Affiliation: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies
2880 Broadway
New York, NY 10025 USA
E-mail:
Drew.T.Shindell@nasa.gov
Phone: (212) 678-5605
Education:
Publications
Research Interests:
Stratospheric ozone depletion and global warming are two of the most important global environmental issues of the 20th and 21st centuries. The broader issues of atmospheric chemistry and climate change are the focus of my research. The atmospheric chemical system has important effects on humans through pollutants such as smog or particulates, through acid rain, and through stratospheric ozone change. Climate can be altered by greenhouse gases, solar variability, volcanic eruptions, aerosols, and ozone, and of course affects people and ecosystems. Given the complexity of both the Earth's climate and chemical systems, computer models are required to unravel the physical ways in which these various factors work. In much of my research, I simulate the coupled climate and chemical systems to better understand interactions between the two. Examples of such interactions are plentiful. Stratospheric ozone depletion allows more UV radiation into the troposphere, changing the rate at which greenhouse gases are oxidized. A warmer climate leads to increased methane emissions from wetlands, leading to further warming and increasing ozone pollution. Enhanced solar irradiance increases the production of stratospheric ozone, changing the climate. These types of interactions can be important on many time scales, so I have simulated times from 55 million years ago to the 17th century to the 20th century and in to the future.
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