Public Lecture: Sea Level Rise from Melting Ice Sheets, and What We Should Do About It

How are melting ice sheets causing sea level rise and what can we do about it? The ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica, along with glaciers and ice caps around the world, are melting faster than anticipated as a result of climate change caused by greenhouse gases from human activities. This rapid evolution--resulting from complex interactions between the atmosphere, the ocean, and ice--has been captured in great detail by a growing body of observational platforms that include satellites, aircraft, underwater floats, and autonomous gliders. In this talk, Dr. Eric Rignot will cover how and why the ice sheets are melting and what we can do about it. Practical solutions exist that are economically viable and ethically desirable, including transforming our energy production system and developing scalable carbon sequestration strategies. At stake is whether the world will be irreversibly committed to a multiple meter rise in sea level with potentially catastrophic consequences.

Date and Time: Wednesday, March 27, 2019 at 7:00 pm ET

Location: National Academy of Sciences Building, 2101 Constitution Ave., N.W., Washington, DC, 20418

The talk is part of Space Science Week 2019—a three-day gathering of five subcommittees of the Space Studies Board, the Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board, and the Board on Physics and Astronomy to discuss issues and advances in their fields. Inquiries may be directed to spaceweek@nas.edu.

If you can't attend in person, we encourage you to register as a webcast participant.

Eric Rignot is the Donald Bren Professor of Earth System Science, Chair of the Department of Earth System Science, School of Physical Sciences at the University of California, Irvine, and a Senior Research Scientist at Caltech’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Dr. Rignot’s research interests include glaciology, ice dynamics, ice-ocean interaction, climate change, ice/ocean numerical modeling, remote sensing, and field work. One goal of his research group is to better understand the interaction of ice and climate to yield realistic projections of the contribution of ice sheets to sea level rise. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and has received NASA Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medals, the NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal, the Louis Agassiz Division Medal of the European Geophysical Union, and the Nobel Peace Prize with co-authors of IPCC AR4 in 2007. His research has been covered by the Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, BBC, Arte, CNN, PBS/NOVA, National Geographic, Rolling Stones, and the New York Times. He has been featured in “An Inconvenient Sequel” (2018), HBO VICE News (2015), “Chasing Ice” (2012) and “Naked Science” (2004).

REMOTE PARTICIPANT INSTRUCTIONS

Watch the webcast here: https://livestream.com/NASEM/SeaLevelRise

Please send questions for the speaker to spaceweek@nas.edu.

TRANSPORTATION AND PARKING

Please be sure to bring photo ID, as you will need to show it to security in order to enter the building.

The closest Metro station is the Foggy Bottom-GWU metro stop, on the orange, silver, or blue line. Turn right when you exit the metro. Walk south down 23rd Street, NW for approximately 7 blocks. Turn left onto C Street, NW (after the State Department). Cross 22nd Street. The entrance is located at 2100 C Street.

For driving directions to the National Academy of Sciences building, visit the National Academies website. Limited parking is available in the visitors parking area of the building, accessible from the 21st St. side of the building. Parking is provided on a first-come basis, and overflow is directed to public parking garages. The public parking facilities closest to the NAS Building are Colonial Parking (20th Street, NW, between E and F Streets) and Columbia Plaza (23rd and Virginia Avenue, NW).