Sciences and Exploration Directorate

Clara Orbe

(Rsch AST, Atmospheric Chemistry & Dyn)

Clara Orbe's Contact Card & Information.
Email: clara.orbe@nasa.gov
Phone: 212.678.5530
Org Code: 611
Address:
NASA/GISS
Mail Code 611
New York, NY 10025
Employer:
NASA

Brief Bio


I am a Research Physical Scientist at NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies with a joint affiliation at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO). I completed a NASA Postdoctoral Program fellowship working with Dr. Paul A. Newman in 2016 and I worked as a research scientist with the GMAO from 2016-2018. I then joined NASA as a civil servant in 2018.

I received a Bachelor of Science in Applied Mathematics from Brown University (2007) and a Ph.D in Applied Mathematics from the Department of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics at Columbia University (2013). My current research interests are oriented toward an improved understanding of large-scale atmospheric dynamics in determining the distributions of chemical and physical tracers in the atmosphere and the response of both dynamics and transport to future changes in climate. 

 

Current Projects


Development of the higher vertical resolution version of GISS ModelE and coordination of its submission to the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6) Phase 6.


Development of observationally-based constraints on transport timescales in the troposphere. This is in direct support of a NASA-funded proposal (18-ACMAP18-0024) on which I am PI.

Positions/Employment


Research Physical Scientist

NASA - Goddard Institute for Space Studies

February 2018 - Present


Adjunct Associate Professor

Department of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics, Columbia University - New York, NY

January 2021 - Present


Associate Research Scientist

Johns Hopkins University/GESTAR - NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

2016 - February 2018


Postdoctoral Fellow

NASA - Goddard Space Flight Center

July 2013 - December 2015

Education


May 2013 Ph.D., Applied Mathematics, Columbia University, New York, NY
May 2011 M.Phil. Applied Mathematics, Columbia University, New York, NY
May 2009 M.Sc. Applied Mathematics, Columbia University, New York, NY
May 2007 B.Sc., Applied Mathematics, Brown University, Providence, RI
 

Professional Service


GEOS-Chem Steering Committee (2022-present)

Nature Communications Earth and Environment, Editorial Board Member (2021-present)

AMS Middle Atmosphere Committee (2019-present)

Science Director’s Committee, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (2019-present)

Steering Committee, IGAC/SPARC Chemistry-Climate Modeling Initiative (2017-present)

Session Organizer and Chair, American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting (2015-2018)

 

Grants


Transport from the Northern Hemisphere Midlatitude Surface into the Southern Hemisphere: Constraints from Trace Gas Observations and Connections with Large-Scale Dynamics

18-ACMAP18-0024 - NASA - Awarded: 2019-03-13


Dates: 2019-03-01  - 2022-03-01

Publications


Refereed

2023. "Severe global cooling after volcanic super-eruptions? The answer hinges on unknown aerosol size." Journal of Climate [10.1175/jcli-d-23-0116.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "Atmospheric Response to a Collapse of the North Atlantic Circulation under a Mid-Range Future Climate Scenario: A Regime Shift in Northern Hemisphere Dynamics." Journal of Climate 36 (19): 6669-6693 [10.1175/jcli-d-22-0841.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "Little Change in Apparent Hydrological Sensitivity at Large CO2 Forcing." Geophysical Research Letters 50 (18): [10.1029/2023gl104954] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "Stochastic Bifurcation of the North Atlantic Circulation under a Midrange Future Climate Scenario with the NASA-GISS ModelE." Journal of Climate 36 (18): 6141-6161 [10.1175/jcli-d-22-0536.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "The Lack of a QBO‐MJO Connection in Climate Models With a Nudged Stratosphere." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 128 (17): [10.1029/2023jd038722] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "Dependence of Northern Hemisphere Tropospheric Transport on the Midlatitude Jet Under Abrupt CO2 Increase." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 128 (13): [10.1029/2022jd038454] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "Connections between upper tropospheric and lower stratospheric circulation responses to increased CO2." Journal of Climate 1--26 [https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-22-0851.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2022. "Understanding Model‐Observation Discrepancies in Satellite Retrievals of Atmospheric Temperature Using GISS ModelE." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 128 (1): [10.1029/2022jd037523] [Journal Article/Letter]

2022. "Future Climate Change under SSP Emission Scenarios with GISS‐E2.1." Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems [10.1029/2021ms002871] [Journal Article/Letter]

2022. "Asymmetric Warming/Cooling Response to CO 2 Increase/Decrease Mainly Due to Non‐Logarithmic Forcing, not Feedbacks." Geophysical Research Letters [10.1029/2021gl097133] [Journal Article/Letter]

2022. "Turbulent Heat Flux, Downward Longwave Radiation and Large-Scale Atmospheric Circulation Associated with Wintertime Barents-Kara Sea Extreme Sea Ice Loss Events." Journal of Climate 1-55 [10.1175/jcli-d-21-0387.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2022. "The future intensification of the North Atlantic winter storm track: the key role of dynamic ocean coupling." Journal of Climate 1-44 [10.1175/jcli-d-21-0407.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "Response of the Quasi‐Biennial Oscillation to Historical Volcanic Eruptions." Geophysical Research Letters 48 (20): [10.1029/2021gl095412] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "Quantifying the role of ocean coupling in Arctic amplification and sea-ice loss over the 21st century." npj Climate and Atmospheric Science 4 (1): 46 [10.1038/s41612-021-00204-8] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "Tropospheric Age-of-Air: Influence of SF6 Emissions on Recent Surface Trends and Model Biases." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 126 (19): [10.1029/2021jd035451] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "GCAP 2.0: A global 3-D chemical-transport model framework for past, present, and future climate scenarios." Geoscientific Model Development [10.5194/gmd-2021-144] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "The Brewer-Dobson circulation in CMIP6." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics [10.5194/acp-2021-206] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "Non‐Monotonic Response of the Climate System to Abrupt CO 2 Forcing." Geophysical Research Letters 48 (6): [10.1029/2020gl090861] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "Dynamical and Trace Gas Responses of the Quasi‐Biennial Oscillation to Increased CO 2." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 126 (6): [10.1029/2020jd034151] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "The MJO-QBO Relationship in a GCM with Stratospheric Nudging." Journal of Climate 1-69 [10.1175/jcli-d-20-0636.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "Summertime Transport Pathways From Different Northern Hemisphere Regions Into the Arctic." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 126 (4): [10.1029/2020jd033811] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "CMIP6 Historical Simulations (1850‐2014) with GISS‐E2.1." Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems 13 e2019MS002034 [10.1029/2019ms002034] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "GISS Model E2.2: A Climate Model Optimized for the Middle Atmosphere—2. Validation of Large‐Scale Transport and Evaluation of Climate Response." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 125 (24): [10.1029/2020jd033151] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "Dependence of Atmospheric Transport Into the Arctic on the Meridional Extent of the Hadley Cell." Geophysical Research Letters 47 (20): [10.1029/2020gl090133] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "Representation of Modes of Variability in Six U.S. Climate Models." Journal of Climate 33 (17): 7591-7617 [10.1175/jcli-d-19-0956.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "GISS‐E2.1: Configurations and Climatology." Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems 12 (8): [10.1029/2019ms002025] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "Future trends in stratosphere-to-troposphere transport in CCMI models." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 20 6883–6901 [10.5194/acp-20-6883-2020] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "GISS Model E2.2: A Climate Model Optimized for the Middle Atmosphere. Model Structure, Climatology, Variability and Climate Sensitivity." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 125 (10): e2019JD032204 [10.1029/2019jd032204] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "Mechanisms Linked to Recent Ozone Decreases in the Northern Hemisphere Lower Stratosphere." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 125 (9): [10.1029/2019jd031631] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "Description and Evaluation of the Specified-Dynamics Experiment in the Chemistry-Climate Model Initiative (CCMI)." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Discussions 3809–3840 [10.5194/acp-20-3809-2020] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "Uncertainty in the Response of Sudden Stratospheric Warmings and Stratosphere‐Troposphere Coupling to Quadrupled CO 2 Concentrations in CMIP6 Models." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 125 (6): [10.1029/2019jd032345] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "Fast Transport Pathways Into the Northern Hemisphere Upper Troposphere and Lower Stratosphere During Northern Summer." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 125 (3): [10.1029/2019jd031552] [Journal Article/Letter]

2019. "Large-scale transport into the Arctic: the roles of the midlatitude jet and the Hadley Cell." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 19 (8): 5511-5528 [10.5194/acp-19-5511-2019] [Journal Article/Letter]

2019. "Evaluating Simulations of Interhemispheric Transport: Interhemispheric Exchange Time Versus SF6 Age." Geophysical Research Letters 46 (2): 1113-1120 [10.1029/2018gl080960] [Journal Article/Letter]

2018. "The Simulation of Stratospheric Water Vapor Over the Asian Summer Monsoon in CESM1(WACCM) Models." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 123 (20): 11,377-11,391 [10.1029/2018jd028971] [Journal Article/Letter]

2018. "Spatial and temporal variability of interhemispheric transport times." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 18 (10): 7439-7452 [10.5194/acp-18-7439-2018] [Journal Article/Letter]

2018. "Large-scale tropospheric transport in the Chemistry–Climate Model Initiative (CCMI) simulations." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 18 (10): 7217-7235 [10.5194/acp-18-7217-2018] [Journal Article/Letter]

2018. "Recent decline in extratropical lower stratospheric ozone attributed to circulation changes." Geophysical Research Letters [10.1029/2018gl077406] [Journal Article/Letter]

2017. "Multi-model impacts of climate change on pollution transport from global emission source regions." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 17 (23): 14219-14237 [10.5194/acp-17-14219-2017] [Journal Article/Letter]

2017. "Large-Scale Atmospheric Transport in GEOS Replay Simulations." Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems 9 (7): 2545-2560 [10.1002/2017ms001053] [Journal Article/Letter]

2017. "The role of monsoon-like zonally asymmetric heating in interhemispheric transport." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 122 (6): 3282-3298 [10.1002/2016jd026427] [Journal Article/Letter]

2017. "Tropospheric transport differences between models using the same large-scale meteorological fields." Geophysical Research Letters 44 (2): 1068--1078 [Journal Article/Letter]

2016. "The Transit-Time Distribution from the Northern Hemisphere Midlatitude Surface." Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 73 (10): 3785-3802 [10.1175/jas-d-15-0289.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2016. "Isentropic transport and the seasonal cycle amplitude of CO2." J. Geophys. Res. Atmos. 121 (13): 8106-8124 [10.1002/2016jd025109] [Journal Article/Letter]

2015. "Air-Mass Origin in the Arctic. Part II: Response to Increases in Greenhouse Gases." J. Climate 28 (23): 9105–9120 [10.1175/jcli-d-15-0296.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2015. "Airmass Origin in the Arctic. Part I: Seasonality." J. Climate 28 (12): 4997-5014 [10.1175/jcli-d-14-00720.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2015. "Air-mass origin in the tropical lower stratosphere: The influence of Asian boundary layer air." Geophysical Research Letters 42 (10): 4240-4248 [10.1002/2015gl063937] [Journal Article/Letter]

2014. "Seasonal ventilation of the stratosphere: Robust diagnostics from one-way flux distributions." J. Geophys. Res. Atmos. 119 (1): 293-306 [10.1002/2013JD020213] [Journal Article/Letter]

2013. "Air-mass origin as a diagnostic of tropospheric transport." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 118 (3): 1459--1470 [Journal Article/Letter]

2012. "Flux distributions as robust diagnostics of stratosphere-troposphere exchange." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 117 (D1): [Journal Article/Letter]

2012. "Stratospheric mean residence time and mean age on the tropopause: Connections and implications for observational constraints." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 117 (D12): [Journal Article/Letter]

2009. "Stratospheric influence on the tropospheric circulation revealed by idealized ensemble forecasts." Geophysical Research Letters 36 (24): [Journal Article/Letter]