UC Lecture on Nov. 5 Explores Methane Gas Emissions A Global Warming Threat?

UC’s McMicken College of Arts and Sciences is hosting its second lecture in the “Transforming the World, Advancing Humanity” series at 3 p.m. Nov. 5 in TUC Room 220.

Amy Townsend-Small will be presenting the second lecture, titled “Are methane emissions on the rise? Climatic and anthropogenic feedbacks.” Methane is a potent greenhouse gas with a global warming potential higher than carbon dioxide. For this reason, sudden increases in methane emissions may trigger rapid climate change, such as changes in ice sheet thickness and sea level rise. Townsend-Small’s research explores whether human interactions and climate change will react with the Earth system to trigger increased methane emissions. The talk also will explore whether these changes have already been observed. 

Townsend-Small has a B.A. in environmental science and English literature from Skidmore College and a PhD in marine science from the University of Texas at Austin. She is now an assistant professor of biogeochemistry in the departments of Geology and Geography at UC. In her lecture, she will discuss her research on potential atmospheric methane sources from the Arctic, the Great Lakes and natural gas drilling. 

The McMicken lecture series will feature six speakers, and it will cover a broad variety of topics with the primary focus of advancing humanity. 

Click here for more information about the lectures.

All events in the series are free and open to the public. For more information, visit www.artsci.uc.edu