NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Scientists from NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, universities and international agencies will study how winds and dust conditions from Africa influence the birth of hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean. Media can contact Rob Gutro in NASA Public Affairs at Tel. 301-286-4044 for details.

The field campaign, called NASA African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analyses 2006, runs from Aug. 15 to mid-September in the Cape Verde Islands, 350 miles off the coast of Senegal in West Africa. This mission leverages the African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analyses, an international project aimed at improving the knowledge and understanding of the West African Monsoon.

---

What is NAMMA?

The NASA African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analyses (NAMMA) campaign is a NASA-sponsored field research investigation using multiple research and observation methods to study the formation and evolution of tropical hurricanes in the eastern and central Atlantic; their impact on the U.S. east coast; the composition and structure of the Saharan Air Layer; and how aerosols may affect cloud precipitation and cyclone development.

---

Participants:

+ Ramesh Kakar, weather focus area leader, NASA headquarters, Washington

+ Jeff Halverson, hurricane scientist, Halverson Scientific Consulting, Olney, Md.

+ Gregory Jenkins, associate professor and graduate director, Howard University, Washington

+ Jason Dunion, director, NOAA Hurricane Research Division 2006 Hurricane Field Program, Miami

---

Resource Links:

+ NAMMA Field Mission

+ NAMMA Participants

+ NASA's Hurricane Resource Page

+ NOAA's participation in AMMA and NAMMA

+ Goddard's Role in NAMMA

+ NOAA's Role in NAMMA

---

Press Contacts:

NASA Contacts
NASA Headquarters - Erica Hupp 202-358-1237 (erica.hupp-1@nasa.gov)	NASA Ames - Ruth Marlaire 650-604-4709 (rmarlaire@mail.arc.nasa.gov)
NASA Goddard - Rob Gutro 301-286-4044 (robert.j.gutro@nasa.gov)	NASA Langley - Chris Rink 757-864-6786 (christopher.p.rink@nasa.gov)
NASA JPL - Alan Buis 818-354-0474 (alan.d.buis@nasa.gov)	NASA Marshall - Steve Roy 256-544-6535 (Steven.E.Roy@nasa.gov)
NOAA Contacts
National Weather Service (Headquarters) Greg Romano — 301-713-0622 ext. 110 (greg.romano@noaa.gov)	National Centers for Environmental Prediction & Climate Prediction Center Carmeyia Gillis — 301-763-8000 ext. 7163 (carmeyia.gillis@noaa.gov)
NOAA Research (Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research) Jana Goldman — 301-713-2483 ext. 181 ( jana.goldman@noaa.gov )

---

Images & Multimedia Resources:

Hurricane Research Aircraft: (+ NASA Aircraft | + NOAA Aircraft)

+ NAMMA Mission Images

+ NASA's Specific Hurricanes in History (includes images & history)

+ NASA's Hurricane Resource Reel (includes video & animation)

+ NASA Fact Sheet on Why and How NASA Studies Hurricanes

Rob Gutro
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center