PAGES USA

Paleoclimate and Paleoenvironmental Science at the US NSF

Geosciences Directorate:

EARTH:
Sedimentary Geology and Paleobiology: Sedimentary Geology and Paleobiology supports studies of: (1) the changing aspects of life, ecology, environments, and biogeography in past geologic time based on fossil plants, animals, and microbes; (2) all aspects of the Earth’s sedimentary carapace — insights into geological processes recorded in its historical records and rich organic and inorganic resources locked in rock sequences; (3) the science of dating and measuring the time sequence of events and rates of geological processes of the Earth’s past sedimentary and biological record; (4) the geologic record of the production, transportation, and deposition of physical and chemical sediments; and (5) understanding the complexities of Earth's deep time climate systems. The Sedimentary Geology and Paleobiology Program especially encourages integrative studies at the national and international levels that seek to link subdisciplines, such as paleoclimatology, paleogeography, and paleoenvironmental and paleoecologic reconstructions.

Paul E. Filmer pfilmer@nsf.gov (703) 292-7858
H. R. Lane hlane@nsf.gov (703) 292-8551

Geomorphology and Land-Use Dynamics: This program supports innovative research into processes that shape and modify landscapes over a variety of length and time scales. The program encourages research that investigates quantitatively the coupling and feedback between such processes, their rates, and their relative roles, especially in the contexts of variation in climatic and tectonic forcings and in light of changes due to human impact.

Michael Ellis mellis@nsf.gov (703) 292-8551


OCEANS
The Marine Geology and Geophysics program supports research on all aspects of geology and geophysics of the ocean basins and margins, as well as the Great Lakes.

The Program includes:
• Genesis, chemistry, and mineralogic evolution of marine sediments
• Processes controlling deposition, erosion and transport of marine sediments
• Past ocean circulation patterns and climates and
• Interactions of continental and marine geologic processes

Bilal U. Haq bhaq@nsf.gov (703) 292-8581
Howard Spero hspero@nsf.gov (703) 292-8581

ATMOSHPERE
Supports research on the natural evolution of Earth's climate with the goal of providing a baseline for present variability and future trends through improved understanding of the physical, chemical, and biological processes that influence climate over the long-term.
David J. Verardo dverardo@nsf.gov (703) 292-8527

Polar Programs:

ARCTIC NATURAL SCIENCES
The Arctic Natural Sciences (ANS) Program supports research in glaciology and in the atmospheric, biological, earth, and ocean sciences. This program provides core support for disciplinary research in the Arctic and coordinates its support of arctic research with the Directorates for Geosciences, Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Social and Behavioral, and Biological Sciences. Areas of special interest include marine and terrestrial ecosystems, arctic atmospheric and oceanic dynamics and climatology, as well as arctic geological and glaciological processes.
Earth Sciences
Although the Arctic Natural Sciences Program supports a range of terrestrial and marine geology and geophysics project, of greatest interest are projects that will bring a better understanding of the arctic geological processes, which will improve our ability to interpret the geologic record of environmental change in the polar regions, particularly in the Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic with special emphasis on the Quaternary. Understanding the processes responsible for the evolution of permafrost and its consequent effects and a better understanding and reconstruction of the plate tectonic history of the Arctic Ocean remain priorities, as well.
Glaciology
Glaciology projects generally focus on the history and dynamics of all naturally-occurring forms of snow and ice, including seasonal snow, glaciers, and the Greenland ice sheet. The Arctic Natural Sciences Program also supports modeling of mass balance, glacial geology, and remote sensing studies of ice sheets.
Ocean Sciences
The Arctic Natural Sciences Program supports ocean science projects that advance knowledge of the structure and processes of the Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas and their interactions with their boundaries, including the arctic sea-ice cover. Areas of special interest are
• low-temperature life processes;
• the formation, movement, and mixing of arctic water masses;
• the dynamics of sea ice;
• and the role of the Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas in global climate.
• Proposals concerned with the interdependencies of chemical and physical processes and marine organisms and productivity are encouraged.

Jane V. Dionne jdionne@nsf.gov (703) 292-7427
William J. Wiseman wwiseman@nsf.gov (703) 292-4750


ANTARCTIC:
Earth Sciences:
Beneath its thick ice sheets, Antarctica is a dynamic and diverse continent with mountains, volcanoes, deserts, meteorites, dinosaur fossils, and some of the Earth’s most ancient crust. The Antarctic Earth Sciences Program supports research to interpret this rich history and the processes that shape Antarctica today. Current projects address such diverse topics as:
• Investigating unique geologic processes; such as the formation of subglacial lakes or the aeolian and permafrost sculpting of the Dry Valleys
• Deciphering paleoenvironmental and paleobiological records to understand global climate, ocean circulation, and the evolution of life
• Understanding the ice sheets using sediment records to reconstruct their history, and determining the geologic controls of their formation and stability
All of these problems require a better understanding of Antarctica's geology, including its crustal structure and how Antarctica and its surrounding ocean basins were shaped by global tectonic patterns. The program therefore supports and encourages field, laboratory, and theoretical work in terrestrial and marine earth sciences, including the intersections between these fields and biology, glaciology, and oceanography.

Thomas Wagner twagner@nsf.gov (703) 292-4746

Glaciology
Snow and ice are pervasive elements of high-latitude environmental systems and have an active role in the global environment. The glaciology program is concerned with the study of the history and dynamics of all naturally occurring forms of snow and ice, including floating ice shelves, glaciers, and continental and marine ice sheets. Program emphases include paleoenvironments from ice cores, ice dynamics, numerical modeling, glacial geology, and remote sensing of ice sheets. Some specific objectives are:
• correlating climatic fluctuations evident in antarctic ice cores with data from arctic and lower-latitude ice cores, and integrating the ice record with the terrestrial and marine record;
• documenting the geographic extent of climatic events noted in paleoclimatic records and the extension of the ice core time series to provide information on astronomical forcing of climate;
• establishing more precise dating methodologies for deep ice cores;
• determining the Cenozoic history of antarctic ice sheets and their interaction with global climate and uplift of the Transantarctic Mountains and the response of the antarctic ice sheets to the Pliocene warming;
• investigating the physics of fast glacier flow with emphasis on processes at glacier beds;
• investigating ice-shelf stability;
• identifying and quantifying the feedback between ice dynamics and climate change.

Julie M. Palais jpalais@nsf.gov (703) 292-8033