Media Briefing on Use of Earth Data to Support National Priorities

WASHINGTON — NASA will hold a media teleconference on Monday, Sept. 8, at 3 p.m. EDT, to present the results of a study on how the U.S. government currently uses Earth science information to manage resources and protect public health.

The report is the latest in a series from the U.S. Climate Change Science Program addressing various aspects of the country’s highest priority research, observation and decision-support needs. The study examines the decision-support tools that government agencies use to make predictions and forecasts in such areas as agricultural productivity, air quality, renewable energy resources, water management, and the prevention of vector-borne disease. It also probes the extent to which these decision-making tools are used to evaluate future impacts of climate change.

Report co-authors participating in the teleconference are:

— Molly Macauley, Resources for the Future, Washington
— Gregory Glass, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Baltimore
— Holly Hartmann, University of Arizona, Tucson
— David Renne, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colo.

Reporters wanting to participate in the call should contact Steve Cole at 202-358-0918 for dial-in instructions by noon Sept. 8. Embargoed copies of the report’s executive summary are available to reporters in advance upon request. The full report, “Uses and Limitations of Observations, Data, Forecasts, and Other Projections in Decision Support for Selected Sectors and Regions,” will be available after the briefing.

Audio of the teleconference will be streamed live on NASA’s Web site at: http://www.nasa.gov/newsaudio