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Earth and Atmospheric Science
Improved models of cloud drizzle-turbulence interactions could enhance future climate predictions
Large decks of closely spaced stratocumulus clouds hover over the ocean and cover vast areas — literally thousands of miles of the subtropical oceans — and linger for weeks to months. These marine clouds reflect more solar radiation than the surface of the ocean, providing a cooling effect on the Earth’s surface. Stratocumulus clouds are an important component of the Earth…
Natural variations help resolve a climate puzzle
New research shows that naturally occurring climate variations help to explain a long-standing difference between climate models and satellite observations of global warming. Satellite measurements of global-scale changes in atmospheric temperature began in late 1978 and continue to the present. Relative to most model simulations, satellite data has consistently shown less…
Greenland landscape history preserved under ice sheet
Greenland wasn’t always covered in ice. In fact, within the last 1.1 million years, Greenland had thriving vegetation and ecosystems. That is the conclusion of an international group of researchers, including a scientist from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), that analyzed sediment at the base of the Camp Century ice core (1.4 kilometers deep) collected in…
No miracles required: Scientists, industry experts agree California’s carbon capture and storage can be a reality
When it comes to California implementing a carbon capture and storage program to reach the state’s goal of carbon neutrality by 2045, nothing too newfangled needs to take place. During a forum titled “Carbon Capture and Sequestration in California: Regional Insights and Community Attitudes,” a group of scientists, California policymakers and industry leaders came together…
Ten-year anniversary of Fukushima observed
Ten years ago today, on March 11, 2011, a 9.0 Richter-scale earthquake and tsunami in Japan resulted in severe damage to the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant and also led to releases of radioactivity into the environment. That same day, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) activated Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s National Atmospheric Release Advisory Center …
Seismic Sleuths Set Off the Source Physics Experiment
The Source Physics Experiment improves the identification of nuclear events, and the ability to tell them apart from non-nuclear occurrences.
Media advisory: Energy experts to discuss carbon capture, storage and regulations for California
WHO George Peridas, director of carbon management partnerships, and staff scientist Briana Schmidt from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Peridas is responsible for incubating partnerships that result in the advancement and deployment of carbon management solutions and technologies, including the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, or so-called negative…
Lab report outlines updates to state’s regulations for carbon capture, storage in effort to achieve neutrality
To reach economy-wide carbon neutrality by 2045 or earlier, California will likely have to capture, transport and geologically store tens of millions of tons per year of carbon dioxide (CO2) from large sources and from the atmosphere. California has an extensive regulatory framework that is rigorous, robust and will safeguard the environment, public health and safety…
Lab launches interdisciplinary Space Science Institute
What are the next world-class, game-changing concepts and technologies that will address the most important questions in astrophysics or planetary science? Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) researchers will soon be better equipped to answer this question with the launch this month of a new Space Science Institute (SSI), intended to boost cross-discipline…
Physics of particle dispersion may lend insight into reducing the airborne spread of COVID-19 virus
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists are leveraging their extensive experience studying the movement of airborne hazards to better understand the movement of virus-like particles through the air and to identify effective countermeasures. DNATrax released in a conference room.While the burden of airborne diseases is known to be large, its true scope is…
Moving to carbon neutrality: one year later
One year after publishing the groundbreaking "Getting to Neutral: Options for Negative Carbon Emissions in California," Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has become a trusted adviser in the discussion of how to remove carbon dioxide from the air. In the report, LLNL scientists identified a robust suite of technologies to help California clear the last hurdle…
Lab researchers explore ‘learn-by-calibration’ approach to deep learning to accurately emulate scientific process
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) computer scientists have developed a new deep learning approach to designing emulators for scientific processes that is more accurate and efficient than existing methods. In a paper published by Nature Communications, an LLNL team describes a “Learn-by-Calibrating” (LbC) method for creating powerful scientific emulators that…
Lab teams earn DOE Secretary Achievement Awards
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) employees, participating in 10 project teams, recently earned Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Achievement Awards. Representing some of the highest internal, non-monetary recognition that DOE employees and contractors can receive, these awards recognize DOE employees and contractors for their service and contributions to…
Lab team earns DOE Secretary Achievement Award
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory‘s (LLNL) "Getting to Neutral" Carbon Emissions Team has earned a Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Achievement Award for its groundbreaking work on how California could reach the goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2045. Representing some of the highest internal, non-monetary recognition that DOE employees and contractors can…
Air pollution levels depend on drizzle rates
Scientists from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Scripps Institution of Oceanography and international collaborators have shown that an improved representation of drizzle rates leads to more pollution in the atmosphere. The research appears in Nature Geoscience. Atmospheric aerosols are of great climatic and environmental importance due to their effects on…
Paying for emissions we’ve already released
The planet is committed to global warming in excess of 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) just from greenhouse gases that have already been added to the atmosphere. This is the conclusion of new research by scientists from Nanjing University, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and Texas A&M University, which appears in the latest edition of Nature…
Climate models overestimate natural variability
By looking at satellite measurements of temperature changes in the lower layer of Earth’s atmosphere, scientists found that climate models may have overestimated the decade-to-decade natural variability of temperature. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) statistician Giuliana Pallotta and climate scientist Benjamin Santer created a statistical framework to…
Lab scientists among most cited researchers worldwide
Fifty-seven researchers from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) were among the top 2 percent of the most cited researchers worldwide throughout their careers, according to research on metascience by Stanford University. Metascience is the "study of studies" using scientific methods. Stanford University professor John Loannidis worked alongside U.S.-based Kevin…
Examining climate effects of regional nuclear exchange
A team of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) researchers has found that the global climatic consequences of a regional nuclear weapons exchange could range from a minimal impact to more significant cooling lasting years. The five LLNL scientists examined the potential for global climate changes from large urban fires ignited in a hypothetical regional nuclear…
Tapping the Earth’s Heat for Clean Energy
Working in a deep underground tunnel, researchers are learning how to turn heat from impermeable rock into clean, low-carbon-emitting power.
