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The Asian giant hornet (Vespa mandarinia) is native to East and South Asia, so alarm bells rang when scientists spotted the hornets last fall in British Columbia. In December, the hornet was spotted in Washington state, the first time on U.S. soil, which eventually led to viral media coverage about its inevitable spread through the country. So how concerned should Colorado be? Not very, says Colorado State University entomologist Whitney Cranshaw in the College of Agricultural Sciences. “[The hornet] is a woodland species adapted to moist, low elevation sites, like the area where it presently occurs, not like anywhere in Colorado,” Cranshaw said. “This is not an insect that hitchhikes well so for it to spread, it’s on its own. And between eastern Washington and western Colorado there are thousands of geographic barriers that it would likely not be able to cross. I cannot see any scenario on how it could get to Colorado on its own. Not to mention it likely would not be well adapted to the area, and likely would not establish, if someone were to carry it here.” The fear stoked by the unprecedented presence of V. mandarinia isn’t totally unfounded. The nickname for the species derives for its size, venom and aggressiveness. The average hornet reaches a body length of about 2 inches, a wingspan of 3 inches and wields a stinger a quarter-inch long with the potential to inject large amounts of powerful venom. Stings have been equated to the feeling of hot metal piercing the skin. READ MORE>>>

The transition team for the incoming presidential administration of Joseph R. Biden recently sent an email to institutions around the nation, seeking input and names of experts in four key priority areas—the COVID-19 pandemic, economic recovery, racial equity and climate change. “So many names came to my mind in all four areas,” said Lori Peek, professor of sociology and director of the Natural Hazards Center in the Institute of Behavioral Science at the University of Colorado Boulder. The priorities “really cross-cut the work that people in the hazards and disaster field do.”The Natural Hazards Center is a National Science Foundation-designated information clearinghouse for the societal dimensions of hazards and disasters. Founded in 1976 by the late Professor of Geography Gilbert F. White, the center is dedicated to reducing disaster harm through sharing information, connecting researchers, producing novel research and training, and mentoring the next generation of professionals. Recognizing how many ideas are out there, Peek conceived the One Thousand Letters Project, inviting the people in the CU Boulder community and far beyond to compose 500-word letters to the transition team, to “share your vision for how we can work together to ultimately reduce the enormous harm and suffering caused by disasters, while identifying practical steps that will help move the vision forward.” “I just want to share the expertise that I know exists here at CU Boulder, but also across the nation,” Peek said. “During this time of transition, it just seemed like our scientific and civic duty.” Anyone interested in submitting a letter, including students, should send it to 1000Letters@colorado.edu by no later than Tuesday, Dec. 15. The team at the center will read and compile letters and submit to the Biden transition team. Anonymous letters will be accepted, and authors will not be identified without permission, Peek said in her call for contributions. READ MORE>>>

When wildfires multiply and grow quickly, endangering lives and property as they rage through forests and grasslands, they stretch fire and rescue resources to their limits. As fires increase in size and intensity, their power to modify local weather conditions increases as well. Running coupled fire-atmosphere models on Cheyenne is allowing researchers not only to study how fires create their own weather but also to forecast such events to inform firefighters about potential changes in weather conditions and smoke pollution induced by raging fires. A team of scientists from several universities – including the University of Colorado Denver, San Jose State University, and the University of Utah – has been doing just that during this year’s damaging fires that have raged in California and Colorado. Their work is funded by the National Science Foundation Prediction of and Resilience against Extreme Events (PREEVENTS) program, the NASA Earth Science Disasters Program, and the USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest (PNW) Research Station Fire and Smoke Model Evaluation Experiment (FASMEE). Read More>>>

Catalyst Accelerator’s (Catalyst), Cyber for Space Applications, launched eight small businesses into the reaches of the U.S. Space Force, with its sixth accelerator Demo Day on November 19, 2020. Powered by Air Force Research Laboratory, Space Vehicles Directorate and sponsored by Booz Allen Hamilton, the cohort of small businesses concluded its 12-week accelerator, gaining traction into moving technology from commercial application to the military warfighter. Cyber applications have long been the mainstay in the Department of Defense, but with the creation of the U.S. Space Force, a rigorous hunt for disruptive cyber technology has begun. No longer is the warfighter confined to air, land, sea and cyber. Space is now a contested domain, with near-peer adversaries with comparable capabilities, unsettling operations in both the public and private sectors. U.S. data exfiltration by malicious actors is staggering. In 2019 it was estimated that 6.5 million documents per day were stolen by U.S. adversaries, according to keynote speaker Brigadier General D. Jason Cothern, Vice Commander of Space and Missile Systems Center. The U.S. Space Force is tasked with protecting America’s interests in space, deterring aggressive acts and sustaining operations in this far-off region. With this in mind, Catalyst’s Cyber for Space Accelerator invited small businesses to apply to become a cohort company and demonstrate how their technology might “secure the next generation of space operations and increase resiliency.” See more details>>>

In April and May of 2020, we asked our network: "What will be "normal" in the fall of 2020?" The report from that survey provided helpful context and a spectrum of insight that was widely shared and helpful to prompt planning brainstorms. Now, CO-LABS is asking our network of scientists, business leaders, technologists, academics and champions of science to describe the impacts on their organizations borne of the COVID-19 outbreak and societal shutdown. CLICK TO TAKE THE SHORT SURVEY. Each question is optional - answer as you have insight and opinions. The answers to these questions will remain anonymous; you can choose whether or not to include your contact information. We are motivated to aggregate and share the needs, challenges and even opportunities implicit in the complicated logistics affecting research and innovation activities in Colorado. The scope of replies will help CO-LABS inform elected officials and civic leaders as they grapple with legislation, changes to public policy and changes to general rules and guidance for Colorado's residents. We are grateful for your perspectives. You will help us in our mission to nurture the federal research lab ecosystem in Colorado to be a world-class discovery and innovation asset to the nation. Thank you! Dan Powers Executive Director CO-LABS www.co-labs.org You can see the original "What will be 'Normal' This Fall?" report on our website.

With COVID-19 infection rates on the rise and vaccines still months from being publicly available, the COVID-19 High Performance Computing (HPC) Consortium—which includes multiple federal agencies in addition to industry and academia—is entering a “new phase” of its operation. READ MORE>>> In March, IBM, the U.S. Department of Energy and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy launched an unprecedented initiative: the COVID-19 HPC Consortium. The wide-ranging consortium, aimed at leveraging worldwide supercomputing to fight the coronavirus, has since expanded to include 43 members (many international) and 600 petaflops of computing power (up from 330 in March), allocating those resources to more than 90 projects. In the last eight months, however, much has changed beyond the size of the consortium: The physical structure of the virus (an emphasis for COVID-focused supercomputing in the spring and summer) is now much better understood; a viable vaccine now appears on track for scaled distribution by the spring of 2021; and after a year of dread, massive spikes in Europe and the U.S. signal that much of the world may indeed be staring down an extraordinarily dark winter. With these factors in mind, the COVID-19 HPC Consortium has announced that its next phase will focus on benefiting patients over the next six months. Specifically, the consortium will support projects working on understanding and modeling patient response to the virus; learning and validating vaccine response models from multiple clinical trials; evaluating combination therapies using repurposed molecules; and designing epidemiological models.

For the first time, the Federal Laboratory Consortium National Meeting Program Committee would like to invite YOU to suggest topics you'd like to see discussed at the next National Meeting, which is scheduled for April 6 - 8, 2021. The FLC National Meeting Program Committee is looking for topics that are educational, timely and appeal to a wide range of audiences. Deadline to submit is December 21, 2020. Feel free to suggest topics for plenary sessions, training workshops, panel discussions, demonstrations, point-counterpoint debates, or something else we might not have thought of. Speaker suggestions are optional. But if you do want to suggest a speaker (or speakers) to go with your topic, please be prepared to provide their affiliation and contact information on the submission form. SEE MORE DETAILS HERE. Use the list of potential program tracks below, and the examples of session titles under each track, to start brainstorming. Intellectual Property Management How Agencies Decide Whether to Seek IP Protection for an Invention AI and the Patent Process T2 Agreements CRADA Workshop Licensing and Negotiation Workshop Operations/Administration How to Show a More Direct Return on Investment (ROI) and Tie Back to Labs’ Mission and Core Programs Developing Your Staff Through Teaching Marketing & Business Development Marketing Tools for the TTO Innovative Ways Labs/Agencies have Implemented Marketing Strategies Compliance Legislative Changes Best Practices for Small Agencies Hot Topics Inclusive Innovation Legal Hot Topics Industry/Federal Labs Partnerships Cultivating an Entrepreneurial Culture in Federal Labs Fostering Industry-University-Federal Lab Collaborations

Colorado State University’s spending on research activities reached a record $407 million for fiscal year 2020, a 2% increase over last year. The trajectory was welcome news, given the COVID-19 pandemic that has resulted in scaling back some research projects. Estimates show that 432 projects were shut down or affected by the pandemic in April 2020, based on a survey of CSU faculty. The number of active projects at that time, however, remained very strong, at 4,290. More recently, the number of research projects affected by the pandemic has been reduced to 227, according to the Office of the Vice President for Research. READ MORE>>> Alan Rudolph, vice president for research, said that research spending increased due to the strength of internal investments, which totaled $4.9 million, and an increase of $4.6 million in grants and contracts sponsored by industry and nonprofit organizations over 2019. In addition, the university expended gifts to support research in the amount of $6.5 million. “We weathered the storm this year, in the face of a global pandemic, and the result is not only positive, but a new record for the university,” said Rudolph. “The increase we’ve seen in research spending this year is a testament to the quality, breadth and depth of our faculty.” Research spending supported by federal, nonprofit, higher education, industry and other government organizations totaled more than $325 million, an increase over the last fiscal year of 1.4%, according to the Office of the Vice President for Research. The Center for Environmental Management on Military Lands, CEMML, accounted for 28% of all sponsored program expenditures at the university, or $91 million. The center is part of the Warner College of Natural Resources. In addition, the Infectious Disease Research Center increased research spending by $3.8 million, which covered projects to advance the development of a vaccine candidate against Rift Valley Fever Virus and a partnership to manufacture an HIV vaccine candidate for Sumagen, a biotechnology company based in South Korea. Rudolph said that strategic investments in infectious disease research and response also helped to position the university to respond quickly to the global pandemic. Currently, there are 44 active COVID-19 research projects supported by more than $16 million across the university. READ MORE>>>

Boulder County Public Health Media Advisory For Immediate Release: 11/04/2020 Media Contact: Chana Goussetis, 303-44101457 Boulder County, CO – Boulder County Public Health was notified today that the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) will move the county to the more restrictive Safer at Home Level Orange: High Risk (previously called Level 3) on the state Dial beginning Friday, November 6. The move is due to the rapid increase in new COVID-19 cases and the percentage of positivity among COVID-19 tests in Boulder County. The county will remain at this level until there is improvement (or worsening) of COVID-19 case activity in the county. “This is devastating, especially because we know that we can prevent the transmission of this virus and this change will impact our businesses severely, as well as our social and emotional health. This comes down to all of us taking personal responsibility to avoid social gatherings, wear a mask, maintain at least 6 feet of physical distance and to be diligent about washing hands,” said Jeff Zayach, Boulder County Public Health executive director. According to CDPHE’s dashboard, new cases of COVID-19 among Boulder County residents in the past two weeks is 312.1 per 100,000 - Safer at Home Level Orange begins at 175 cases per 100,000 population; Stay at Home begins at 350 cases per 100,000 population. The five-day rolling average of daily cases among county residents is 98 cases per day, which is higher than any other time except the CU surge since the start of the pandemic. “This is not the time for social gatherings. We need to be diligent to prevent further restrictions from being applied to Boulder County. Please, take a hiatus from socializing for now, stay home if you’re sick, and strictly follow isolation and quarantine guidance if you test positive or are exposed. If we don’t, our businesses may not be able to stay afloat, said Zayach.”  The most recent modeling report from the Colorado School of Public Health suggests that communities must act now to reduce transmission in order to avoid levels of infection that could strain the health care workforce and hospitals. The report also suggests that, on the current trajectory, hospitalizations will likely exceed the April peak and if transmission continues over the holidays, ICU capacity could be exceeded by the end of the year. “It’s so important that we act now. This is about supporting each other and our community by cutting down on any gatherings that aren’t absolutely necessary, even if they’re small. It’s about strictly adhering to quarantine and isolation requirements. It’s about not going out in public when you’re sick,” said Zayach. While personal gatherings will continue to be limited to 10 people from no more than two households, with face coverings and social distancing required indoors and when within 6 feet of others, public health officials urge residents to avoid all gatherings, for now.  Safer at Home Level Orange limits business capacity to: 25% or 50 people at restaurants, places of worship, and non-critical manufacturing 25% at offices and retail 25% or 25 people at gyms/fitness centers (groups of up to 10 outdoors), personal services, and limited health care settings 25% or 50 people, whichever is fewer, with space calculator at indoor events 25% or 75 people, whichever is fewer with space calculator at outdoor events 25% or 10 people at outdoor guided services Virtual or outdoors in groups of less than 10 at group sports and camps There may be additional guidance for services such as when patrons are seated versus standing, or indoors versus outdoors. Capacity allowances are summarized in the CDPHE dial level chart. Full guidance for each sector is available on the CDPHE Safer at Home website. At Safer at Home Level Orange, remote, hybrid, or limited in-person learning, as appropriate, is suggested for K-12 and higher education. In-person learning for preschool through grade 12 schools is now defined as “Critical Business” and clarifies that local districts can determine how to structure the format of education based on local factors. Boulder County Public Health will continue to follow CDPHE guidance and support the models currently in place at Boulder Valley and St. Vrain Valley school districts in order to support learning, mental health, and employment for local families. Each district and school has layers of protection in place (e.g. staggered drop-offs, masking, cohorting etc.) that make the environment more protective than other public environments. Boulder County Public Health COVID-19 updates are shared by press release and/or on the Boulder County Public Health Facebook and Twitter social media pages and the COVID-19 website at www.boco.org/covid-19. El aumento en Casos Nuevos de COVID-19 mueve a el Condado de Boulder a un nivel más restrictivo El Condado de Boulder se moverá el viernes en el indicador estatal a Más Seguro en Casa Nivel 3 El Condado de Boulder, CO – Salud Pública del Condado de Boulder fue notificada hoy que el Departamento de Salud Pública y Medio Ambiente de Colorado (CDPHE) colocara a el condado en  un nivel más restrictivo denominado Mas Seguro en Casa Nivel Naranja (anteriormente llamado Nivel 3) en el indicador estatal, empezando el viernes 6 de noviembre. Este cambio se debe al rápido aumento de nuevos casos de COVID-19 y al porcentaje de positividad de las pruebas de COVID-19 en el Condado de Boulder. El condado se mantendrá en este nivel hasta que mejoren (o empeoren) los casos de COVID-19 el en condado. "Esto es devastador, especialmente porque sabemos que podemos prevenir la transmisión de este virus y este cambio afectará a nuestros negocios severamente, así como nuestra salud social y emocional. Esto se reduce a que todos asumimos la responsabilidad personal de evitar reuniones sociales, usar un cubrebocas, mantener al menos pies de distancia física y ser diligentes al lavarnos las manos," dijo Jeff Zayach, director ejecutivo de Salud Pública del Condado de Boulder. Desde hoy, los casos nuevos de COVID-19 entre los residentes del Condado de Boulder en las últimas dos semanas son 312,1 por cada 100,000 - Mas Seguro en Casa Nivel Naranja comienza en 175 casos por cada 100,000 habitantes; Quédese en Casa comienza en 350 casos por cada 100,000 habitantes. El promedio de cinco días de los casos diarios entre los residentes del condado es de 98 casos por día, que es mayor que cualquier otro lapso desde el inicio de la pandemia, excluyendo el aumento de CU. "Este no es el momento de las reuniones sociales. Tenemos que ser perseverantes para evitar que se apliquen más restricciones al Condado de Boulder. Por favor, tome un descanso y no socialice por ahora, quédese en casa si está enfermo y siga estrictamente el aislamiento y la guía de cuarentena si resulto positivo o está expuesto. Si no lo hacemos, es posible que nuestros negocios no puedan mantenerse a flote,” dijo Zayach.  El informe de simulación más reciente de la Escuela de Salud Pública de Colorado sugiere que las comunidades deben actuar ahora para reducir la transmisión a fin de evitar niveles de infección que podrían saturar a el personal de atención médica y hospitales. El informe también sugiere que, en la trayectoria actual, las hospitalizaciones probablemente superarán el aumento de abril y, si la transmisión continúa durante las vacaciones, la capacidad de cuidado intensivo podría superarse a finales de año. "Es tan importante que actuamos ahora. Se trata de apoyarnos mutuamente y a nuestra comunidad reduciendo cualquier reunión que no sea absolutamente necesaria, incluso si son pequeñas. Se trata de  adherirse estrictamente a los requisitos de cuarentena y aislamiento. Se trata de no salir en público cuando estás enfermo,” dijo Zayach. Mientras que las reuniones personales seguirán limitándose a 10 personas de no más de dos hogares, con coberturas faciales y distanciamiento social requerido en interiores y cuando están a menos de 6 pies de otros, los funcionarios de salud pública instan a los residentes a evitar todas las reuniones, por ahora.  Mas Seguro en Casa Nivel Naranja limita la capacidad de negocios a: 25% o 50 personas en restaurantes, lugares de fe y producción que no es crítica 25% en oficinas y comercio minorista 25% o 25 personas en gimnasios/centros de ejercicio (grupos de hasta 10 al aire libre), servicios personales y entornos limitados de atención médica 25% o 50 personas, lo que sea menor, con la calculadora de espacio en eventos interiores 25% o 75 personas, lo que sea menos con la calculadora de espacio en eventos al aire libre 25% o 10 personas en servicios guiados al aire libre Eventos virtuales o al aire libre con grupos de menos de 10 en deportes de grupo y campamentos Puede haber orientación adicional para servicios tales como cuando los clientes están sentados en comparación con estar de pie, o en interiores y al aire libre. Las asignaciones de capacidad se resumen en la  gráfica de niveles del indicador CDPHE. La orientación completa para cada sector está disponible en el sitio web de CDPHE Mas Seguro en Casa. En Mas Seguro en Casa Nivel Naranja, se sugiere clases remotas, híbridas limitadas, según corresponda, para K-12 y educación superior. Clases en persona para preescolar a grado 12 escuelas ahora se define como "Negocio Crítico" y aclara que los distritos locales pueden determinar cómo estructurar el formato de educación basado en factores locales. Salud Pública del Condado de Boulder continuará siguiendo la guía de CDPHE y apoyará los modelos actualmente en los distritos escolares de Boulder Valley y St. Vrain Valley con el fin de apoyar el aprendizaje, la salud mental y el empleo para las familias locales. Cada distrito y escuela tiene capas de protección en su lugar (por ejemplo, entregas escalonadas, uso de cubrecaras, cohorte, etc.) que hacen que el más seguro que otros entornos públicos. Aactualizaciones de COVID-19  de  Salud Pública del Condado de Boulder se comparten por comunicado de prensa y/o en las redes sociales de Facebook y Twitter del Condado de Boulder y el sitio web COVID-19 en  www.boco.org/covid-19.

In this free presentation on Zoom, Libera principal investigator and Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics scientist Peter Pilewskie will discuss the Libera mission objectives and expected improvements in the understanding of Earth’s radiative energy budget and climate. Date: Wednesday, Nov 11, 2020 Time: 7:00-8:00 PM MST REGISTER HERE. There are two components to resolving Earth’s radiation energy budget: the input into the Earth system from the Sun’s radiative energy and the output of the radiative energy that leaves the Earth. This lecture will focus on the radiative energy that leaves the Earth, which is the sum of reflected sunlight and the radiative energy that Earth emits to space. The space-based measurements of these quantities began almost five decades ago, and just like the measurements of solar irradiance, they improved the fundamental understanding of Earth’s climate. As the sophistication of instruments grew, along with the models used to interpret their measurements, considerable insight has been gained into the flow of energy through the Earth system and its regulation of climate. Despite this progress, gaps in our understanding remain, requiring even longer climate records with improved accuracy. To meet these demands, LASP is developing a new climate mission called Libera that will launch in the latter part of this decade.

UPDATE: See links and materials from the conference call below. You can listen to the recording of the call here in your browser. To listen to this recording by telephone dial 1-862-902-0129 and enter Access code: 63151187. Some recording features when listening on your phone: 1 will pause 2 will rewind 1 minute 3 will forward 1 minute CO-LABS has organized a call with the staff of U.S. Representative Joe Neguse to hear from federal research scientists on wildfire research, mitigation and communications technologies to improve management and preparedness for wildland and urban interface fires. Scientists will spotlight their relevant research and resources within the federal research laboratory ecosystem in Colorado. This call will be recorded and further materials as provided by the speakers will be updated on this post following the call. Speakers include: From the U.S. Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station: Sara Brown is the Program Manager for Fire, Fuels, and Smoke speaking to the direct support RMRS has provided to fire suppression efforts around risk management, decision support, real-time applications to help monitor weather, fire-behavior, etc., plus ongoing resiliency efforts. Frank McCormick is the Program Manager for the Air, Water, and Aquatic Environments, speaking to science supporting post-fire watershed impacts and recovery measures. Additional information: Rocky Mountain Research Station Climate Change research From the National Institute of Standards and Technology - PSCR: Sam L. Ray,Electronics Engineer is the lead for the work on deployable networks for connecting first responders in remote areas. Additional Information from Sam: The Public Safety Communications Research Division (PSCR) is the primary federal laboratory conducting research, development, testing, and evaluation for public safety communications technologies. It is housed within the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Communications Technology Laboratory, who is advancing the nation’s communication systems—ranging from the public safety infrastructure we discussed today to the developing 5G-and-beyond wireless networks that will connect billions of mobile devices. Our work is driven to overcome the challenges of our first responders as they carry out their mission to protect lives and property during emergencies.  Advancements such as the deployable communication systems mentioned on our call are ideal for the type of remote terrain first responders faced during the recent wildfires in Colorado. From CU-Boulder/CIRES Lisa Dilling, Professor, Environmental Studies, University of Colorado Boulder, and Western Water Assessment Director (A NOAA-funded RISA) and CIRES Fellow at the University of Colorado Boulder. Western Water Assessment; WWA is one of 10 NOAA-funded Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments (RISA) programs. WWA’s mission is to conduct innovative research in partnership with decision makers in the Rocky Mountain West, helping them make the best use of science to manage for climate impacts. Additional information from Lisa: The link for Western Water Assessment is here: https://wwa.colorado.edu/ Also the link to our excellent Climate Dashboard with links to many locally relevant climate information sites: https://wwa.colorado.edu/climate/dashboard.html The direct link to our water year 2020 part of that page: https://wwa.colorado.edu/climate/dashboard.html#2020summary The link to our usable science explainer: https://wwa.colorado.edu/publications/reports/usable_research_guide.pdf An oldie but goodie on climate impacts and the state of Colorado: https://wwa.colorado.edu/climate/co2014report/Climate_Change_CO_Report_2014_FINAL.pdf And, not our product, but a nice explainer on where wildfire and water intersect: https://www.kunc.org/wildfire-and-water CIRES & USGS Dr. Jennifer Balch is Director of Earth Lab & University Director of the USGS North Central Climate Adaptation Science Center (see Jennifer's spotlight here), speaking as an expert in fire science and how shifting fire regimes are reconfiguring tropical forests, encouraging non-native grass invasion, and affecting the global climate. Read: How Bad is the Smoke? Current Fires and Air Quality Resources

UPDATE: See links and materials from the conference call below. You can listen to the recording of the call here in your browser. To listen to this recording by telephone dial 1-862-902-0129 and enter Access code: 45606755. Some recording features when listening on your phone: 1 will pause 2 will rewind 1 minute 3 will forward 1 minute We invite you to listen in on conference call with scientists from federally-funded research labs and staff from Representative Joe Neguse's office, the theme is climate change and severe weather research;  hearing about a few key research initiatives of their organizations and how their data informs the assessment of severe weather threats to the country is the goal. Thursday, October 29, 2020 10:30 - 11:15 am Speakers include: Christine Wiedinmyer Ph.D. is the Associate Director for Science at CIRES and a Research Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at University of Colorado Boulder. Wiedinmyer developed the Fire INventory from NCAR (FINN), a high resolution global fire emissions model now used by local, regional, and global chemical modelers to better quantify the impacts of fire emissions on atmospheric composition, both in hindsight and forecast model applications. Additional information from Christine: 1. NAS Wildland Fires: Towards Improved Understanding and Forecasting of Air Quality Impacts -- A Workshop https://www.nationalacademies.org/event/09-23-2020/wildland-fires-towards-improved-understanding-and-forecasting-of-air-quality-impacts-a-workshop Multi-disciplinary workshop on wildfires, smoke, health outcomes, and communication. (Excellent!) All talks are posted online 2. Smoke Forecasting The HRRR-Smoke model went operational this year and shows smoke forecasts Visualization of outputs: https://hwp-viz.gsd.esrl.noaa.gov/smoke/ i. On left, Under HRRR, users can click on one of the options to see the forecast (I recommend near surface smoke). 3. Recent field campaigns to provide more information about wildfire smoke and impacts FIREX-AQ: https://www.esrl.noaa.gov/csl/projects/firex-aq/resources/ WE-CAN: https://www.eol.ucar.edu/field_projects/we-can 4. Satellite data NASA and NOAA satellites provide information about when and where fires burn, what is burning, and where the smoke is Here are a few examples: i. https://www.ospo.noaa.gov/Products/land/hms.html ii. http://rammb.cira.colostate.edu/ (the slider experimental product can enable great views of smoke plumes) 5. Fire Emissions models FINN: https://www2.acom.ucar.edu/modeling/finn-fire-inventory-ncar EPA/USFS: https://www.airfire.org/home NASA: https://gmao.gsfc.nasa.gov/research/science_snapshots/global_fire_emissions.php NOAA: https://www.arl.noaa.gov/hysplit/smoke-forecasting/ Cindy Bruyère is Director of the Capacity Center For Climate & Weather Extremes; C3WE aims to enhance societal resilience and response to weather and climate extremes through research, education, workforce development, and creation of actionable tools in collaboration with academic, private, public, and community organizations. Additional information from Cindy: Article: Attributing Extreme Events to Climate Change: A New Frontier in a Warming World (6-page PDF - download below.) Colm Sweeney is the lead scientist for the NOAA Earth System Research Lab Aircraft Program, he oversees the existing network of aircraft sites; develops new ways to ensure data quality, as well as easy access to the data; and develops new tools and platforms for collecting vertical profiles of CO2 and other trace gases throughout North America. Matthew Rogers is the Education and Outreach Coordinator at the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere at Colorado State University, he has a Ph.D. in Atmospheric Science from CSU will discuss the resources available and needed to understand precipitation processes - both from a research standpoint for climate modelling, and for understanding drought (leading to fires and other deleterious situations.) Also, he will discuss using the GOES-R series of satellites to research regional climate issues. Additional information from Matt: 1.) Link to the upcoming NOAA/DOE Precipitation Processes and Predictability workshop - staffers may be interested in seeing the mechanics of what’s being discussed, and critically, what resources are needed. 2.) A blended GeoColor/Fire Temperature RGB product looking at the East Troublesome, Williams Fork, and other Front Range fires from October 22nd of this year.  Not only are these products useful for direct study of fires and firefighting operations, but they speak to the need to understand regional climate from a preparedness standpoint: these won’t be the last fires of this kind in Colorado, and we can do more to prepare for them.