The Day After Tomorrow: Truth or fiction?
While popular media, the news, and movies can sometimes use shifts in our weather and environment as the basis for dramatic disaster stories, scientific research often offers a more nuanced and interesting take on how our Earth’s systems operate. For instance, who can forget the 2004 disaster blockbuster movie The Day After Tomorrow which focused on the weakening of a major Atlantic Ocean circulation system, a topic that remains popular today?
In this Explorer Series lecture, researchers Gokhan Danabasoglu and Aixue Hu from NSF NCAR’s CGD Laboratory will explain what this major Atlantic Ocean current system, known as the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation, actually is and why we care about its behavior. They will then discuss what we know about its past and present changes, and what we can really say about its future behavior.
Gokhan Danabasoglu
Dr. Gokhan Danabasoglu is a Senior Scientist and the Section Head of the Oceanography Section of the CGD Laboratory at the National Science Foundation National Center for Atmospheric Research (NSF NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado, USA. He served as the Chief Scientist for the Community Earth System Model (CESM) during 2018-2023. Dr. Danabasoglu is an expert in ocean and Earth system modeling, primarily focusing on understanding the role of the oceans in the Earth system and computational modeling of the ocean. His specific areas of research include investigations of mechanisms, prediction, and impacts of inter-annual to multi-decadal variability, particularly associated with the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation; and high-resolution Earth system modeling. He is the recipient of the 2009 CESM Distinguished Achievement Award. He has served on many national and international panels. He has co-authored over 200 publications. Dr. Danabasoglu received his M.S. and Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering Sciences from the University of Colorado, Boulder. His undergraduate degree is in Mechanical Engineering from the Bosphorus University, Istanbul, Turkey.
Aixue Hu
Dr. Aixue Hu is a Senior Scientist of the CGD Laboratory at the National Science Foundation National Center for Atmospheric Research (NSF NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado, USA. His research focuses on the variability and stability of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) and its impact on Earth system variability from the past into the future, as well as decadal and multi-decadal mode variability and regional and global sea level changes. He has served on many national and international panels and authored/coauthored about 140 publications. Dr. Hu received his M.S. and Ph.D in Meteorology and Physical Oceanography from University of Miami, Miami, FL and his undergraduate degree from Beijing Institute of Meteorology, Beijing, China.