Contact: Beth Potier
UNH Research Communications
603-397-7505 (cell); beth.potier@unh.edu
@unhresearchnews; #UNHAGU15
TIP SHEET: Highlights of Presentations by UNH Faculty at AGU Fall Meeting 2015
DURHAM, N.H. – The University of New Hampshire, with research excellence that reaches from
the uncharted ocean depths to the edge of our solar system and the Earth we call home, is
involved in more than 100 presentations and posters at the American Geophysical Union fall
meeting. Here are highlights of potentially newsworthy presentations by UNH faculty, all from
the Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space:
Lightning!
Tuesday, Dec. 15, 8:30 am, Moscone West 3001
https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm15/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/75116
Lightning expert Joseph Dwyer, professor of physics at UNH, and colleagues report on the
unexpected discovery of two isolated clouds of positrons as they flew through a violent
thunderstorm onboard a Gulfstream V aircraft in 2009. Dwyer is also the primary convener of
the Atmospheric and Space Electricity General Contributions I session Monday, Dec. 14, 4 -6
pm in Moscone West 3001 as well as the Franklin Lecture — “How Lightning Works Inside
Thunderstorms” — Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2:40 pm, Moscone West 2022-2024.
Black Carbon in Greenland
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 10:20 am, Moscone West 3007
https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm15/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/82985
UNH geochemist Jack Dibb is among the presenters in a study that found that black carbon and dust
are not causing the apparent decline in albedo (a measure of reflectivity off the Earth’s surface) in
Greenland’s dry snow zone. Instead, the researchers found that degrading satellite sensors were to
blame for the observed decline in reflectivity, suggesting the high elevation interior of the ice sheet has
not lost as much reflectivity as previously thought.
Climate Change Modeling, From Global to New England
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 1:40 pm, Moscone West 3003
https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm15/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/65320
UNH climate modelers Matthew Huber, Muge Komurcu and Jonathan Buzan present their
groundbreaking work that has led to the simulation of a very high-resolution, detailed picture
of how climate might change over the next 25 years for the Northeast U.S., with the ability to
drill down sharply and focus on specific regions and areas. The researchers focus on future
changes in extreme events and societal, economical and health related impacts associated with
these changes and state potential problems when using regional models for dynamical
downscaling. Their results can be utilized to improve regional sustainability and adaptation
strategies in New England. This presentation leads the Linking Downscaled Climate Variables
to Extreme Events, Land Surface Hydrology, Ecosystems, Ecosystem Services, and Human
Health sessions Wednesday, Dec. 16 at 1:40, of which Komurcu is primary convener.
Coastal Adaptation to Climate Change
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 3:10, Moscone South 103
https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm15/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/62890
UNH climatologist Cameron Wake describes efforts of the NH Coastal Adaptation Workgroup, a
grassroots climate adaptation effort that’s united 21 government agencies, businesses, academics and
municipalities to address the impact of rising seas on New Hampshire’s 18-mile coast and 235 miles of
tidal shoreline. Since 2010, the group has raised more than $3 million to help municipalities adapt to
coastal flooding and built trust and relationships among significant stakeholders, resulting in improved
technical, financial and human resources for climate adaptation in a dozen coastal communities. The
group won a 2015 EPA merit award.
The Changing Moon
Thursday, Dec. 17, 2:40 pm, Moscone West 2007
https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm15/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/71444
UNH space physicist Nathan Schwadron presents findings from the CRaTER instrument aboard the
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter mission that show a new signature of hydrogen-containing volatiles such
as water in the uppermost layer of the polar regolith that could be an important finding for using
resources on the moon on future lunar missions, particularly for human exploration. UNH researchers
Jody Wilson, Andrew Jordan and Harlan Spence, director of UNH’s Institute for the Study of Earth,
Oceans, and Space, are co-authors on this abstract, presented within the session “The Changing Moon:
Lunar and Planetary Science in the Era of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter I” session (Thursday, Dec.
17, 1:40 -3:40pm, Moscone West 2007).
MMS (Magnetosphere Multiscale) Mission
Various times; Press conference Thursday, Dec. 17, 4 pm
Launched in March 2015, the four satellites of NASA’s MMS mission are now providing the first-ever
three-dimensional observations of magnetic reconnection from the region surrounding the Earth’s
magnetic fields. Roy Torbert, physics professor and the lead on UNH’s building and coordinating nearly
half the instruments on board the satellites, is a convener of four MMS-focused sessions on Thursday
(Moscone West 2018, 8 – 10 am, 10:20 am – 12:20 pm, 1:40 – 3:40 pm) and Friday (Moscone South
Poster Hall, 8 am – 12:20 pm) and is involved in more than 50 MMS-related presentations and posters
throughout the meeting.
The University of New Hampshire, founded in 1866, is a world-class public research university
with the feel of a New England liberal arts college. A land, sea, and space-grant university, UNH
is the state's flagship public institution, enrolling 13,000 undergraduate and 2,500 graduate
students across three campuses.
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