” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, April 23, in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Dr. Ramanathan, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment. This is a special TAOS seminar in honor of Distinguished Professor Emeritus Robert D. Cess.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Francis Juanes from the University of Massachusetts. His seminar entitled, “Atlantic Salmon Conservation: Life History Flexibility, Genetic Variability, and Climate Change,” will take place on Friday, April 25, at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, David Conover at 2-8781.

All are welcome to attend “Antarctica: Our Experience at the Bottom of the World,” presented by Marianne McNamara, Jeronimo Pan, and Drs. Darcy Lonsdale and Robert Cerrato, on Thursday, April 24, at 5:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 120. Pizza will be served, however, you must RSVP to Christina Fink at 2-8680 by April 23.

Dr. John Michalakes from the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) will be visiting SoMAS and Brookhaven National Laboratory on Thursday, April 24, and Friday, April 25. On Thursday from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon, there will be research discussions and presentations on Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) in Endeavour Hall 113. Also on Thursday from 1:30 to 5:00 p.m., there will be a WRF tutorial in Endeavour Hall 113. On April 25, all are invited to attend a seminar by Dr. Michalakes entitled, “High Performance Computing and Atmospheric Modeling.” at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) in the conference room of Building 815. A photo ID is required for entrance to the BNL site.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

This week, Professor Sultan Hameed will be attending the Asia-Pacific Network Meeting on Climate Extremes in South Asia in Kathmandu, Nepal, and will present a talk entitled, “Recent Progress in Climate Extremes Research.

Student News

The Awards Committee is currently soliciting applications for the 2008 Petra M. Udelhofen Memorial Scholarship. The $500 cash scholarship is awarded annually to an undergraduate entering his/her senior year of study in the Environmental Studies, Atmospheric Sciences/Meteorology, and/or Marine Sciences programs at Stony Brook University. The award may be used for tuition, fees, books, or other educational expenses. All current juniors (entering their senior year in Fall 2008) in the above programs are encouraged to apply. For additional information, please accesshttp://www.somas.stonybrook.edu/education/education_Petra.html.

Miscellaneous

Volunteers are needed for the Flax Pond Clean-up on April 26 at 12:00 noon. Stay for the entire day or just a few hours. For additional information, please contact flaxpondfriends@gmail.com.

Mark your calendars for this year’s VAX to FLAX race. This year’s event takes place on Saturday, May 10. Further details will be provided in a future newsletter.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Friday, April 18, 2008 by George E. Carroll

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Dr. Steven Decker from the Department of Environmental Sciences, Rutgers University. His seminar entitled, “An Energetic-Based Analysis of Two Consecutive Extratropical Cyclones,” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, April 30, in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Dr. Decker, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is George Sugihara from Scripps Institution of Oceanography. The title of his seminar will be announced. This seminar takes place on Friday, May 2, at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Stephan Munch at 2-3087.

All are invited to attend the 2008 Stony Brook-Southampton Coastal and Estuarine Research Program (SCERP) Environmental Symposium on Friday, May 2, at 7:00 p.m. in the Duke Lecture Hall on the Southampton campus. Presentations will be made by the lab groups of Professors Chris Gobler, Brad Peterson and Stephan Munch.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

Professor Edmund Chang was interviewed for a Newsday article regarding President Bush’s talk on global warming. For more information, please accesshttp://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/ny-liwarm0417,0,2830978.story

Student News

As part of the student-organized Hera lecture series, Professor Bruce Brownawell will present a talk entitled, “Our Groundwater Resources: Water Supply and Quality Issues,” on Wednesday, April 30, at 3:00 p.m. in Physics S240.

The Awards Committee is currently soliciting applications for the 2008 Petra M. Udelhofen Memorial Scholarship. The $500 cash scholarship is awarded annually to an undergraduate entering his/her senior year of study in the Environmental Studies, Atmospheric Sciences/Meteorology, and/or Marine Sciences programs at Stony Brook University. The award may be used for tuition, fees, books, or other educational expenses. All current juniors (entering their senior year in Fall 2008) in the above programs are encouraged to apply. For additional information, please accesshttp://www.somas.stonybrook.edu/education/education_Petra.html.

Miscellaneous

On Thursday, May 1, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon in the Math Tower S-240, there will be a tutorial for use of the New York Blue Gene Supercomputer.

Stony Brook University celebrates its 50th anniversary on Wednesday, April 30, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. on the Academic Mall. There will be live music and free food. Wear red to show your Stony Brook pride !

Plans for the annual VAX to Flax race have been finalized for May 10. You are invited to run, walk, rollerblade or bike. Participants should meet in the Endeavour Hall parking lot at 9:00 a.m. Volunteers are still needed to assist with carpools and the barbeque following the race. For more information, please contact Aleya Kaushik at aleya.k@gmail.com.

Mark your calendars for this year’s SoMAS Convocation ceremony on Friday, May 23, from 8:30 to 10:00 a.m. For more information and tickets, please see Carol Dovi in Endeavour Hall 105.

In order to reduce our consumption of paper cups, please bring your own coffee/tea mug to future SoMAS seminars. We sincerely appreciate your cooperation.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Friday, April 25, 2008 by George E. Carroll

In order to reduce our consumption of paper cups,
please bring your own coffee/tea mug to future SoMAS seminars.

This week’s “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar speaker is Dr. Amy Frappier from the Department of Geology and Geophysics, Boston College. Her seminar entitled, “Recent Advances in High-Resolution Paleohurricane Reconstruction with Stalagmite Stable Isotope Records from Central American Caves,” will be presented at 12:00 noon on Wednesday, May 7 in Endeavour Hall 120. Light refreshments will be served. If you would like to meet with Dr. Frappier, please contact Professor Sultan Hameed at 2-8319 to schedule an appointment. This is the final TAOS seminar of the Spring 2008 semester.

This week’s Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium speaker is Roger Nisbet from the University of California, Santa Barbara. He will present his seminar, “Population Dynamics in Advective Systems,” on Friday, May 9, at 12:00 noon (refreshments at 11:45 a.m.) in Endeavour 120. For additional information, please contact the host, Stephan Munch at 2-3087.

The Friday Weather Discussion will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

On behalf of the Stony Brook Storm Surge Research Group, Professor Malcolm Bowman presented the paper, “Towards a predictive storm surge modeling system for the northeastern seaboard, USA,” at the International Workshop for Numerical Ocean Modeling and Prediction, Taiwan National University, Taipei, from April 23-25. The conference was organized by Yu-Heng Tseng (TNU), Chris Mooers (U. Miami) and Professor Bowman, and supported by the Institute of Hydrological Sciences, National Central University, the National Science Council, the National Center for Ocean Research, and the National Applied Research Laboratories of Taiwan.

Please remember to submit April timesheets on the SOLAR system for the Dean’s approval.

Student News

The Robert L. de Zafra Student Symposium takes place on May 9 beginning at 9:00 a.m. in Endeavour Hall 120. This annual symposium creates an opportunity for ITPA graduate students to report progress on their research projects in the past year. With the exception of first-year students who are required to attend, all ITPA students will make 20-minute presentations.

Please remember to sign the April attendance roster located in the Main Office.

Miscellaneous

There will be scheduled power outages anticipated to take less than a minute on May 6 and 7. The schedule is as follows: May 6: Endeavour Hall at 8:00 a.m., Discovery Hall at 8:15 a.m., Challenger Hall at 8:30 a.m., and on May 7: Dana Hall at 8:15 and 8:30 a.m. Please remember to shut down any sensitive equipment prior to the outages.

There will be an open meeting of the Strategic Plan Dialogue Committee on Wednesday, May 7, at 9:30 a.m. in Endeavour 120 to discuss committee recommendations. All are welcome to attend.

Volunteers are still needed for the annual VAX to Flax race scheduled for May 10. Sign-up sheets are posted outside of the mailroom in Endeavour Hall.

The Committee on Honorary Degrees is soliciting recommendations of candidates for SUNY honorary degrees to be awarded in 2009. Deadline for nominations is May 9. For more information, please contact Shaneen Washington at 2-7035.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Friday, May 2, 2008 by George E. Carroll

There will be a special “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar on Thursday, May 22, at 12:00 noon in Endeavour Hall 120. Professor Richard Odingo from the University of Nairobi, Kenya, will present a seminar entitled, “Drought, Climate Change, and Resource Management in Africa.” If you would like to meet with him, please contact Minghua Zhang atmzhang@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

The “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar series and the “Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium” series will resume in the Fall . Schedules will be available online in late August.

The final Friday Weather Discussion for this semester will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 139. Topic to be announced on day of discussion.

Faculty News

A SoMAS faculty meeting has been tentatively scheduled for May 22 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. Please hold this date on your calendars.

In his capacity as Chair of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Statutes and By-laws Committee, Professor Marvin Geller will be attending the AGU Planning Committee meeting on May 12 and 13 in Washington, DC.

Student News

Congratulations to Raema Obbie, the 2008 recipient of the Petra M. Udelhofen Memorial Scholarship. Raema will receive her award at the SoMAS Convocation ceremony on May 23.

Graduate student David Novak, in collaboration with Drs. Brian Colle and Sandra Yuter (NCSU), have published “High-Resolution Observations and Model Simulations of the Life Cycle of an Intense Mesoscale Snowband over the Northeastern United States”, in the April issue of Monthly Weather Review.

From May 26 to 30, graduate students Kelly Lombardo and David Novak, along with Professor Brian Colle, will be at the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, OK to participate in their 2008 Spring Experiment. This program gives forecasters direct access to the latest research developments while providing scientists with the knowledge to formulate research strategies that will have practical benefits.

Miscellaneous

On Tuesday, May 13, a follow-up retreat will take place at the Old Field Club to continue the development of a strategic plan for SoMAS. All are welcome to participate. Please RSVP to Rose Ann Hodukavich at rhodukavich@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

All are welcome to attend the SoMAS Convocation ceremony on May 23 at 8:30 a.m. Please RSVP to Carol Dovi at cdovi@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Please stop by the Main Office to welcome Dean Conover’s new Staff Assistant, Chet Frost.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

Page last modified on Monday, May 12, 2008 by George E. Carroll

There will be a special “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar on Thursday, May 22, at 12:30 p.m. in Endeavour Hall 120. Professor Richard Odingo from the University of Nairobi, Kenya, will present a seminar entitled, “Drought, Climate Change, and Resource Management in Africa.” If you would like to meet with Professor Odingo, please contact Sultan Hameed atshameed@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

The “Topics in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences” seminar series, the “Oceans and Atmospheres Colloquium” series, and the Friday Weather Discussions will resume in the Fall semester.

Faculty News

Please mark your calendars for the SoMAS faculty meeting on Thursday, May 22, at 10:00 a.m. in Endeavour Hall 120.

An informational workshop with Leslie Seiffert of Newsday to discuss Op Ed opportunities for faculty and researchers has been scheduled for Monday, May 19, at 1:00 p.m. The workshop will take place in the Health Sciences Center, lecture hall 4, level 2. If you would like to attend, please RSVP to the Office of Media Relations at 4-1209.

Information regarding the Robert D. Cess/TAOS seminar by Professor V. Ramanathan held on April 23 is now online at http://atmos.msrc.sunysb.edu/npages/CessSem08.html.

Student News

Mark your calendars ! ITPA students will be taking Jie Gong, Keyi Chen, and Jae Lee out to lunch to celebrate and honor their academic achievements in the Spring 2008 semester. The lunch will be held on Friday, June 13, at 12:00 noon. The group will meet in the Discovery Hall hallway and carpool to the restaurant. For more information, contact Owen Doherty at 2-3185. All ITPA students are encouraged to attend.

Special thanks to George Carroll for posting photos of the 2008 Roth Pond Regatta which took place on May 2. This year, the Meteorology Club and the Environmental Club participated. Photos may be accessed at http://www.somas.stonybrook.edu/news/rr08.html.

The Graduate Student Organization (GSO) is seeking a creative person to fill the position of Editor-in-Chief for News and Blues, the official publication of Stony Brook’s GSO. For more information, please contact GSO President, Liliana Naydan, at lnaydan@ic.sunysb.edu. Deadline for applications is June 6.

Miscellaneous

The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) and the NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) at Princeton University is seeking a postdoctoral fellow to participate in the development of a parameterization for boundary-layer clouds in general circulation models. For further information, please call (303) 497-8634 or access http://www.vsp.ucar.edu. Deadline for applications is July 15.

UCAR, in cooperation with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), is seeking a research meteorologist to work at the Tropical Prediction Center/National Hurricane Center of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction in the area of satellite retrievals of ocean surface vector winds. For additional information, please contact Meg Austin at (303) 497-8649 or atvsp@ucar.edu. This position will remain open until filled.

The UCAR Visiting Scientist Program is recruiting a visiting scientist to work at the NOAA National Environmental Satellite Data and Information Service (NESDIS) in Camp Springs, Maryland. This selected scientist will be involved in the operational impact of satellite surface vector wind on numerical weather prediction. For additional information, please call (303) 497-8634 or accesshttp://www.vsp.ucar.edu. This position will remain open until filled.

The UCAR Visiting Scientist Program is also recruiting a postdoctoral scientist to work in Princeton at NOAA’s Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) as part of a partnership with the Northwest and Southwest Fisheries Science Centers. The postdoctoral researcher will play a leading role in analyzing model output of GFDL’s seasonal to inter-annual climate prediction system to develop ecological forecasts in the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem (CCLME). For additional information, please call (303) 497-9649 or access http://www.vsp.ucar.edu. Deadline for applications is August 1.

Further information regarding the UCAR positions listed above is posted on the ITPA bulletin board in Endeavour Hall.

The SoMAS Convocation ceremony takes place on Friday, May 23, beginning with breakfast at 8:30 a.m. For additional information, please contact the Educational Programs Office at 2-8681.

Faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to submit entries for the weekly ITPA E-newsletter. Please send your submissions to Gina Gartin at ggartin@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.

HAVE A WONDERFUL SUMMER !

Page last modified on Friday, May 16, 2008 by George E. Carroll