For Immediate Release
Friday, October 09, 2009
Innovator of World's Only Cloud-Profiling Radar to Speak in Denver Tuesday as Part of Colorado State Engineering Series
Note to Reporters: Reporters interested in attending the lectures should contact Emily Wilmsen no later than 5 p.m. the day before each event.
FORT COLLINS - Graeme Stephens, the atmospheric science professor at Colorado State University who helped design the world’s only cloud-profiling radar in orbit, will talk about precipitation’s role in climate change on Tuesday, Oct. 13 in Denver as part of the university’s Engineering Innovation Breakfast Series.
Stephens talk, titled “How Much Change in Precipitation Do We Expect with Climate Change?,” will be at 7:30-9 a.m. at the Sheraton Denver Tech Center. The event is open to the public; cost is $20 and reservations are required by calling (970) 491-3358.
Stephens is the principal investigator on NASA CloudSat mission, which is one of the few university-led Earth science missions. CloudSat launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base near Santa Barbara, Calif., and reached its destination 438 miles above Earth in April 2006. The satellite radar gives scientists around the globe the first view ever of how much precipitation is in clouds.
Other lectures planned this fall along the Front Range (all lectures are 7:30-9 a.m.):
Oct. 28: Thomas Bradley, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, will present “From Plug-in Cars to Fuel-Cell Planes: The Future of Transportation Systems” at the Fort Collins Hilton. Bradley’s research focuses on energy systems, integrated controls and design optimization. He also works as a consultant to the automotive industry on electric vehicle development.
Nov. 2: Larry Roesner, the Harold H. Short Chair of civil and environmental engineering, will discuss his graywater and storm water research at Colorado State’s Urban Water Center at the Boulder Marriott. Roesner’s research addresses water management within the urban environment, including the development of improved methods for controlling the quantity and quality of urban runoff and the development of a pragmatic method for using household graywater for residential use.
Dec. 1: John van de Lindt, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, will discuss his Japanese earthquake shake table test, conducted earlier this summer, at the Denver Athletic Club. Van de Lindt conducted a test of the largest woodframe structure ever built on the world’s largest earthquake shake table in Miki, Japan, in July. With the support of the National Science Foundation and industry partners, van de Lindt successfully conducted testing of a six-story structure intended to withstand a major earthquake in hopes of designing taller woodframe structures in earthquake-prone areas.
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