Atmospheric Science
Focusing on the Atmosphere-ocean Dynamic
Climate and Atmospheric Research at the Cape Eleuthera Institute focuses on atmosphere and ocean interactions in the tropical Atlantic Ocean. The purpose of this research branch is to introduce a physical science component to understand how the ocean works and the role of the atmosphere in oceanography and biogeochemical processes. It also incorporates the Island School’s founding question, “How do we live well in a place?” in research that aims at working for more climate resilience in The Bahamas in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Our focus is on how the increase in global mean surface temperatures will influence Bahamian ecosystems, environment, and social life.
Our Operations
- Currently, we record atmospheric conditions via our Davis Weather Station. Forecasts and current conditions can be found on Weather Underground.
- We are part of the Collaborative Community Rain, Hail and Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) in The Bahamas. We collect rain in Eleuthera to add to the large dataset.
- Our work involves improving hurricane prediction models in the North Atlantic Ocean. In collaboration with NOAA’s Atlantic Meteorological and Oceanographic Laboratory (AMOL) and the University of Miami’s Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (CIMAS), we were able to launch a sea glider in the Atlantic Ocean. The glider records sea surface temperature and salinity at different sea surface depths.
- Year round, we monitor hurricane and tropical cyclone activity to ensure the safety of our Island School Community and Eleutheran community.
Our Research
- Hurricane development and projections under worst-case climate scenario by high-resolution models and regional models
- Tropical Cyclones in The Caribbean
- Climate change perceptions in South Eleuthera
- Climate resilience model
Our collaborators include the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration’s Atlantic Oceanography & Meteorology Laboratory, the University of The Bahamas’ Climate Change Adaptation & Resilience Research Centre, and The GLOBE program (Bahamas).
The Island School Stories
We are beginning our research on climate and atmospheric science here at CEI. We have opportunities to expand our partnerships with many universities all over the world with our focus on physical climate sciences. Our aspiration is to apply this research to our work in sustainability and marine science.
