Project Team
Student
Malaz Alhirsh
Earth & Environmental Science
Brooklyn College
Mentor(s)
Department of Geography
Department of Meteorology and Atmospheric Science
Project Video
Project Abstract
The Arctic and North America are warming twice as fast as the rest of the world. Climate change is imposing severe stresses on coastal environments. Alaskan coastlines are especially vulnerable to permafrost thaw, erosion, and other changes that lead to significant damage and threats to ecosystems, infrastructure, and human safety. We evaluated future low, medium, and high temperature and precipitation RCP scenarios (Representative Concentration Pathway 4.5,6.0, and 8.5) using the downscaled IPCC fifth assessment report (AR5) for three coastal communities. We find that most of the temperature changes are in the winter months (Jan-Mar) and precipitation changes in the summer (Jun-Sep). North America and The Arctic will continue to exceed the global average in the coming century, leading to more pronounced global climate change effects.