NSF Award
2120238
The NSF Convergence Accelerator supports use-inspired, team-based, multidisciplinary efforts that address challenges of national importance and will produce deliverables of value to society in the near future. The objective of this workshop on Bringing Land, Ocean, Atmosphere and Ionosphere Data to the Community for Hazards Alerts is to help identify topic areas for new tracks in the NSF Convergence Accelerator.<br/><br/>This workshop will bring together Earth System scientists engaged in research on land, ocean, atmosphere, cryosphere and ionosphere phenomena to discuss land-based natural hazards and the impact of such hazards on corresponding parts of the Earth system, viz., ocean, atmosphere, cryosphere, and ionosphere, as well as on human populations in the vicinity of those hazards. Much of the research on natural hazards has tended to focus on one Earth system – for example, tropical storms are studied primarily by ocean scientists, and not as much by, say, earth or atmospheric scientists. However, increasing availability of ground-based, borehole and satellite-based observations at higher spatial and temporal resolution over the globe, and optical and microwave satellites capable of providing meteorological and atmospheric parameters at different pressure levels, are enabling more detailed analyses that show stronger coupling among various Earth systems due to natural hazards. <br/><br/>This Convergence Accelerator workshop will provide a platform for ideation and brainstorming on using all available data sources to develop an “alert system” for natural hazards, and to communicate such information to people via various social and digital media in order to reduce loss of life and property and protect human health. The workshop will bring together experts in ground, surface, meteorological and atmospheric data, together with social science researchers, city planners and other local government stakeholders, representatives from non-governmental organizations and those assisting in disaster management to discuss the needs as well as effective approaches for reaching the affected communities during a natural hazard. <br/><br/>The workshop will help advance understanding of coupled land-ocean-cryosphere-meteorological-ionosphere systems in the context of natural hazards of all types, and their impact on local/regional infrastructure, resources and people. The key objective of the workshop is to advance the use of all available data from different platforms and leverage the myriad social and digital media platforms to alert the community and get them prepared for impending hazards.<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
