{"id":1080,"date":"2019-07-17T18:19:12","date_gmt":"2019-07-17T18:19:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wcsu.wpengine.com\/news-archives\/westconneyeshurricaneresearchprogram\/"},"modified":"2019-07-17T18:19:12","modified_gmt":"2019-07-17T18:19:12","slug":"westconneyeshurricaneresearchprogram","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/news-archives\/westconneyeshurricaneresearchprogram\/","title":{"rendered":"WestConn eyes hurricane research program"},"content":{"rendered":"
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DANBURY, CONN. <\/strong>\u2014 The number of hurricanes has doubled over the past century causing scientists to look more closely at the effects of global warming \u2014 and experts at Western Connecticut State University are now joining in that research.<\/p>\n

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This summer, Dr. Albert Owino, director of the university\u2019s Weather Center and chairman of the physics, astronomy and meteorology department, will start a Hurricane Research Program in collaboration with the Climate Studies Group of the University of the West Indies, Jamaica, to analyze large-scale circulation features over the Atlantic Ocean.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe want to understand the inter-annual variability of hurricanes \u2014 the difference between seasons one year after another,\u201d Owino said. \u201cIn El Nino years, hurricane activity is suppressed and in La Nina years it is enhanced and that is of predictive value. The state of the ocean can be predicted six months in advance, which means that we can give guidance on the climate.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Owino, who came to WestConn in 2005, worked on a similar program as a member of the Climate Studies Group at the University of West Indies. Still a member of that group, Owino said that WestConn provides the perfect environment in which to continue the collaborated research. If he secures a grant to help fund the work, Owino said he would like to open up the program as an undergraduate course in the meteorology program. There are currently two students committed to doing research on a volunteer basis.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWith or without a grant we will do the work,\u201d Owino said. The university will be installing computers and software to assist in the research. The students will begin to analyze climatology through statistical analysis techniques this summer. \u201cI will lead the research program and we hope to have publications and will modify some of the work and research already done by the Climate Studies Group.\u201d<\/p>\n

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While this information can help determine what the next season will bring as far as hurricane activity is concerned, the statistics, Owino said, don\u2019t convey cause and effect. But the <\/p>\n

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explanation of the cause and effect, or the dynamics, can help predict the future intensity of circulation. <\/p>\n

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\u201cIt is important because of the continued debate on whether global warming can have an effect on hurricane intensity and frequency,\u201d Owino said. \u201cThe general population is aware of climate change, but the decisions that we take now to curb global warming can predict what happens in the future and we can begin to look at the range of possibilities in controlling global climate.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe don\u2019t have a lot of hurricanes here in this area,\u201d Owino said, \u201cbut the effects of hurricanes go far beyond the hurricane itself.\u201d<\/p>\n

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For more information, contact Owino at (203) 837-8361.<\/p>\n

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Western Connecticut State University offers outstanding faculty in a range of quality academic programs. Our diverse university community provides students an enriching and supportive environment that takes advantage of the unique cultural offerings of Western Connecticut and New York. Our vision: To be an affordable public university with the characteristics of New England\u2019s best small private universities.
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DANBURY, CONN. \u2014 The number of hurricanes has doubled over the past century causing scientists to look more closely at the effects of global warming \u2014 and experts at Western Connecticut State University are now joining …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1080","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/news-archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1080","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/news-archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/news-archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/news-archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/news-archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1080"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/news-archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1080\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/news-archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1080"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}