Indiana University Bloomington
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The principal aim of this web site is to reach out to Indiana citizens and policy makers about NASA’s significant research on Carbon Cycle Science of Indiana, the USA and the entire world, which is relatively unknown to the public. The other aim is to inform Indiana’s legislators about the potential utility of NASA’s Carbon Cycle Science and Earth Science research results in their decision making processes and in communications with their constituents on relevant climate change issues. We are a team of concerned citizens, mainly composed of scientists, policy makers and library professionals. We hope that this model of outreach to concerned citizens and local and state policy makers can be duplicated in other localities and states, and will have a significant impact on publicizing Carbon Cycle Science research and its impact on localities.

Faiz Rahman and students on carbon cycle research

Vi Simpson on the role of scientific expertise in developing public policy in Indiana

 

NASA and Ecology

NASA Terrestrial Ecology research addresses Earth's carbon cycle and ecosystems using space-based observations. The focus is on land-based ecosystems, changes in their structure and functioning, and their roles in supporting human life and maintaining planet Earth's habitability.

 

How the Carbon Cycle Works

Carbon is a natural element present in the atmosphere in different forms. The total amount of carbon in the atmosphere is the result of a balance between the amount of it released in the atmosphere by different processes (called sources) and absorbed from the atmosphere by other processes (called sinks). If the amount of carbon emitted by the sources is greater than the amount of carbon taken up by the sinks, the total amount of carbon in the atmosphere will increase. The opposite will happen if the sinks are greater than the sources.

 

Research in Indiana

There are ongoing federally funded research projects where researchers are working to understand the carbon cycle of Indiana. The AmeriFlux site in the Morgan-Monroe State Forest (MMSF) represents a highly successful example of a synergetic collaboration.

 

Research funded by NASA

Faiz Rahman
Faiz Rahman

 

 

Visit the Forest-atmosphere exchange of CO2 over a mixed hardwood ecosystem in the midwest site for more information about the FluxNet tower.

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Indiana Carbon Impact

 

See each Indiana Senate and House district's carbon impact in terms of carbon emissions and carbon uptake.


Contact

Indiana Carbon Cycle Projects

MSB II 314

1101 E 10th Street, Bloomington, IN 47405

Map showing this location

812-855-5760

farahman@indiana.edu