UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State will host a panel discussion on climate change topics related to Earth observations, Earth system modeling and policy on Wednesday, Sept. 5, in the Freeman Auditorium of the HUB-Robeson Center on the University Park campus. Panel discussion will start at 6:30 p.m. followed by a question-and-answer session. The event is free and open to the public.

Panelists include:

— Sridhar Anandakrishnan, professor of geosciences with a joint appointment in Penn State’s College of Earth and Mineral Sciences and Earth and Environmental Systems Institute. He is a glaciologist, seismologist and expert on ice sheet migration and Antarctic tectonics. His research focuses on the polar regions of the Earth including Antarctica and Greenland.

— Jenni Evans, professor of meteorology with a joint appointment in Penn State’s College of Earth and Mineral Sciences and Earth and Environmental Systems Institute. She is the director of Penn State’s Institute for CyberScience and president-elect of the American Meteorological Society. Her research focuses on climate change, numerical weather prediction, tropical meteorology, statistical meteorology and convection studies.

— Michael Mann, distinguished professor of atmospheric science with a joint appointment in Penn State’s College of Earth and Mineral Sciences and Earth and Environmental Systems Institute. He is also the director of the Penn State Earth System Science Center (ESSC). His research involves the use of theoretical models and observational data to better understand Earth's climate system. He is also a co-founder of the award-winning science website RealClimate.org.

— Warren Washington, senior scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado. He has engaged in research for more than 50 years and has given advice, testimony and lectures on global climate change. He has served as a member of the President's National Advisory Committee on Oceans and Atmosphere and has had presidential appointments under the Carter, Reagan, Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. He received his doctorate in meteorology from Penn State in 1963.

— Gregory Jenkins, professor of meteorology in Penn State’s Department of Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences, who will moderate the discussion. He also directs Penn State’s Alliance for Education, Science, Engineering and Design in Africa (AESEDA) and EnvironMentors program, which is designed to encourage underrepresented students to seek careers in STEM. His research focuses on weather, climate and air quality in West Africa.

This event is sponsored by Penn State’s Africana Research Center; Alliance for Education, Science, Engineering and Design in Africa (AESEDA); College of Earth and Mineral Sciences; and Institutes of Energy and the Environment.

For more information, please visit http://www.iee.psu.edu/climate-roundtable online.