Professor Christopher K.R.T. Jones — Recipient of the 2020 MPE Prize
Professor Chris Jones is the Bill Guthridge Distinguished Professor in Mathematics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Director of the Mathematics and Climate Research Network (MCRN). The 2020 MPE Prize recognizes Professor Jones for his many significant contributions to climate science and the mathematics of planet Earth.
Author Archives: Christiane Rousseau
How Inge Lehmann discovered the inner core of the Earth
Inge Lehmann was a Danish mathematician. She worked at the Danish Geodetic Institute, and she had access to the data recorded at seismic stations around the world. She discovered the inner core of the Earth in 1936, by analyzing the seismic data from large earthquakes recorded at different stations around the world. Continue reading
Posted in Geophysics
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Who ran the MPE2013 Daily Blogs during the last year?
During all of MPE2013 we could enjoy almost daily blogs, in both French and English. Now that the year 2013 is coming to an end, we can look back and ask ourselves who ran the blog? None of us had realized at the beginning what a challenge this would represent. Continue reading
Posted in General
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Why We Need Each Other to Succeed
Martin Nowak gave a public lecture at CRM on November 6. His lecture was part of the activities of the thematic semester “Biodiversity and Evolution,” which takes place this fall. Continue reading
Posted in Public Event, Social Systems
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Controlling Lightning?
Half-way between chemistry and physics, the exploration of applications of ultrafast laser pulses is a very promising research topic with many potential applications, including meteorology and climate. Continue reading
Posted in Weather, Workshop Announcement
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Where Did the Moon Come From?
You may have read Edward Belbruno’s blog on New Ways to the Moon, Origin of the Moon, and Origin of Life on Earth of October 4th. I did and was intrigued by his application of weak transfer to the origin of the Moon, so I went to his 2005 joint paper with J. Richard Gott III with the same title, published in the Astronomical Journal. Continue reading
Posted in General
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Training a New Generation of Climate Scientists
I have been involved in the organization of a one-week educational workshop Mathematics of Climate Change, Related Hazards and Risks, which took place in Centro de Investigación Matemáticas (CIMAT) in Guanajuato (Mexico) from July 29 to August 2, 2013, as … Continue reading
Posted in Workshop Report
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Drawing Conformal Maps of the Earth
It has been known since Gauss that it is not possible to draw maps of the Earth that preserve ratios of distances. Continue reading
Posted in Mathematics
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What Does Altitude Mean?
If we take a simple model of the surface of the Earth to be a sphere of radius $R$, then the altitude of a point is its distance to the center of the Earth minus $R$. But we know that the surface of the Earth is not exactly a sphere Continue reading
Posted in Geophysics, Mathematics
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Earth’s Climate at the Age of the Dinosaurs
Is it possible to compute the past climate of the Earth at the time of dinosaurs? Continue reading
Posted in Astrophysics, Mathematics, Paleoclimate
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Why do earthquakes change the speed of rotation of the Earth?
MPE2013 gives us an opportunity to learn more about our planet. There are interesting features to be explored that require simple but deep principles of physics and that can become the basis of a discussion in the classroom. Continue reading
Posted in Geophysics, Natural Disasters
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Some universality in fractal sea coasts?
Sandy coasts have a smooth profile while rocky coasts have a fractal nature. One characteristic feature of a rocky coast is that new details appear when we zoom in on it. And if we were to measure the length of the coast, the length would increase significantly when zooming in on the details. Continue reading
Posted in Geophysics, Ocean
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Why is celestial mechanics part of MPE2013?
Since the beginning of MPE2013, I have met people who were surprised when I classified celestial mechanics as a topic that would fit under Mathematics of Planet Earth. But part of celestial mechanics is concerned with planetary motion, and Earth is a planet. Continue reading
Posted in Astrophysics, General, Mathematics
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Mathematicians listen as the Earth rumbles…
“Mathematicians listen as the Earth rumbles… ” was the title of the fourth MPE Simons Lecture given by Ingrid Daubechies in Montreal on April 10. Her splendid lecture was delivered in French, but both English and French videos of the lecture will be on display soon on the Simons website. Continue reading
Posted in General, Geophysics, Imaging, Mathematics
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Workshop “Mathematics of Climate Change, Related Natural Hazards and Risks”
A workshop “Mathematics of Climate Change, Related Natural Hazards and Risks” will take place in Guanajuato, Mexico, July 29 to August 2, 2013. The application deadline for participants is April 30, 2013. Priority will be given to young researchers from Latin America and the Caribbean. Continue reading
Posted in Workshop Announcement
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The Melting of Glaciers
We hear regularly some warnings of scientists on the important rise of the sea level that will occur before the end of the century. The worst scenario usually predicts a rise of less than a meter before 2100. Where does this number come from? Continue reading
Posted in Climate Change
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What is an MPE topic?
MPE2013 continues to spread among schools, science centers and universities. Many people are enthusiastic and eager to organize MPE activities. But what is an MPE topic?
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Posted in General
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Paleoclimate Models
Mathematics allows us to explain some of Earth’s past climates. Indeed, they are linked in particular to variations of the orbit of the Earth. While the movement of the Earth is not quasi-periodic (i.e., a superposition of periodic movements), mainly … Continue reading
Posted in Climate Modeling, Paleoclimate
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March 5th: MPE Day at UNESCO
An exciting day is coming up shortly. Now that MPE2013 has been launched in North America, the next launch will take place in Europe at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris on March 5, 2013. The same day will see the … Continue reading
Posted in Conference Announcement, General, Public Event
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US Launch of MPE2013 today at JMM!
Today is the official US launch of Mathematics of Planet Earth 2013 at the Joint Mathematics Meeting, with a special celebration at the Open House of the Institutes this Wednesday at 5h30pm. It is an excellent opportunity to recall the North-American origin of MPE2013. Here, we all share the passion of mathematics. Most probably, we also share passion for nature and our planet. MPE2013 is an opportunity to put together our two passions. Continue reading
Posted in General, Public Event
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A new year is starting today!
A new year is starting today. What will happen during this year? Will it again be warmer that than the normal, as have been the last 12 years? Will extreme meteorological events threaten our crops? Can we expect dramatic hurricanes … Continue reading
Posted in General
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MPE2013 Has Been Launched!
MPE2013 is being launched today! The international launch takes place at the winter meeting of the Canadian Mathematical Society in Montreal and coincides with the Canadian launch. Continue reading
Posted in General
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The Equation of Time
Have you ever notiiced that the time when the Sun is at its highest position varies during the year? The earliest sunset is around December 10, before the winter solstice in the Northern hemisphere. Why? Continue reading
Posted in Celestial Mechanics
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Call for MPE Bloggers
A message from Hans Kaper: “We anticipate a daily blog during the entire year 2013. You may choose your date(s) and topic(s) to blog about your favorite event(s). We understand that last-minute changes are part of the action. To register, send a message to blog@mpe2013.org, with an indication of preferred dates and topics.” Continue reading
Posted in General
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