Media advisory 4 - AGU Fall Meeting: Complete press conference schedule

Field trip update; press reception update; press registration form

This message should be read in conjunction with Media Advisory 3 of 7 November, as it does not repeat important information in that message. See: http://www.agu.org/sci_soc/prrl/prrl0329.html

1. Complete press conference schedule

The following press conferences are planned, as of the date of this advisory. Please note that any press conference may be rescheduled to a different time or day or may be cancelled. Participants may change from those listed here. Other press conferences may be added. Any changes subsequent to this message will be announced in the Press Room at the meeting. All press conferences take place in Room 2012 Moscone West.

Note: Under "Relates to Session," below, only the first oral session on the topic is listed. Often, there are additional sessions, oral and/or poster, that follow. In the Program Book, these are indicated by Roman numerals after the name of the session.

Topic: Overview of Fall Meeting
Day: Sunday, December 7
Time: 5:00p.m. (Approximate! See below under Press Reception and Program)
Description: With over 800 sessions and nearly 10,000 oral and poster presentations, Fall Meeting can be overwhelming. Press conferences highlight just a fraction of the exciting news emanating from the meeting. If any one person has a grasp of the meeting as a whole, it is Robert Wesson, chair of the committee that organized all of the sessions and special events. He will suggest some sessions worthy of your consideration for which there are no press conferences.
Participant: Robert Wesson, U.S. Geological Survey, Denver, Colorado; Chair, AGU Fall Meeting Program Committee.

Topic: The Martian Climate, as Seen by Mars Odyssey
Day: Monday, December 8
Time: 9:00 a.m.
Relates to Session: P21A
Description: NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft continues its orbital mission to study the Martian environment. A focus of the new results is the changing weather and climate of Mars. Odyssey's sensors have measured the movement of carbon dioxide, which accumulates as frost at the winter poles and evaporates during the spring. Intriguing images of this dry ice, which apparently contain transparent slabs of ice, will be shown. The Odyssey camera has obtained the most detailed map yet of the south polar regions. Measurements of water ice in the soil suggest a complex layering, indicating recent global climate change. Enigmatic hydrogen deposits at warm mid-latitudes will be discussed. Results from the radiation monitoring experiment show the level of radiation hazard that Mars-bound astronauts may face, including that from intense solar activity recently measured by the instrument.
Participants:
Phil Christensen, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona;
William Boynton, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona;
William Feldman, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico;
Igor Mitrofanov, Institute for Space Research, Moscow, Russia;
Cary Zeitlin, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California.

Topic: Interpreting Magnetic Anomalies on Mars
Day: Monday, December 8
Time: 10:00 a.m.
Relates to Session: GP21A
Description: This press conference highlights magnetic field observations of the Martian and terrestrial crust. Interpretations of Mars data include a synthesis of events with a magnetic signature and the first reported paleopole associated with a surface feature on Mars. On Earth, researchers interpret early results from continental-scale magnetic compilations incorporating aeromagnetic, ship-borne, and satellite surveys. Interpretations of new high-resolution satellite surveys showcase maps of the regional heat flow beneath the terrestrial ice caps and address implications for their long-term stability. A final talk explores the questions that can be addressed using even higher resolution data from the Swarm mission, a near-Earth satellite constellation in the planning stage.
Participants:
Benoit Langlais, NRC postdoctoral fellow, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland;
Dhananjay Ravat, Professor of Geophysics, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, Carbondale, Illinois;
Carol Finn, Scientist, Volcano Hazards Program, U.S. Geological Survey, Denver, Colorado;
Stefan Maus, Research Associate, Magnetotellurics & Geomagnetism, Potsdam, Germany;
Michael Purucker, Chief Scientist, Geodynamics, Geophysics, and Space Geodesy Program, Raytheon ITSS at Geodynamics Branch, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland.

Topic: Probing the Atmosphere: New Technology on NASA's Aura Satellite Mission
Day: Monday, December 8
Time: 11:00 a.m.
Relates to Session: A12C
Description: NASA's Earth Observing System (EOS) Aura satellite mission will launch in early 2004. Aura will carry four instruments designed to study stratospheric ozone processes and global air quality, to improve our understanding of the role of atmospheric chemistry in climate change. The participants will describe the mission objectives, the instruments and their measurement objectives, and expected science outcomes from the mission.
Participants:
Mark Schoeberl, Project Scientist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland;
John Gille, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colorado;
Reinhard Beer, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California;
Ernie Hilsenrath, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland;
Joe Waters, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California.

Topic: Tracking the Ozone and More: TOMS Update
Day: Monday, December 8
Time: 1:00 p.m.
Relates to Session: A11A
Description: For 25 years, the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) instruments have been looking at ozone and making daily maps of the ozone content of the atmosphere across the globe. TOMS data has shown the evolution of the ozone hole from 1979 to today, and made an essential contribution to international agreements that banned ozone-destroying chlorofluorocarbons. Years of TOMS measurements and studies have led to new capabilities and applications for this instrument: detection of desert dust and biomass burning, aerosols, detection of sulfur dioxide and ash from volcanic eruptions, measurements of low level ozone or smog, and measurements of ultraviolet radiation at the surface.
Participants:
Richard Stolarski, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland;
F. Sherwood (Sherry) Rowland, Nobel Laureate, Donald Bren Research Professor of Chemistry and Earth
System Science, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California;
Paul Newman, Scientist/Data User, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland;
Pawan K. Bhartia, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland.

Topic: Science Rationale for the Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter Mission (JIMO)
Day: Monday, December 8
Time: 2:00 p.m.
Relates to Session: P11C
Description: The Galileo spacecraft found evidence that Jupiter's large icy moons -- Callisto, Ganymede, and Europa -- may have in varying degrees three of the ingredients considered essential for life: water, energy, and the necessary chemicals. As a result of these discoveries, NASA is developing plans for an ambitious mission to orbit these planet-size moons. NASA chartered a Science Definition Team, composed of scientists from many disciplines, to provide guidance on goals and objectives for the proposed JIMO mission. JIMO would be the first spacecraft powered by nuclear electric propulsion and would orbit each of the icy moons for extensive investigations of their makeup, history, and potential for sustaining life. It would produce large amounts of electrical energy to significantly improve scientific measurements, mission design options, and telecommunications capabilities. Nuclear electric propulsion could also open the rest of the outer solar system for detailed exploration in later missions.
Participants:
Ronald Greeley, Science Definition Team Co-chair, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona;
Louise Proctor, Science Definition Team Geology/Geochemistry group co-lead, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Maryland;
Chrisopher McKay, Science Definition Team Astrobiology co-lead, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California;
William Moore, Science Definition Team Interiors Group co-lead, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California;
Krishan Khurana, Science Definition Team Jupiter System Science co-lead, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California.

Topic: Uncovering the Magnetic "Drive" Behind Solar Eruptions
Day: Monday, December 8
Time: 3:00 p.m.
Relates to Session: SH21A
Description: Coronal mass ejections (CMEs), unpredictable blobs of energetic solar matter that cause the largest geomagnetic disturbances on Earth, are hotly debated even as new data answer basic questions about their nature. Using new measurements of CME acceleration, researchers have found evidence that a CME is, in fact, a twisted magnetic structure called a "magnetic flux rope," as first hypothesized over 10 years ago. For the first time, solar astronomers have a measurable quantity that can determine the structure of the invisible magnetic field underlying the eruption of these gigantic blobs of solar material. Further, magnetic reconnection, thought to be the main driver of solar flares, may also be the driver for "flare/CME events." A close relationship between the rate of magnetic reconnection in solar flares and the acceleration of eruptions on the Sun has been found. While it is accepted that CMEs are driven magnetically, the source of this magnetic energy remains a topic of debate.
Participants:
Gareth R. Lawrence, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland;
James Chen, Plasma Physics Division, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, D.C.;
Jiong Qiu, Center for Solar Research, Physics Department, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, New Jersey.

Topic: Toward a Deeper Understanding of Hawaii's Volcanoes
Day: Monday, December 8
Time: 4:00 p.m.
Relates to Session: V11B
Description: The above ground structure and history of Hawaii's volcanoes and the processes influencing their growth have been intensively studied for decades. Their less-accessible underwater flanks have, however, only recently been explored in any detail. This press conference will highlight the results and insight gained from a four-year Japan-US collaborative investigation of the submarine parts of Hawaii's volcanoes, including a detailed map of the sea floor around the islands. Recent deformation of Kilauea and Mauna Loa volcanoes and the difficulties they pose for standard models of Hawaiian-type volcano growth and structure will also be highlighted, as will the tsunami potential of Hawaiian landslides. Landslide simulations indicate that they are capable of generating large tsunamis that are thought to have inundated parts of the Hawaiian Islands in the past.
Participants:
Eiichi Takahashi, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo, Japan;
Peter Cervelli, Hawaii Volcanoes Observatory, U.S. Geological Survey, Volcano, Hawaii;
Gerard Fryer, Hawaii Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii.

Topic: Meet the new HROV (Hybrid Remotely Operated Vehicle)
Day: Tuesday, December 9
Time: 9:00 a.m.
Relates to Session: OS32A
Description: In 1960, the U.S. Navy submarine Trieste dove to the bottom of the Challenger Deep in the Western Pacific's Marianas Trench, the deepest spot in the ocean, at more than 11 kilometers or 35,000 feet (deeper than Mt. Everest is tall). A second brief visit was made by Japanese scientists in 1995 with a remotely operated vehicle, but until now the Challenger Deep and other deep trenches and ocean basins around the world have remained virtually unexplored. Soon, U.S. scientists will be able to reach and explore the Challenger Deep and many other remote areas for the first time, thanks to new underwater vehicles and other new technologies and systems that have recently become operational or are planned and under development. Panelists will discuss some of these new vehicles and technologies and what they hope to do with new deep-diving human occupied vehicles (HOVs), remotely occupied vehicles (ROVs) and autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). Some exciting results will be presented from recent research cruises utilizing some of the new systems.
Participants:
Patricia Fryer, Planetary Scientist, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology/Hawaii Institute of Geophysics and Planetology (SOEST/HIGP), University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii;
Andrew Bowen, Research Specialist, Deep Submergence Laboratory, Applied Ocean Physics and Engineering Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts;
Louis Whitcomb, Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, and Adjunct Scientist, Applied Ocean Physics and Engineering Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts;
Daniel Fornari, Chief Scientist, Deep Submergence; Senior Scientist, Geology and Geophysics Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts;
James Yoder, Director, Division of Ocean Sciences, National Science Foundation, Arlington, Virginia.

Topic: Earthquake alerting systems: From rapid hazard determination to societal response
Day: Tuesday, December 9
Time: 10:00 a.m.
Relates to Session:: S21B
Description: Earthquake early warning systems provide a critical few seconds' alert to forthcoming ground shaking. Such systems are currently operational in Taiwan, Japan, and Mexico, and research continues into developing systems for the United States and Europe. Scientists, engineers, and public policy experts from around the world will gather at Fall Meeting to present their work and compare strategies for implementing and improving the effectiveness of earthquake early warning. The press conference panel represents several disciplines engaged in this process.
Participants:
Richard M. Allen, Assistant Professor, Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin;
James Goltz, Governor's Office of Emergency Services, Pasadena, California;
Andrew Smyth, Associate Professor, Department of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, Columbia University, New York, New York;
Ta-liang Teng, Professor, Southern California Earthquake Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California.

Topic: Ancient interactions between humans and climate
Day: Tuesday, December 9
Time: 1:00 p.m.
Relates to Session: PP22D/C
Description: Interactions between humans and climate are the subject of several sessions. In ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, archaeological and paleoclimate records reveal the synchronous collapse of civilization 4,200 years ago, at the onset of a 300-year drought. An earlier abrupt global climate change, 8,200 years ago, pushed northern Mesopotamians into formerly unoccupied southern Mesopotamia, where they set the foundations for civilization with innovative, high-yield, irrigation agriculture. In his Emiliani Lecture, summarized at this press conference, William Ruddiman presents a new hypothesis that humans have been altering greenhouse gas concentrations and global climate for thousands of years (not just during the 200 years of the industrial era), by deforesting southern Eurasia and irrigating land for rice production.
Participants:
William F. Ruddiman, Professor Emeritus, Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia;
Harvey Weiss, Professor of Near Eastern Archaeology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut;
Sarah Parcak, graduate student, archeology, Cambridge University, Cambridge, United Kingdom;
Lauren Ristvet, graduate student, archeology, Cambridge University, Cambridge, United Kingdom.

Topic: Infrasound: Tracking the Space Shuttle and wild elephants
Day: Tuesday, December 9
Time: 2:00 p.m.
Relates to Session: U31B
Description: Infrasound is "subaudible" sound, or sounds that are below the hearing limit of humans. This branch of geophysics is re-emerging, due to the construction of a global network of stations for detecting low-frequency sound waves in the atmosphere. The network is intended to monitor hidden sound waves from nuclear weapons tests. But the data are also fueling basic research into natural phenomena, probing up into the atmosphere, just as the global seismic network allows us to probe down into Earth's interior. The most newsworthy event that the network has recorded was the final descent of the shuttle Columbia. Infrasound data ruled out some possible causes, including a meteor or sprite (a lightning strike from the cloud layer up into the ionosphere). Infrasound scientists are also studying bolides (exploding meteors), volcanoes, sprites, avalanches, aurorae, and earthquakes. Infrasound is used by some large animals (e.g., elephants) to communicate.
Participants:
Michael A.H. Hedlin, Chair, Laboratory for Atmospheric Acoustics, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California;
Henry E. Bass, Director, National Center for Physical Acoustics, University of Mississippi, University, Mississippi;
Milton Garces, Director, Infrasound Laboratory, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii.

Topic: Ice sheet topography and climate change: ICESat's first year
Day: Tuesday, December 9
Time: 3:00 p.m.
Relates to Session: C31A
Description: Nearing the end of ICESat's first year of scientific and technological achievements, scientists will reveal a detailed, high-resolution base map of ice sheet topography that will be used to detect climate change by ICESat (Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite) and future altimetry missions. They will also show how ICESat's cloud lidar detectors have provided new insight into the altitude and distribution of atmospheric phenomena around the world and the relevance of these new data to climate research.
Participants:
Bob E. Schutz, GLAS Science Team Leader; Center for Space Research, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas;
Jay Zwally, ICESat Project Scientist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland; James Spinhirne, GLAS Science Team Member, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland;
Waleed Abdalati, Scientist, NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C.

Topic: AEROCOM: New Insight on Human Causes of Global Warming
Day: Wednesday, December 10
Time: 9:00 a.m.
Relates to Session: A32D
Description: Aerosol particles from combustion and erosion cool the Earth-Atmosphere System to an unknown degree. The elevated presence of aerosols due to recent human activities obscures expected trends in global warming attributed to elevated levels of greenhouse gas concentrations. Model-derived estimates of the human impact on climate change have remained uncertain, mainly due to the role of aerosol and associated interactions with chemistry and clouds. To prepare the next Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, an international evaluation project named AEROCOM has been established, intended to reduce that uncertainty. Results from 10 different climate models have been collected, and a first evaluation will be presented during Fall Meeting.
Participants:
Joyce Penner, Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Space Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan;
Philippe Ciais, Laboratory of Climate and Environmental Sciences, CEA/CNRS - LSCE, Gif-sur-Yvette, France;
Stefan Kinne, Max-Planck Institute for Meteorology, Hamburg, Germany.

Topic: The Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI) Experiment
Day: Wednesday, December 10
Time: 11:00 a.m.
Relates to Session: SH41B
Description: The Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI) experiment was launched on 6 January 2003 and is now recording all-sky, white light images on each 102-minute, 840-kilometer (520-mile) orbit. SMEI views the sky around Earth using sunlight-rejecting baffles and CCD camera technology. It has observed over 50 coronal mass ejections (CMEs), including several halo events that traveled to Earth, where they were associated with major geomagnetic storms. Such CMEs appear as halos around the Sun, because they are aimed along the Sun-Earth line. SMEI also observes aurorae above the spacecraft more frequently and brighter than expected, indicating either ion transport to locations high above the spacecraft or a new process. SMEI also detected Comet NEAT and asteroid Vesta. Studies of concerning solar wind processes and other astronomical phenomena, including variable stars, the Zodiacal light, near-Earth objects, and extrasolar planetary transits are underway.
Participants:
Bernard V. Jackson, Research Physicist, Center for Astrophysics and Space Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California;
George Simnett, Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom;
Richard Radick, SMEI Principal Investigator, Space Vehicles Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory, Sacramento Peak Observatory, Sunspot, New Mexico;
David F. Webb, Research Physicist, ISR, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.

Topic: Earth's Collapsing Dipole
Day: Thursday, December 11
Time: 9:00 a.m.
Relates to Session: U42A
Description: Earth's dipole field has decreased over the last 150 years at a rate greater than if flow in the outer core were to suddenly stop. The trend has far-reaching implications, ranging from the potential for more extensive radiation damage to satellites, to the possibility that the field is heading toward reversal. Large changes in Earth's field may generate corresponding changes in the structure of the magnetosphere and ionosphere. Atmospheric changes are known to result from variations in solar activity, and thus should be expected if the dipole decrease persists. Participants:
Jeremy Bloxham, Professor of Geophysics and Chair, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts;
Charles H. Jackman, Atmospheric Scientist, Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Branch, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland;
Peter L. Olson, Professor and Morton K. Blaustein Chair, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland;
John A. Tarduno, Professor of Geophysics and Chair, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York.

Topic: New views on seismic hazards in Cascadia
Day: Thursday, December 11
Time: 10:00 a.m.
Relates to Session: S42G
Description: Important recent findings impact seismic hazard estimates in the Pacific Northwest. These findings deal with great subduction zone earthquakes along the coast, devastating crustal earthquakes near urban centers, and a totally new plate dynamic phenomenon characterized by frequent seismic tremor activity near the deeper boundary between the Juan de Fuca plate and North America. Research suggests that the next great subduction zone magnitude 9 earthquake is overdue and may come at any time. Other studies raise the seismic hazard in the Tacoma and Seattle areas, because active faults capable of magnitude 7 earthquakes are now suspected of lying beneath both cities. A new type of seismic activity has been discovered along the top of the Juan de Fuca plate, so-called episodic tremor and slip (ETS) events that happen at 50-kilometer [30-mile] depth over a two- to three-week interval. While not hazardous in themselves, they might trigger great subduction zone earthquakes. Participants:
Chris Goldfinger, Geologist, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon;
Herb Dragert, Geophysicist, Pacific GeoScience Centre, Geological Survey of Canada, Sidney, British Columbia, Canada;
Tom Brocher, Geophysicist, Co-Project Chief, Pacific Northwest Seismic Hazard Investigations, U.S. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, California.

Topic: The Stromboli and Etna eruptions of 2002-2003
Day: Thursday, December 11
Time: 11:00 a.m.
Relates to Session: V52C
Description: Stromboli and Mt. Etna – the two Italian volcanoes that are among the most active anywhere – were characterized by intense eruptive activity in 2002 and 2003. The acquisition of high quality data during these eruptions has allowed the scientific community to shed light on the internal mechanisms that affect the volcano feeder. In particular, this press conference will point out two critical aspects of the feeding system, i.e., mass and heat flux of explosive events at Stromboli and relationships between explosive and effusive activity on Mt. Etna. Both are of fundamental importance in understanding the effusive stages that characterize – with different frequencies of occurrence – these volcanoes. A new monograph will be presented, containing an overview of techniques for monitoring Mt. Etna. Participants:
Susanna Falsaperla, National Institute of Geophysics and Vulcanology, Catania Section, Catania, Italy;
Matt R. Patrick, Hawaii Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawaii at Manoa,
Honolulu, Hawaii;
Mauro Coltelli, National Institute of Geophysics and Vulcanology, Catania Section, Catania, Italy;
Sonia Calvari, National Institute of Geophysics and Vulcanology, Catania Section, Catania, Italy.

Topic: Climate Change in the Last Millennium
Day: Thursday, December 11
Time: 2:00 p.m.
Relates to Session: PP51A
Description: Human-caused climate change has to be detected against the natural background. Using the perspective of the last few centuries and millennia, the speakers will discuss the latest research involving climate reconstructions and various climate models. After global and hemispheric scale variations, particular emphasis is given to continental and regional changes. The spatially varying response (or spatial fingerprint) of the major natural forcings on climate, such as explosive volcanism and solar irradiance, can increase our ability to determine what caused past climatic change. With improved reconstructions and advanced modeling capabilities, an increasingly consistent picture and better understanding of natural climate variation is emerging. This allows for a well founded evaluation of recent warming, testing whether it is consistent with natural variation or not. The last decades of the 20th century were clearly outside the range of natural climate variation. Participants:
Drew Shindell, NASA-Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, New York;
Thomas J. Crowley, Nicholas Professor of Earth Systems Science, Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences, Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina;
Caspar Ammann, Climate and Global Dynamics Division, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colorado.

Topic: Urbanization's Impact on Climate Change
Day: Thursday, December 11
Time: 3:00 p.m.
Relates to Session: U51A
Description: It is estimated that by the year 2025, 60% of the world's population will live in cities. The urban environment can affect several aspects of the natural Earth system. This press conference will highlight some of the impacts of urbanization on climate, including temperature, rainfall, and aerosol constituents.
Participants:
Marshall Shepherd, Science Communications Manager and Research Meteorologist, NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C.;
Robert Dickinson, School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia;
Daniel Rosenfeld, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel;
Michael King, EOS Senior Project Scientist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland;
Menglin Jin, Atmospheric Scientist, University of Maryland at College Park, College Park, Maryland.

2. Attention PIOs: Sending press releases to Fall Meeting

Public Information Officers who are unable to attend Fall Meeting are encouraged to send press releases and related materials relevant to sessions at the meeting. Please address them to:

Harvey Leifert (Hold for December 5 arrival)
Renaissance Parc 55 Hotel
55 Cyril Magnin Street
San Francisco, CA 94182-2812
(Hotel phone: 415-392-8000)

Packages should be sent for delivery by Friday, December 5. Materials received later will, of course, be made available to reporters in the Press Room, but possibly after a one day delay

Topic: Designing buildings to withstand earthquakes (Field Trip)
Day: Sunday, December 7
Time: 12:45 p.m.
Venue: Meet in the street level lobby of Moscone West, 800 Howard Street (Fall Meeting site)

Important note: If you have not already signed up for the field trip and would like to participate, please send an email to hleifert@agu.org now. We need a list of participants by name and affiliation for one of the stops on the tour.

William Leith, USGS coordinator of the Advanced National Seismic System program. He will briefly discuss ANSS and advances in today's knowledge about monitoring earthquakes and earthquake safety, as well as real-time ShakeMaps.

Mehmet Celebi, a USGS specialist in earthquake engineering, will discuss instrumentation issues for earthquake safety in building design. He will highlight the buildings we will visit later: (a) Moscone Center West, (b) The New San Francisco Federal Building and related General Services Administration (GSA) projects, (c) the Court of Appeals building, (d) a success story of another base-isolated building, and (e) real-time monitoring.

A representative of Structural Design Engineers, Inc., the design engineers for the Moscone West building, will discuss some of the unique features of the new home of Fall Meeting. From an engineering point of view, Moscone West is so unique in its earthquake-safety features that there is a patent on the design.

A design engineer from Arup, the design firm for the new Federal Building under construction in San Francisco, will discuss its seismic design features.

Bela Palfavi, an engineer and GSA Seismic Program Manager, will discuss the importance of ensuring buildings are safe in the event of earthquakes and GSA-USGS cooperation in enhancing seismic instrumentation.

After the briefings, participants will tour three building sites: Moscone West itself, the new Federal Building site, and the old Federal Court of Appeals.

First, we will tour Moscone West from top to bottom, inside and out. We will begin in the top penthouse area, where the recorders and their global position system unit are located. Then we will walk down the stairs to the Howard Street side of the building to show the framing system and its design features as related to earthquake safety. We will also see some of the accelerometers, the sensors that detect any shaking of the building.

From there, we will split into two groups. One will visit the new Federal Building site, with John Nolte of GSA in charge, while the other is visiting the Federal Court of Appeals building, with Mehmet Celebi in charge. Then the groups will switch and visit the other building.

The new Federal Building is under construction and has many unique features from a seismic point of view. The design engineer for this building will point these out to us as we tour the site.

The San Francisco Federal Court of Appeals, constructed in 1905, is a historic building, which has already withstood the 1906 earthquake and all the smaller ones that have followed. We will learn about retrofitting older buildings, especially historic structures, by base-isolation. In addition, we will see seismic instruments below and above the isolators, specifically

placed to measure the effectiveness of the isolators. The tour will finish about 4:00 p.m. at Moscone West, where the Press Reception and Program will begin immediately afterward. USGS will provid a press packet for reporters with information on each of the three buildings we will visit on the tour.

For questions in advance of the field trip, please contact Catherine Punkett of USGS at 707-442-1329 or catherine_puckett@usgs.gov

4. Press reception and program

All Press registrants are invited to the December 7 wine and cheese reception in the Press Room, which will be followed by the Overview briefing on Fall Meeting, the AIP journalism award presentation, and David Montgomery's discussion of human impact on the survival of salmon. Full information in Media Advisory 2: http://www.agu.org/sci_soc/prrl/prrl0327.html#2

If you wish to attend and have not already signed up, please send an email to Harvey Leifert: hleifert@agu.org

5. NCSWA welcomes AGU press corps to its holiday dinner

(Each year, the Northern California Science Writers Association has invited Press registrants at Fall Meeting to its holiday dinner. The following announcement was provided by NCSWA. This is not an AGU event. Please note: the deadline for signing up is December 1.)

Please join members of the Northern California Science Writers Association and other Bay Area writers at NCSWA's annual holiday dinner on Thursday evening, December 11. We welcome AGU press to mingle with colleagues and hear a fascinating talk by journalist and author Michael Pollan, who teaches science writing at UC Berkeley. Pollan will discuss his provocative articles for The New York Times Magazine, Harper's, and other publications, as well as his perspectives on the state of science journalism today.

The venue is Yank Sing, one of the finest Chinese restaurants in San Francisco. We'll enjoy a sumptuous buffet of traditional deem sum and classic Chinese entrees – a $40 value that NCSWA is subsidizing to $35 for our out-of-town guests. Our evening, which includes door prizes and a book-exchange table, will run from 6 to 10 p.m. The restaurant is within easy walking distance of the Moscone Center.

We expect a full house for this affair, so please reserve your spot early – by no later than Dec. 1. Please see NCSWA's web site for details about the dinner and instructions on how to sign up:

http://www.ncswa.org/archive/dinner-meetings/12-03.html

(Please do not register for this event with AGU or make or send checks to AGU. Use the URL above to sign up directly with NCSWA.)

6. Who's coming

Following is the list of press registrants as of the date of this advisory. If you believe you have registered, but your name is not found below, please resubmit the form at the end of this advisory. Advance press registration closes on November 29.

* = Attending field trip
+ = Attending reception and program
(Press registrants may still sign up for these events. Send an email to hleifert@agu.org )

Robert Adler, Freelance +
Mario Aguilera, Scripps Institution of Oceanography *+
Andrew Alden, About.com *+
Anatta, National Center for Atmospheric Research +
Tim Appenzeller, U.S. News & World Report
James Bela, Freelance *+
Molly Bentley, BBC Radio Science Unit
Richard Black, BBC Radio Science Unit +
Brad Bohlander, Colorado State University
Andrew Bridges, Associated Press
Doug Brusa, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
Mirella Bucci, Freelance
Alan Buis, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Lynn Chandler, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Kenneth Chang, New York Times *+
Rani Chohan, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center *+
Glennda Chui, San Jose Mercury News *+
Julia Cole, NASA Langley Research Center
Robert Cowen, Christian Science Monitor *
John Cox, Freelance
Keay Davidson, San Francisco Chronicle *+
Gil Davis, Freelance
Shelley Dawicki, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution +
Lynn Elsey, Weatherwise
Douglas Fischer, Oakland Tribune +
Kim Fulton-Bennett, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute *+
Helen Gillespie, LIMS Letter
Pam Frost Gorder, Ohio State University *+
Donald Goldsmith, Freelance *+
Leslie Gordon, U.S. Geological Survey *+
Katie Greene, Freelance *+
Rob Gutro, NASA/GSFC Earth Science News Team
Jill Hammons, Scripps Institution of Oceanography +
Jim Handman, Quirks & Quarks - CBC Radio
Richard Harris, National Public Radio, +
Scott Harris, U.S. Geological Survey *+
Martha Heil, Inside Science News Service *+
Bob Henson, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Tara Hicks, SOEST - University of Hawaii
Robert Irion, ScienceNOW +
Jyllian Kemsley, Freelance *+
Dick Kerr, Science
Jonathan Knight, Nature
Geoff Koch, Stanford Report +
Dawn Levy, Stanford University *
Emilie Lorditch, Discoveries and Breakthroughs Inside Science
April Love, Library Hi-Tech News
Rick Lovett, Freelance *
Naomi Lubick, Geotimes
Dana Mackenzie, Freelance
Carolina Martinez, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory +
Betsy Mason, Nature, +
Christine McGourty, BBC News + Robin Mejia, Freelance
Debbie Meyer, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute +
Mary Miller, Exploratorium
Ryder Miller, Freelance
Bruce Molnia, Freelance
Mary Beth Murrill, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Madeleine Nash, Time *+
Nancy Neal, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Jan Null, San Jose Mercury News
Cynthia O'Carroll, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Larry O'Hanlon, Discovery News
Sid Perkins, Science News *+
David Perlman, San Francisco Chronicle
Charlie Petit, U.S. News & World Report
Philip Plait, Freelance
Horst Rademacher, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung *+
Krishna Ramanujan, NASA Earth Science News Team
Donald Robertson, Astronomy Now
Anne Rosenthal, Freelance *+
Joyce Rosenthal, Urban Magazine
Linda Rowan, Science
Ned Rozell, University of Alaska Geophysical Institute
Robert Sanders, University of California, Berkeley
Jim Scanlon, Coastal Post *+
Laurie Schmidt, NASA DAAC Alliance +
Patric Senson, Quirks & Quarks - CBC Radio
Megan Sever, Geotimes
Randy Showstack, Eos *+
Mark Shwartz, Stanford News Service +
Jesse Smith, Science
Curt Stager, North Country Public Radio
Alan Stahler, KVMR-FM
Michael Starobin, NASA Television
Bill Steigerwald, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Kathy Svitil, Discover
Diane Tennant, Virginian-Pilot
Elvia Thompson, NASA Headquarters *+
Marijke Unger, National Snow and Ice Data Center *+
John VanDecar, Nature
Ray Villard, Space Telescope Science Institute +
Dewayne Washington, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Lidia Wasowicz, United Press International
Rachel Weintraub, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center +
Krista West, Freelance
Kasey White, Joint Oceanographic Institutions
Alexandra Witze, Dallas Morning News *
Kathleen Wong, California Wild
Margie Wylie, Newhouse News Service *+
Byron Young, KVMR-FM *+

7. Press Registration Information

(This information is repeated from previous advisories.)

Press registrants receive a badge that provides access to any of the scientific sessions of the meeting, as well as to the Press Room and Briefing Room. No one will be admitted without a valid badge.

Eligibility for press registration is limited to the following persons:

* Working press employed by bona fide news media: must present a press card, business card, or letter of introduction from an editor of the publication.

* Freelance science writers: must present a current membership card from NASW, NCSWA (or other regional affiliate of NASW), CSWA, ISWA, or SEJ, or evidence of by-lined work pertaining to science intended for the general public and published in 2002 or 2003.

* Public information officers of scientific societies, educational institutions, and government agencies: must present a business card.

Note: Representatives of publishing houses, for-profit corporations, and the business side of news media must register at the main registration desk at the meeting and pay the appropriate fees.

The last day for advance press registration is November 28. You may also register onsite in Room 2021.

8. Press Registration Form

The form is set up for online submission, but includes a link to a form that can be printed out and faxed or mailed. Go to:
http://www.agu.org/sci_soc/fm03pressreg_cgi.html