GGrantIndex
← Search

WHILE THE CONGO RIVER DISCHARGE IS SECOND ONLY TO THE AMAZONOUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE BASIN HYDROLOGY CLIMATOLOGY AND BIOGEOCHEMISTRY IS LIMITED IN COMPARISON. YET JUST OVER FOUR DECADES AGOWE KNEW MORE ABOUT THE CONGO THAN THE AMAZON NOW IS THE TIME TO DEVELOP A REMOTE SENSING AND INSITU BASED INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH PROGRAM FOCUSED ON THE CONGO BASIN. A FOUNDATION OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND APPLIED SCIENCES ALREADY EXISTS WITHIN THE BASIN BUT INADEQUATE FUNDING AND THAT THIS RESEARCH IS PUBLISHED IN FRENCH LANGUAGE JOURNALS HAVE CREATED BARRIERS TO INTERACTIONS. JUST AS THE AMAZON BASIN PLAYS A CRITICAL ROLE IN SOUTH AMERICAN WATER CYCLE AND CARBON BUDGETS SO TOO DOES THE CONGO BASIN IMPACT THE ENTIRE AFRICAN CONTINENT. FOR EXAMPLE DISCHARGE RECORDS FROM THE 1970S AND 1980S IN BASINS NORTHWEST OF THE CONGO INDICATE A SHIFT TOWARD LESS RAINFALL DURING THE SMALLER FEBRUARYMAY FLOOD WAVE AS COMPARED TO THE LARGER SEPTEMBERDECEMBERFLOOD WAVE WITHIN THE CONGO BASIN THIS RAINFALLRUNOFF RELATIONSHIP IS COMPLICATED BY VARYING VEGETATION AND LITHOLOGIES. REGARDING THE APPLIED SCIENCES HUMAN LIVELIHOOD IN THE CONGO BASIN RELIES ON SUBSISTENCE FARMING AND THUS SHIFTS IN THE TROPICAL RAINBELTS THAT CAUSE THESE CHANGING PATTERNS IN RAINFALL WILL IMPACT THE GROWING SEASON WITH IMPORTANT CONSEQUENCES FOR FARMERS. INITIAL WETLAND AND RIVER STUDIES SUGGEST THAT THE 360000 KM2 CUVETTE CENTRALE SWAMP IS HYDRAULICALLY LOCATED ABOVE THE ELEVATION OF THE IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT CONGO RIVER. RADAR ALTIMETER STUDIES SHOW THAT WATER LEVEL FLUCTUATIONS IN THE SWAMP ARE ONEFIFTH THOSE OF THE MAINSTEM AND THUS RAINFALL MIGHT BE THE MAJOR WATER SUPPLY FOR THE MASSIVE WETLANDTHIS REPRESENTS A RATHER DIFFERENT HYDRAULIC VIEW THAN THE AMAZON MAINSTEM AND ITS FLOODPLAIN AND THUS A POTENTIALLY DIFFERENT ECOLOGY AND HENCE DIFFERING CARBON BALANCE FOR EXAMPLE SAMPLING FROM LOCATIONS ALONG THE MAINSTEM AND WITHIN A PORTION OF THE CUVETTE SUGGEST THAT THE CARBON EVASION FROM THE WATER INTO THE ATMOSPHERE MIGHT BE GREATER THAN THE AMAZON ON A PER UNIT AREA BASIS. REGARDING THE APPLIED SCIENCES BECAUSE HYDROELECTRIC POWER HAS BEEN INSTALLED IN A COUPLE OF PLACES WITH PLANS FOR MORE THROUGHOUT THE BASIN THE QUESTIONARISES CONCERNING THE DEGREE TO WHICH THESE INDUSTRIAL PLANTS COULD IMPACT WATERS IN THE WETLANDS. OUR AGU CONGO CHAPMAN CONFERENCE WILL ENABLE NASA PROGRAM MANAGERS TO DETERMINE THE SCIENTIFIC AND APPLICATIONS OPPORTUNITIES THAT THE CONGO REPRESENTS FOR THEM. BY LOCATING OUR CHAPMAN AT AGU HEADQUARTERS IN WASHINGTON D.C. AND BY BRINGING TOGETHER GLOBAL EXPERTS INCLUDING CONGOLESE RESEARCHERS OUR CONFERENCE IS A NEVER BEFORE OPPORTUNITY TO BE FULLY INDOCTRINATED IN UNDERSTANDING THE WORLDS SECOND LARGEST RIVER AND BASIN. TOGETHER WE WILL DESCRIBE THE FUTURE PATHWAY THAT WILL INCLUDE NASA S SATELLITE MEASUREMENTS MODELING CAPABILITIES AND APPLIED SCIENCES.

$61,212FY2020National Aeronautics and Space AdministrationNASA

Ohio State University, The, Columbus OH

Investigators

View source on USAspending →
WHILE THE CONGO RIVER DISCHARGE IS SECOND ONLY TO THE AMAZONOUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE BASIN HYDROLOGY CLIMATOLOGY AND BIOGEOCHEMISTRY IS LIMITED IN COMPARISON. YET JUST OVER FOUR DECADES AGOWE KNEW MORE ABOUT THE CONGO THAN THE AMAZON NOW IS THE TIME TO DEVELOP A REMOTE SENSING AND INSITU BASED INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH PROGRAM FOCUSED ON THE CONGO BASIN. A FOUNDATION OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND APPLIED SCIENCES ALREADY EXISTS WITHIN THE BASIN BUT INADEQUATE FUNDING AND THAT THIS RESEARCH IS PUBLISHED IN FRENCH LANGUAGE JOURNALS HAVE CREATED BARRIERS TO INTERACTIONS. JUST AS THE AMAZON BASIN PLAYS A CRITICAL ROLE IN SOUTH AMERICAN WATER CYCLE AND CARBON BUDGETS SO TOO DOES THE CONGO BASIN IMPACT THE ENTIRE AFRICAN CONTINENT. FOR EXAMPLE DISCHARGE RECORDS FROM THE 1970S AND 1980S IN BASINS NORTHWEST OF THE CONGO INDICATE A SHIFT TOWARD LESS RAINFALL DURING THE SMALLER FEBRUARYMAY FLOOD WAVE AS COMPARED TO THE LARGER SEPTEMBERDECEMBERFLOOD WAVE WITHIN THE CONGO BASIN THIS RAINFALLRUNOFF RELATIONSHIP IS COMPLICATED BY VARYING VEGETATION AND LITHOLOGIES. REGARDING THE APPLIED SCIENCES HUMAN LIVELIHOOD IN THE CONGO BASIN RELIES ON SUBSISTENCE FARMING AND THUS SHIFTS IN THE TROPICAL RAINBELTS THAT CAUSE THESE CHANGING PATTERNS IN RAINFALL WILL IMPACT THE GROWING SEASON WITH IMPORTANT CONSEQUENCES FOR FARMERS. INITIAL WETLAND AND RIVER STUDIES SUGGEST THAT THE 360000 KM2 CUVETTE CENTRALE SWAMP IS HYDRAULICALLY LOCATED ABOVE THE ELEVATION OF THE IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT CONGO RIVER. RADAR ALTIMETER STUDIES SHOW THAT WATER LEVEL FLUCTUATIONS IN THE SWAMP ARE ONEFIFTH THOSE OF THE MAINSTEM AND THUS RAINFALL MIGHT BE THE MAJOR WATER SUPPLY FOR THE MASSIVE WETLANDTHIS REPRESENTS A RATHER DIFFERENT HYDRAULIC VIEW THAN THE AMAZON MAINSTEM AND ITS FLOODPLAIN AND THUS A POTENTIALLY DIFFERENT ECOLOGY AND HENCE DIFFERING CARBON BALANCE FOR EXAMPLE SAMPLING FROM LOCATIONS ALONG THE MAINSTEM AND WITHIN A PORTION OF THE CUVETTE SUGGEST THAT THE CARBON EVASION FROM THE WATER INTO THE ATMOSPHERE MIGHT BE GREATER THAN THE AMAZON ON A PER UNIT AREA BASIS. REGARDING THE APPLIED SCIENCES BECAUSE HYDROELECTRIC POWER HAS BEEN INSTALLED IN A COUPLE OF PLACES WITH PLANS FOR MORE THROUGHOUT THE BASIN THE QUESTIONARISES CONCERNING THE DEGREE TO WHICH THESE INDUSTRIAL PLANTS COULD IMPACT WATERS IN THE WETLANDS. OUR AGU CONGO CHAPMAN CONFERENCE WILL ENABLE NASA PROGRAM MANAGERS TO DETERMINE THE SCIENTIFIC AND APPLICATIONS OPPORTUNITIES THAT THE CONGO REPRESENTS FOR THEM. BY LOCATING OUR CHAPMAN AT AGU HEADQUARTERS IN WASHINGTON D.C. AND BY BRINGING TOGETHER GLOBAL EXPERTS INCLUDING CONGOLESE RESEARCHERS OUR CONFERENCE IS A NEVER BEFORE OPPORTUNITY TO BE FULLY INDOCTRINATED IN UNDERSTANDING THE WORLDS SECOND LARGEST RIVER AND BASIN. TOGETHER WE WILL DESCRIBE THE FUTURE PATHWAY THAT WILL INCLUDE NASA S SATELLITE MEASUREMENTS MODELING CAPABILITIES AND APPLIED SCIENCES. · GrantIndex