Meetings, Workshops, Seminars, and Colloquia

Most seminars and colloquia at NASA/GISS are presented during the academic year, September through May.

Normally, formal seminar presentations by visiting scientists are held at 11:00 a.m on Fridays during the academic year.

Informal lunchtime seminars (usually presented by NASA/GISS, Columbia/EI, and/or Columbia/LDEO scientists ) take place at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesdays about twice per month.

Since late 2019, GISS staff have organized a Tuesday morning (at 11 a.m.) series of Sea Level Rise seminars (YouTube). Presenters have represented numerous research institutions.

Following are upcoming seminars, workshops and other events of interest to GISS staff and to our research partners. Please note that due to security regulations, as described elsewhere on this page, presentations on the GISS premises are not open to the general public.

Events marked "Virtual Only" are presented on-line for remote attendance only. Please consult with the event contact/host for connection details.

This event listing was last updated 2021-07-30. All times shown are New York City local.

July 27, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Topic: From ice sheets to coast: Towards a unified treatment of sea level in E3SM
Speaker: Matthew Hoffman (LANL)
More info: Abstract
Host/Contact: Craig Rye

Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Matthew Hoffman (LANL)
Title: From ice sheets to coast: Towards a unified treatment of sea level in E3SM

This is an on-line, virtual presentation only. Please consult with event host Craig Rye for connection details.

Abstract:
Sea-level change is a fundamental impact of climate change, yet climate models are currently unable to calculate sea level directly. Global mean sea level varies through the barystatic sources of ice sheet, glacier, and terrestrial water storage mass changes, as well as ocean steric changes from ocean warming, and to a lesser extent freshening. Additionally, sea level varies regionally due to the spatial distribution of the above processes and their interactions with solid Earth gravitational, deformational, and rotational changes. A goal of the US Department of Energy’s Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SM) is to fully incorporate all of these processes to allow fully consistent sea-level projections as a model output. I will report on our progress towards this goal, focusing primarily on recent improvements in modeling the ice-sheet component, which is the largest uncertainty in sea-level projections. Examples from Greenland and Antarctica show the importance of resolving the key physical processes of iceberg calving, subglacial hydrology, and glacial isostatic adjustment. I will also highlight the representation of ice-shelf cavities and ice-shelf basal melt in E3SM’s ocean component and the challenges ice-shelf-melt tipping points present in a global, coupled model. Finally, I will summarize plans for a new effort developing the sea-level-enabled version of E3SM.

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August 3, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Topic: Subglacial plume at Helheim glacial front
Speaker: Mainak Mondal (NYU)
More info: Abstract
Host/Contact: Craig Rye

Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Mainak Mondal (NYU)
Title: Subglacial plume at Helheim glacial front

This is an on-line, virtual presentation only. Please consult with event host Craig Rye for connection details.

Abstract:
Subglacial discharge plumes are dominant at the terminus of the tidewater glaciers in Greenland. The dynamics of the discharge plume depends on multiple factors like the discharge flux, shape and distributions of the conduit and fjord properties. I shall walk you through some of the recent understandings of the plume dynamics based on Direct Numerical simulations followed by a case study at the Helheim glacial front using MITgcm where I conducted a series of sensitivity experiments on the shape and distribution of the subglacial conduit with varying discharge flux to match the observed plume profiles and shall provide a ballpark estimate of the discharge flux, supported by the hydrological model output.

[ Close ]

August 10, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Andrew Thompson (Caltech)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye
August 17, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Shaina Sadai (UMass Amherst)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye
August 24, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Bernd Kulessa (Swansea University)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye
August 31, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: William Lipscomb (UCAR)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye
September 14, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Faye Hendley Elgart (MIT)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye
September 21, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Ronja Reese (Potsdam Institute)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye
September 28, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Michiel van den Broeke (Univ. Utrecht)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye
October 5, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Lizz Ultee (Middlebury)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye
October 12, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Brent Minchew (MIT)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye
October 19, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Matt Palmer (UK Metoffice)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye
October 26, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Phillip Orton (Stevens Inst Tech)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye
November 2, 2021
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. — Virtual Only
Sea Level Rise Seminar
Speaker: Brad Lipovsky (Unv. Washington)
Host/Contact: Craig Rye

Special Events

There are no workshops, conferences, or other special events (co-)organized by NASA/GISS staff currently announced.

+ Past Meetings & Workshops

Security Note

Federal regulations require that visitors to NASA/GISS arrange in advance for a building pass. Persons attending a GISS seminar or colloquium should contact the event host at least two days in advance of the event for assistance. Please include your affiliation in your e-mail.

Due to implementation of the REAL ID Act (2005), a state driver's license or identification card is currently (as of spring 2020) required for admittance to the GISS premises, which is considered a federal facility. However, if you have a state-issued license or ID that is not considered REAL-ID compliant, you are urged to obtain one before entrance regulations change, which is expected to occur Oct. 1, 2021.

Persons who are not U.S. citizens or U.S. permanent residents and who may be planning a visit to GISS require that special arrangements be made. Please co-ordinate with your GISS host on this at least three weeks before your visit.

All visitors can expect to have their bags searched upon entry to GISS. This may include having to answer questions about personal items, including any medication the visitor may be carrying.