Photo feature: 'First bit of orange glow’ greets NOAA crew at South Pole

After six months of darkness, the return of the sun at the South Pole signals the arrival of spring in the Southern Hemisphere. For scientists at NOAA’s South Pole Atmospheric Baseline Observatory (SPO), that’s a welcome sight.

50th anniversary of CO2 measurements at NOAA’s Barrow Observatory

July 24, 2023 marked the 50^th anniversary of continuous measurements of CO₂ in the atmosphere at the Barrow, Alaska Atmospheric Baseline Observatory.

Revolutionary NOAA High-Altitude Research Tool Passes Key Milestone

The quest by Global Monitoring Laboratory scientists to develop a reliable, cost-effective way to study Earth’s stratosphere passed a significant milestone on May 17 when a remotely controlled glider, carried to an elevation of 90,000 feet by a weather balloon, returned to its launch location on Colorado’s Pawnee National Grasslands with its scientific payload intact.

Broken record: Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels jump again

Carbon dioxide levels measured at NOAA’s Mauna Loa Atmospheric Baseline Observatory peaked at 424 parts per million in May, continuing a steady climb further into territory not seen for millions of years, scientists from NOAA and Scripps Institution of Oceanography offsite link at the University of California San Diego announced today.

NOAA index tracks how greenhouse gas pollution amplified global warming in 2022

Greenhouse gas pollution from human activity trapped 49 percent more heat in the atmosphere during 2022 than those same gases did in 1990, according to an annual NOAA report. NOAA’s Annual Greenhouse Gas Index, known as the AGGI, tracks increases in the warming influence of heat-trapping gases generated by human activity.

#EarthDay: Invest in our changing planet now to secure a more livable future

Since the first Earth Day, billions across the globe have invested their time, creativity and energy to honor and nurture our home planet. In the decades since April 22, 1970, however, global climate change has had an alarming effect on Earth and its inhabitants. So how is NOAA addressing climate change and other environmental challenges?

Greenhouse gases continued to increase rapidly in 2022

Levels of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane and nitrous oxide, the three greenhouse gases emitted by human activity that are the most significant contributors to climate change, continued their historically high rates of growth in the atmosphere during 2022, according to NOAA scientists.

The Montreal Protocol banned this family of ozone-depleting chemicals. Why are some still increasing?

The Montreal Protocol contained an exception that allowed continued production of some CFCs in the manufacture of other chemicals, including ozone-friendly CFC replacements called hydrofluorocarbons or HFCs. Scientists are now drawing attention to this exception not just because rising emissions of these chemicals potentially complicate recovery of the ozone layer, but because they are also potent greenhouse gases contributing to global warming.

Vanda Grubišić named director of NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory

Vanda Grubišić, Ph.D., a research meteorologist and experienced scientific leader, has been named the director of NOAA’s Global Monitoring Laboratory in Boulder, Colorado. Grubišić will join one of the world’s preeminent research institutions for monitoring long-term changes in the atmosphere, including those caused by climate change. She starts on March 27.

Celebrating Women's History Month 2023 with Aleya Kaushik

To celebrate Women’s History Month, we asked women throughout NOAA Research to share how their work contributes to NOAA’s mission of preparing for a Climate-Ready Nation. This article highlights an interview with Aleya Kaushik, a CIRES research scientist working in the Carbon Cycle Greenhouse Gases group at NOAA’s Global Monitoring Laboratory.

Celebrating Women's History Month 2023 with Kelly Balmes

To celebrate Women’s History Month, we asked women throughout NOAA Research to share how their work contributes to NOAA’s mission of preparing for a Climate-Ready Nation. This article highlights an interview with Kelly Balmes, a CIRES postdoctoral research associate in the Global Monitoring Laboratory (GML) Radiation, Aerosol, and Cloud Division.

Celebrating Women's History Month 2023 With Sara Morris

To celebrate Women’s History Month, we asked women throughout NOAA Research to share how their work contributes to NOAA’s mission of Climate Resilience and preparing for a Climate-Ready Nation. This article highlights an interview with Sara Morris, a physical scientist and team lead for the Atmospheric Measurement Network under the Observatory Operations Division at NOAA’s Global Monitoring Laboratory (GML).

Potent greenhouse gas declines in the US, confirming success of control efforts

A new NOAA analysis shows U.S. emissions of the super-potent greenhouse gas sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) have declined between 2007-2018, likely due to successful mitigation efforts by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the electric power industry.

Having dodged lava flows, NOAA's Mauna Loa research facility to get upgrades

NOAA’s Mauna Loa Atmospheric Baseline Observatory, the benchmark sampling site for monitoring global climate change, is slated to undergo a major renovation and facility upgrade once road access is restored over lava flows produced by the recent eruption of Mauna Loa volcano.

NOAA Research scientist Stephen Montzka named 2022 AAAS Fellow

NOAA's Stephen Montzka, of the Global Monitoring Laboratory, was named today as a 2022 Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).