The Mississippi River Climate and Hydrology Conference, sponsored by GEWEX Americas Prediction Project (GAPP) and the American Meteorological Society (AMS), will be held 13-17 May, 2002 at the Wyndham Hotel in New Orleans, Louisiana. This meeting will provide a review of the research findings emerging from the GEWEX Continental Scale International Project (GCIP) over the past 6 years and provide directions for future research under GAPP.

A preliminary program, registration, hotel and general information will be posted on the AMS web site and the GAPP web site. Presentations will be either oral or poster. The deadline for abstracts is 15 February, 2002. Abstracts should be submitted electronically via the on-line submission system.

The conference will cover fundamental aspects of climate and hydrology in Mississippi River Basin in the areas of observations, modeling, process studies and applications. Papers are solicited on the following topical areas, but are not limited to:

1. Water and energy budget (contact John Roads for details): including atmospheric and land data assimilation system studies that compare water and energy processes to observations, continental-scale observational studies of individual processes, and modeling studies that describe and validate water and energy processes;
2. Warm season precipitation (contact Kingtse Mo for details): including all aspects of warm season precipitation over the United States from observational and modeling issues, to theory and application including analyses of in situ and satellite data, modeling studies and the physical processes related to the summer precipitation prediction and the North American Monsoon Systems (NAMS) and precipitation prediction over the Southwest United States;
3. Predictability and prediction system (contact Jin Huang for details): including predictability studies on effects of topography, soil moisture, snow/ice and vegetation, and studies on prediction system including land surface modeling, data assimilation, regional climate models, global climate models and ensemble techniques;
4. Coupled land-atmosphere models (contact Yongkang Xue for details): focusing on studies on the effects of land cover, soil moisture, vegetation properties, CO₂ in photosynthesis, and snow on water cycle and climate, as well as studies on land-atmosphere model coupling methodologies, physical and dynamic mechanisms of land/atmosphere interactions, model inter-comparisons, uncertainties and difficulties associated with coupled modeling, and the application of satellite data to the coupling problem;
5. Climate and water resource application (contact Rick Lawford for details): including water resource applications where climate forecasts have been demonstrated to be beneficial, case studies showing the use and limitations of climate forecasts in water resource decision making, evaluations of current climate forecasts for water resource management, and research and techniques (downscaling, hydrologic modeling, etc.) for making forecasts more relevant to water resource management. Although the majority of these presentations will be examples from the Mississippi River Basin, demonstrations from other basins and countries are also welcome.

In addition the conference will feature the following special sessions:

• Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments : This research strives to integrate physical and social scientific research to address the management objectives and constraints facing decision-makers at a regional level. Papers and posters are invited for submission that describe hydrological and hydroclimatological research that has been produced in a regional integrated science and assessment context for all areas of the United States. (Contact: Harvey Hill for details).
• Observation and Analysis of Precipitation over the Americas: Papers are solicited for the session on current and future in situ and remote sensing observing systems, including gauge networks, operational radars, passive and active satellite remote sensing, including the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and Global Precipitation Measurements (GPM), and methods of combining observations from different sources into composite precipitation products (contact Phil Arkin, Eric Smith, or Wayne Higgins for details).
• Radiation, Clouds and Precipitation: The ARM Southern Great Plains (SGP) site has played a central role in the GCIP because of its continuous measurements of surface energy budget and atmospheric hydrologic properties. These data have been used for statistical analyses, process studies, and model initialization and evaluation, particularly focusing on radiation and clouds. We invite presentations relating the energy and hydrology cycles in the Mississippi River Basin, particularly those focused on data from the ARM site. Topics of interest include (but are not limited to) the effect of clouds on the radiation budget, cloud feedback on the energy cycle, diabatic heating rates (Q1 and Q2 terms), and the roles of radiative heating and latent heating in cloud formation and maintenance. (Contact: Tom Ackerman).
• Nutrient Loading in the Mississippi Basin: Causes, Effects, Solutions: High nutrient loading in the Mississippi Basin has led to a suite of problems throughout the basin and especially in the Gulf of Mexico where a seasonally severe hypoxic zone develops each year. The causes of the problem, its effects and solutions are complex. Climate change will further impact dealing with these problems. Papers are solicited that will address various aspects of this issue with an aim to a comprehensive synthesis (Contact John Day or William Mitsch for details).
• Human Dimensions/ Human Health and Climate Variability: The organizers of this session are soliciting papers related to the interaction among social, biological and physical processes regarding the use of climate information to enhance policy and decision-making.   Papers are invited on applications in various sectors including, but not limited to, adaptation strategies, agriculture, human health, water management, land use, economics, and decision analysis.  (Contact Nancy Beller-Simms or Juli Trtani for additional information).

Other activities being held include a Science Teachers� workshop (contact Rick Lawford for details). and a workshop on Hydrology for Environment, Life and Policy (HELP) (contact Jim Shuttleworth for details). Tours and public lectures are also being planned.

To submit an abstract, access the Online Abstract Submittal System. 

For general information about the conference, contact Kathy Watson, NOAA Office of Global Programs, 1100 Wayne Ave, Suite 1210, Silver Spring, MD 20910 (Tel: 301-427-2089 ext. 110; fax: 301-427-2073). For program details contact Rick Lawford  or Jin Huang.