A new study in the latest issue of the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society provides an in-depth look at how NASA facilities have been affected by climate extremes and climate change in recent years and how the agency is preparing for the future.

Using a blend of weather data, global and regional climate model outputs, and advances in the understanding of the climate system, the study finds that many types of extreme events are expected to increase in frequency and magnitude in the future and pose hazards to NASA's mission, infrastructure and workforce.

The study found that by the 2050s, sea level rise alone could lead to an increase of 50 percent or more in coastal flooding frequency with varying impacts to NASA facilities, a high percentage of which are located near coastlines. In total, the agency has approximately$32 billionin constructed assets and about 64,000 employees, contractors and partners.

"Risk management is central to continuity of NASA operations, and the agency is including potential climate extremes in its risk management framework," saidCalvin Williams, assistant administrator for NASA's Office of Strategic Infrastructure at the agency's Headquarters inWashington.

A partnership between Earth scientists and institutional stewards is helping NASA prepare for a changing climate and increasing vulnerabilities to such change. The agency established the Climate Adaptation Science Investigator (CASI) working group as an important part of this effort. The CASI initiative brings Earth scientists together with facility managers, emergency management staff, natural resource managers and human capital specialists at each NASA center to discuss management of climate risks and resilience.

Workshops were held at five NASA centers that brought together climate scientists, mission operations personnel, human resource managers, and ecosystem specialists. Using the climate projections prepared by CASI scientists in conjunction with each center, risks were explored and adaptation strategies developed.

"NASA has cutting-edge climate science and world-class stewardship at its facilities," saidCynthia Rosenzweig, a scientist at NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies inNew York, who led the study and the ongoing CASI initiative. "Now climate scientists and institutional stewards are working together to enhance resilience to climate extremes and change."

The initiative strengthens the science community's commitment to understanding climate impacts, targets research to the needs of the agency's institutional stewards, and equips those stewards through workshops and ongoing knowledge sharing as a basis for proactive risk management.

"NASA science provides an important knowledge base that the centers and their surrounding communities can use in preparing for changing climate conditions," saidJack Kaye, associate director of NASA's Earth Science Division inWashington. "This integrated, science-based approach to climate risk management can provide a model for other agencies."

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NASA Program Enhances Climate Resilience at Agency Facilities