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NASA NTRS2007

Methane Hydrates: More Than a Viable Aviation Fuel Feedstock Option

Demand for hydrocarbon fuels is steadily increasing, and greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise unabated with the energy demand. Alternate fuels will be coming on line to meet that demand. This report examines the recovering of methane from methane hydrates for fuel to meet this demand rather than permitting its natural release into the environment, which will be detrimental to the planet. Some background on the nature, vast sizes, and stability of sedimentary and permafrost formations of hydrates are discussed. A few examples of the severe problems associated with methane recovery from these hydrates are presented along with the potential impact on the environment and coastal waters. Future availability of methane from hydrates may become an attractive option for aviation fueling, and so future aircraft design associated with methane fueling is considered.

Hendricks, Robert C.↗

NASA NTRS2007

Astrobiological Significance of Microbial Extremophiles

The microflora of the cryosphere of planet Earth provides the best analogs for life forms that might be found in the permafrost or polar ice caps of Mars, near the surface of the cometary nuclei, or in the liquid water beneath and the ice crusts of icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn. The importance of study alkaliphilic microorganisms for astrobiology was enhanced by the findings of abundant carbonates and carbonate globules rimmed with possibly biogenic magnetites in association with the putative microfossils in the ALH84001 meteorite. Although the ALH84001 "nanofossils" were to small and simple to be unambiguously recognized as biogenic, they stimulated Astrobiology research and studies of microbial extremophiles and biomarkers in ancient rocks and meteorites. Recent studies of CI and CM carbonaceous meteorites have resulted in the detection of the well-preserved mineralized remains of coccoidal and filamentous microorganisms in cyanobacterial mats. Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis has shown anomalous biogenic element ratios clearly indicating they are not recent biological contaminants. This paper reviews microbial extremophiles in context of their significance to Astrobiology. The study of halophilic microorganisms was started from work with saline soils and lakes, and one of the record of good growth for Haloferax mediterranei was shown at 30 percent NaC1. Although alkali-tolerant nitrifying bacteria had previously been reported, the first described alkaliphilic microorganism was the bacterium Streptococcus faecalis. Halophilic and alkaliphilic forms are relevant to conditions that might be found in closed impact basins and craters on Mars filled with evaporite deposits. The first obligately acidophilic bacterium described was Acidithiobacillus ferrooxydans (formally Thiobacillus ferrooxidans). Later thermophilic lithotrophic acidophiles were found, and the hyperacidophilic moderately thermophilic species of the genus Picrophilus were found to grow at negative pH. The epoch of study of thermophilic microorganisms starts with the discovery of Thermus aquaticus, and presently the maximum temperature for growth at 113 C was found for Pyrolobus fumarii. The microorganisms capable of growth at high temperatures and in hyperacidic environments on Earth are good analogs for life that might be able to survive in hot acidic droplets in the upper regimes of the atmosphere of Venus. The study of barophiles was made possible by engineering achievements leading to the development of the submersible crafts used to study the Black Smokers of the Deep-sea Hydrothermal vents. The first described radioresistant bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans can survive ionizing irradiation and other DNA-damaging assaults at doses that are lethal to all other organisms. These microbes are models for life that might endure high radiation environments in the ice near the surface of comets or on the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn and in the seafloor deep beneath icy crusts Europa and Enceladus. This paper presents ESEM and FESEM images showing intact microbes preserved in the deep ice cores extracted from just above Lake Vostok, Antarctica that are considered analogs for life forms that might survive on comets and icy moons.

Pikuta, Elena V.↗

NASA NTRS2008

Compact, Non-Pneumatic Rock-Powder Samplers

Tool bits that automatically collect powdered rock, permafrost, or other hard material generated in repeated hammering action have been invented. The present invention pertains to the special case in which it is desired to collect samples in powder form for analysis by x-ray diffraction and possibly other techniques. The present invention eliminates the need for both the mechanical collection equipment and the crushing chamber and the pneumatic collection equipment of prior approaches, so that it becomes possible to make the overall sample-acquisition apparatus more compact.

Sherrit, Stewart↗

NASA NTRS2007

Remote Sensing of Terrestrial Water Storage and Application to Drought Monitoring

Terrestrial water storage (TWS) consists of groundwater, soil moisture and permafrost, surface water, snow and ice, and wet biomass. TWS variability tends to be dominated by snow and ice in polar and alpine regions, by soil moisture in mid-latitudes, and by surface water in wet, tropical regions such as the Amazon (Rodell and Famiglietti, 2001; Bates et al., 2007). Drought may be defined as a period of abnormally dry weather long enough to cause significant deficits in one or more of the TWS components. Thus, along with observations of the agricultural and socioeconomic impacts, measurements of TWS and its components enable quantification of drought severity. Each of the TWS components exhibits significant spatial variability, while installation and maintenance of sufficiently dense monitoring networks is costly and labor-intensive. Thus satellite remote sensing is an appealing alternative to traditional measurement techniques. Several current remote sensing instruments are able to detect variations in one or more TWS variables, including the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer (AMSR) on NASA's Aqua satellite and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Terra and Aqua. Future satellite missions have been proposed to improve this capability, including the European Space Agency's Soil Moisture Ocean Salinity mission (SMOS) and the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP), Surface Water Ocean Topography (SWOT), and Snow and Cold Land Processes (SCLP) missions recommended by the US National Academy of Science's Decadal Survey for Earth Science (NRC, 2007). However, only one remote sensing technology is able to monitor changes in TWS from the land surface to the base of the deepest aquifer: satellite gravimetry. This paper focuses on NASA's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment mission (GRACE; http://www.csr.utexas.edu/grace/) and its potential as a tool for drought monitoring.

Rodell, Matt↗

NASA NTRS2009

Life in Ice: Implications to Astrobiology

During the 2008 Tawani International Expedition Schirmacher Oasis/Lake Untersee Antarctica Expedition, living and instantly motile bacteria were found in freshly thawed meltwater from ice of the Schirmacher Oasis Lakes, the Anuchin Glacier ice and samples of the that perennial ice sheet above Lake Untersee. This phenomenon of living bacteria encased in ice had previously been observed in the 32,000 year old ice of the Fox Tunnel. The bacteria found in this ice included the strain FTR1T which was isolated and published as valid new species (Carnobacterium pleistocenium) the first validly published living Pleistocene organism still alive today. Living bacteria were also extracted from ancient ice cores from Vostok, Antarctica. The discovery that many strains of bacteria are able to survive and remain alive while frozen in ice sheets for long periods of time may have direct relevance to Astrobiology. The abundance of viable bacteria in the ice sheets of Antarctica suggests that the presence of live bacteria in ice is common, rather than an isolated phenomenon. This paper will discuss the results of recent studies at NSSTC of bacteria cryopreserved in ice. This paper advances the hypothesis that cryopreserved cells, and perhaps even viable bacterial cells, may exist today--frozen in the water-ice of lunar craters, the Polar Caps or craters of Mars; or in the permafrost of Mars; ice and rocks of comets or water bearing asteroids; or in the frozen crusts of the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn. The existence of bacterial life in ice suggests that it may not be necessary to drill through a thick ice crust to reach liquid water seas deep beneath the icy crusts of Europa, Ganymede and Enceladus. The presence of viable bacteria in the ice of the Earth s Polar Caps suggests that the possibility that cryo-panspermia (i.e., the trans-planetary transfer of microbial life by impact ejection/spallation of bacteria-rich polar ice masses) deserves serious consideration and study as a possible natural phenomenon of the solar system that may have played a profoundly important role in the Origin of Life on Earth and the Distribution of Life in the Cosmos. The paper concludes with a consideration of the protective properties of ice by absorption of UV-B, UV-C, h-rays, gamma-rays and the high energy proton environment of the Jupiter Radiation Belt. A proposed instrument that may provide additional data on the potential survivability of microbial extremophiles encased in ice and subjected to the simulated space environment will be briefly described.

Hoover, Richard B.↗

NASA NTRS2010

Psychrophilic and Psychrotolerant Microbial Extremophiles in Polar Environments

The microbial extremophiles that inhabit the polar regions of our planet are of tremendous significance. The psychrophilic and psychrotolerant microorganisms, which inhabit all of the cold environments on Earth have important applications to Bioremediation, Medicine, Pharmaceuticals, and many other areas of Biotechnology. Until recently, most of the research on polar microorganisms was confined to studies of polar diatoms, yeast, fungi and cyanobacteria. However, within the past three decades, extensive studies have been conducted to understand the bacteria and archaea that inhabit the Arctic and Antarctic sea-ice, glaciers, ice sheets, permafrost and the cryptoendolithic, cryoconite and ice-bubble environments. These investigations have resulted in the discovery of many new genera and species of anaerobic and aerobic microbial extremophiles. Exotic enzymes, cold-shock proteins and pigments produced by some of the extremophiles from polar environments have the potential to be of great benefit to Mankind. Knowledge about microbial life in the polar regions is crucial to understanding the limitations and biodiversity of life on Earth and may provide valuable clues to the Origin of Life on Earth. The discovery of viable microorganisms in ancient ice from the Fox Tunnel, Alaska and the deep Vostok Ice has shown that microorganisms can remain alive while cryopreserved in ancient ice. The psychrophilic lithoautotrophic homoacetogen isolated from the deep anoxic trough of Lake Untersee is an ideal candidate for life that might inhabit comets or the polar caps of Mars. The spontaneous release of gas from within the Anuchin Glacier above Lake Untersee may provide clues to the ice geysers that erupt from the tiger stripe regions of Saturn s moon Enceladus. The methane productivity in the lower regimes of Lake Untersee may also provide insights into possible mechanisms for the recently discovered methane releases on Mars. Since most of the other water bearing bodies of our Solar system are frozen worlds, microbial extremophiles from the Polar Regions of Earth are of great importance to Astrobiology in understanding where and how to search for evidence of life elsewhere in the Cosmos.

Hoover, Richard B.↗

NASA NTRS2011

Using Microwaves to Heat Lunar Soil

This slide presentation reviews the use of microwaves to heat lunar soil in order to obtain water. There appears to be large amounts of water in the lunar poles, in Martian areas in lower latitudes and some of the Moons of Jupiter. The presence of water in the south lunar polar region was demonstrated by the Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) mission. Microwaves can be used to extract water from lunar soil without excavation. Using microwaves on a lunar soil simulant at least 95% of the water from the regolith permafrost simulant was extracted (2 minutes). The process is modeled using COMSOL Multiphysics Finite Element analysis microwave physics module and demonstrated usingan experiment of an microwave apparatus on a rover.

Ethridge, Edwin C.↗

NASA NTRS2006

NASA Tech Briefs, December 2006

Topic include: Inferring Gear Damage from Oil-Debris and Vibration Data; Forecasting of Storm-Surge Floods Using ADCIRC and Optimized DEMs; User Interactive Software for Analysis of Human Physiological Data; Representation of Serendipitous Scientific Data; Automatic Locking of Laser Frequency to an Absorption Peak; Self-Passivating Lithium/Solid Electrolyte/Iodine Cells; Four-Quadrant Analog Multipliers Using G4-FETs; Noise Source for Calibrating a Microwave Polarimeter; Hybrid Deployable Foam Antennas and Reflectors; Coating MCPs with AlN and GaN; Domed, 40-cm-Diameter Ion Optics for an Ion Thruster; Gesture-Controlled Interfaces for Self-Service Machines; Dynamically Alterable Arrays of Polymorphic Data Types; Identifying Trends in Deep Space Network Monitor Data; Predicting Lifetime of a Thermomechanically Loaded Component; Partial Automation of Requirements Tracing; Automated Synthesis of Architecture of Avionic Systems; SSRL Emergency Response Shore Tool; Wholly Aromatic Ether-Imides as n-Type Semiconductors; Carbon-Nanotube-Carpet Heat-Transfer Pads; Pulse-Flow Microencapsulation System; Automated Low-Gravitation Facility Would Make Optical Fibers; Alignment Cube with One Diffractive Face; Graphite Composite Booms with Integral Hinges; Tool for Sampling Permafrost on a Remote Planet; and Special Semaphore Scheme for UHF Spacecraft Communications.

Source record↗

NASA NTRS2011

Ice Lens Formation and Frost Heave at the Phoenix Landing Site

Several lines of evidence indicate that the volume of shallow ground ice in the martian high latitudes exceeds the pore volume of the host regolith. Boynton et al. found an optimal fit to the Mars Odyssey Gamma Ray Spectrometer (GRS) data at the Phoenix landing site by modeling a buried layer of 50-75% ice by mass (up to 90% ice by volume). Thermal and optical observations of recent impact craters in the northern hemisphere have revealed nearly pure ice. Ice deposits containing only 1-2% soil by volume were excavated by Phoenix. The leading hypothesis for the origin of this excess ice is that it developed in situ by a mechanism analogous to the formation of terrestrial ice lenses and needle ice. Problematically, terrestrial soil-ice segregation is driven by freeze/thaw cycling and the movement of bulk water, neither of which are expected to have occurred in the geologically recent past on Mars. If however ice lens formation is possible at temperatures less than 273 K, there are possible implications for the habitability of Mars permafrost, since the same thin films of unfrozen water that lead to ice segregation are used by terrestrial psychrophiles to metabolize and grow down to temperatures of at least 258 K.

Zent, A. P.↗

NASA NTRS2011

Anaerobic Cultures from Preserved Tissues of Baby Mammoth

Microbiological analysis of several cold-preserved tissue samples from the Siberian baby mammoth known as Lyuba revealed a number of culturable bacterial strains that were grown on anaerobic media at 4 C. Lactic acid produced by LAB (lactic acid bacteria) group, usually by members of the genera Carnobacterium and Lactosphera, appears to be a wonderful preservative that prevents other bacteria from over-dominating a system. Permafrost and lactic acid preserved the body of this one-month old baby mammoth and kept it in exceptionally good condition, resulting in this mammoth being the most complete such specimen ever recovered. The diversity of novel anaerobic isolates was expressed on morphological, physiological and phylogenetic levels. Here we discuss the specifics of the isolation of new strains, differentiation from trivial contamination, and preliminary results for the characterization of cultures.

Pikuta, Elena V.↗

NASA NTRS2011

Comets as Parent Bodies of CI1 Carbonaceous Meteorites and Possible Habitats of Ice-Microbiota

Recent studies of comets and cometary dust have confirmed the presence of biologically relevant organic molecules along with clay minerals and water ice. It is also now well established by deuterium/hydrogen ratios that the CI1 carbonaceous meteorites contain indigenous extraterrestrial water. The evidence of extensive aqueous alteration of the minerals in these meteorites led to the hypothesis that water-bearing asteroids or comets represent the parent bodies of the CI1 (and perhaps CM2) carbonaceous meteorites. These meteorites have also been shown to possess a diverse array of complex organics and chiral and morphological biomarkers. Stable isotope studies by numerous independent investigators have conclusively established that the complex organics found in these meteorites are both indigenous and extraterrestrial in nature. Although the origin of these organics is still unknown, some researchers have suggested that they originated by unknown abiotic mechanisms and may have played a role in the delivery of chiral biomolecules and the origin of life on Early Earth. In this paper we review these results and investigate the thermal history of comets. We show that permanent as well as transient domains of liquid water can be maintained on a comet under a plausible set of assumptions. With each perihelion passage of a comet volatiles are preferentially released, and during millions of such passages the comet could shed crustal debris that may survive transit through the Earth s atmosphere as a carbonaceous meteorite. We review the current state of knowledge of comets and carbonaceous meteorites. We also present the results of recent studies on the long-term viability of terrestrial ice-microbiota encased in ancient glacial ice and permafrost. We suggest that the conditions which have been observed to prevail on many comets do not preclude either survivability (or even the active metabolism and growth) of many types of eukaryotic and prokaryotic microbial extremophiles-including algae, cyanobacteria, bacteria and archaea. It is argued that the chemical and morphological biomarkers detected on comets and carbonaceous meteorites can be explained by ancient microbial activity without the need to invoke unknown abiotic production mechanisms.

Wickramasinghe, N. Chandra↗

NASA NTRS2004

Miniature Robotic Submarine for Exploring Harsh Environments

The miniature autonomous submersible explorer (MASE) has been proposed as a means of scientific exploration -- especially, looking for signs of life -- in harsh, relatively inaccessible underwater environments. Basically, the MASE would be a small instrumented robotic submarine (see figure) that could launch itself or could be launched from another vehicle. Examples of environments that might be explored by use of the MASE include subglacial lakes, deep-ocean hydrothermal vents, acidic or alkaline lakes, brine lenses in permafrost, and ocean regions under Antarctic ice shelves.

Behar, Alberto↗

NASA NTRS2003

Methane Clathrate Hydrate Prospecting

A method of prospecting for methane has been devised. The impetus for this method lies in the abundance of CH4 and the growing shortages of other fuels. The method is intended especially to enable identification of subpermafrost locations where significant amounts of methane are trapped in the form of methane gas hydrate (CH4(raised dot)6H2O). It has been estimated by the U.S. Geological Survey that the total CH4 resource in CH4(raised dot) 6H2O exceeds the energy content of all other fossil fuels (oil, coal, and natural gas from non-hydrate sources). Also, CH4(raised dot)6H2O is among the cleanest-burning fuels, and CH4 is the most efficient fuel because the carbon in CH4 is in its most reduced state. The method involves looking for a proxy for methane gas hydrate, by means of the combination of a thermal-analysis submethod and a field submethod that does not involve drilling. The absence of drilling makes this method easier and less expensive, in comparison with prior methods of prospecting for oil and natural gas. The proposed method would include thermoprospecting in combination with one more of the other non-drilling measurement techniques, which could include magneto-telluric sounding and/or a subsurface-electrical-resistivity technique. The method would exploit the fact that the electrical conductivity in the underlying thawed region is greater than that in the overlying permafrost.

Duxbury, N.↗

NASA NTRS2011

Ice Lens Formation, Frost Heave, Thin Films, and the Importance of the Polar H2O Reservoir at High Obliquity

Several lines of evidence indicate that the volume of shallow ground ice in the martian high latitudes exceeds the pore volume of the host regolith. Boynton et al. found an optimal fit to the Mars Odyssey Gamma Ray Spectrometer (GRS) data at the Phoenix landing site by modeling a buried layer of 50-75% ice by mass (up to 90% ice by volume). Thermal and optical observations of recent impact craters in the northern hemisphere have revealed nearly pure ice. Ice deposits containing only 1-2% soil by volume were excavaged by Phoenix. One hypothesis for the origin of this excess ice is that it developed in situ by a mechanism analogous to the formation of terrestrial ice lenses and needle ice. Problematically, terrestrial soil-ice segregation is driven by freeze/thaw cycling and the movement of bulk water, neither of which are expected to have occurred in the geologically recent past on Mars. If however ice lens formation is possible at temperatures less than 273 K, there are possible implications for the habitability of Mars permafrost, since the same thin films of unfrozen water that lead to ice segregation are used by terrestrial psychrophiles to metaboluze and grow down to temperatures of at least 258 K.

Zent, A. P.↗

NASA NTRS2011

Ground and Airborne Methane Measurements Using Optical Parametric Amplifiers

We report on ground and airborne methane measurements with an active sensing instrument using widely tunable, seeded optical parametric generation (OPG). The technique has been used to measure methane, CO2, water vapor, and other trace gases in the near and mid-infrared spectral regions. Methane is a strong greenhouse gas on Earth and it is also a potential biogenic marker on Mars and other planetary bodies. Methane in the Earth's atmosphere survives for a shorter time than CO2 but its impact on climate change can be larger than CO2. Carbon and methane emissions from land are expected to increase as permafrost melts exposing millennial-age carbon stocks to respiration (aerobic-CO2 and anaerobic-CH4) and fires. Methane emissions from c1athrates in the Arctic Ocean and on land are also likely to respond to climate warming. However, there is considerable uncertainty in present Arctic flux levels, as well as how fluxes will change with the changing environment. For Mars, methane measurements are of great interest because of its potential as a strong biogenic marker. A remote sensing instrument that can measure day and night over all seasons and latitudes can localize sources of biogenic gas plumes produced by subsurface chemistry or biology, and aid in the search for extra-terrestrial life. In this paper we report on remote sensing measurements of methane using a high peak power, widely tunable optical parametric generator (OPG) operating at 3.3 micrometers and 1.65 micrometers. We have demonstrated detection of methane at 3.3 micrometers and 1650 nanometers in an open path and compared them to accepted standards. We also report on preliminary airborne demonstration of methane measurements at 1.65 micrometers.

Numata, Kenji↗

NASA NTRS2012

The Search for Life on Mars

For centuries, the planet Mars has been regarded as a possible abode for life. Serious searches for the signatures of life began in the 19th century, and continue via telescopic investigations and landed missions. While early work focused on phenomenology and bordered on fantasy, modern scientific inquiry has emphasized the search for chemical signatures of life in the soil and rocks at the planet's surface, and the search for biomarker gases in the atmosphere. Living systems produce more than 90% of Earth's atmospheric methane; the balance is of geochemical origin. The discovery of methane on Mars will be described, along with the ongoing extended search for clues to its origins. The possible origins of Mars methane will be discussed in the context of terrestrial analogue sites where geologic and biologic methane production now occurs - ranging from sub-permafrost zones in the arctic to hydrothermal vents in the deep ocean. Terrestrial organisms that could prosper on Mars today will be mentioned. I will briefly touch upon experiments conducted by landed spacecraft, ranging from the Viking Life Science Experiments in 1976 to the impending Mars Science laboratory, and the Trace Gas Orbiter and ExoMars missions now being developed for flight in the coming decade.

Mumma, Michael J.↗

NASA NTRS2012

A Miniaturized Laser Heterodyne Radiometer for a Global Ground-Based Column Carbon Monitoring Network

We present progress in the development of a passive, miniaturized Laser Heterodyne Radiometer (mini-LHR) that will measure key greenhouse gases (C02, CH4, CO) in the atmospheric column as well as their respective altitude profiles, and O2 for a measure of atmospheric pressure. Laser heterodyne radiometry is a spectroscopic method that borrows from radio receiver technology. In this technique, a weak incoming signal containing information of interest is mixed with a stronger signal (local oscillator) at a nearby frequency. In this case, the weak signal is sunlight that has undergone absorption by a trace gas of interest and the local oscillator is a distributive feedback (DFB) laser that is tuned to a wavelength near the absorption feature of the trace gas. Mixing the sunlight with the laser light, in a fast photoreceiver, results in a beat signal in the RF. The amplitude of the beat signal tracks the concentration of the trace gas in the atmospheric column. The mini-LHR operates in tandem with AERONET, a global network of more than 450 aerosol sensing instruments. This partnership simplifies the instrument design and provides an established global network into which the mini-LHR can rapidly expand. This network offers coverage in key arctic regions (not covered by OCO-2) where accelerated warming due to the release of CO2 and CH4 from thawing tundra and permafrost is a concern as well as an uninterrupted data record that will both bridge gaps in data sets and offer validation for key flight missions such as OCO-2, OCO-3, and ASCENDS. Currently, the only ground global network that routinely measures multiple greenhouse gases in the atmospheric column is TCCON (Total Column Carbon Observing Network) with 18 operational sites worldwide and two in the US. Cost and size of TCCON installations will limit the potential for expansion, We offer a low-cost $30Klunit) solution to supplement these measurements with the added benefit of an established aerosol optical depth measurement. Aerosols induce a radiative effect that is an important modulator of regional carbon cycles. Changes in the diffuse radiative flux fraction (DRF) due to aerosol loading have the potential to alter the terrestrial carbon exchange.

Wilson, Emily L.↗

NASA NTRS2012

Earth System Modeling and Field Experiments in the Arctic-Boreal Zone - Report from a NASA Workshop

Early climate modeling studies predicted that the Arctic Ocean and surrounding circumpolar land masses would heat up earlier and faster than other parts of the planet as a result of greenhouse gas-induced climate change, augmented by the sea-ice albedo feedback effect. These predictions have been largely borne out by observations over the last thirty years. However, despite constant improvement, global climate models have greater difficulty in reproducing the current climate in the Arctic than elsewhere and the scatter between projections from different climate models is much larger in the Arctic than for other regions. Biogeochemical cycle (BGC) models indicate that the warming in the Arctic-Boreal Zone (ABZ) could lead to widespread thawing of the permafrost, along with massive releases of CO2 and CH4, and large-scale changes in the vegetation cover in the ABZ. However, the uncertainties associated with these BGC model predictions are even larger than those associated with the physical climate system models used to describe climate change. These deficiencies in climate and BGC models reflect, at least in part, an incomplete understanding of the Arctic climate system and can be related to inadequate observational data or analyses of existing data. A workshop was held at NASA/GSFC, May 22-24 2012, to assess the predictive capability of the models, prioritize the critical science questions; and make recommendations regarding new field experiments needed to improve model subcomponents. This presentation will summarize the findings and recommendations of the workshop, including the need for aircraft and flux tower measurements and extension of existing in-situ measurements to improve process modeling of both the physical climate and biogeochemical cycle systems. Studies should be directly linked to remote sensing investigations with a view to scaling up the improved process models to the Earth System Model scale. Data assimilation and observing system simulation studies should be used to guide the deployment pattern and schedule for inversion studies as well. Synthesis and integration of previously funded Arctic-Boreal projects (e.g., ABLE, BOREAS, ICESCAPE, ICEBRIDGE, ARCTAS) should also be undertaken. Such an effort would include the integration of multiple remotely sensed products from the EOS satellites and other resources.

Sellers, Piers↗