US-Africa Workshop on Expanding the AfricaArray Network to Support Multidisciplinary Science in Africa

June 2-4, 2010, Howard University, Washington D.C.

Lead Convener: Andrew Nyblade, Penn State
Organizing Committee: Eric Calais, Purdue; Pat Doherty, Boston College; Jay Famiglietti, UC Irvine; Jose Fuentes, Penn State; Norm Miller, UC Berkeley; Greg Jenkins, Howard University; Everette Joseph, Howard University; Peter LaFemina, Penn State; Meghan Miller, UNAVCO; Hans-Peter Plag, University of Nevada Reno; Tim Fuller-Rowell, UC Boulder; Fred Semazzi, N.C. St. University; Anne Thompson, Penn State; Petra Tschakert, Penn State

Workshop Overview

The purpose of this 3-day workshop is to bring together U.S. scientists and program managers engaged in geoscience research in Africa and their African collaborators to examine and codify the scientific rationale for expanding the AfricaArray seismic network into a multidisciplinary science network.

The workshop will assemble participants from a range of science fields that are interested in exploring the benefits of a single instrumentation initiative addressing the science needs of several geoscience disciplines, including, but not limited to, atmospheric science (including climate), geodesy, geography, hydrology, seismology, and space weather.

Workshop Objectives:

To obtain community input on key science questions (multidisciplinary and discipline-specific) that cannot be addressed without new observations from Africa,
To determine the observational infrastructure needed to provide cross-cutting and discipline-specific data sets for addressing the science questions,
To explore the intersection and overlap between the observational infrastructure identified above and existing infrastructure within the AfricaArray network,
To investigate broader impacts, including best options for communicating and disseminating science information to government and non-government organization (NGO) decision-makers and supporting educational activities in Africa and the U.S.

Workshop Outcomes:

A science plan describing the rationale for developing a single instrumentation initiative the addresses the needs of several geoscience disciplines,
A logistics plan that outlines the observational needs for each science field and indicates how the existing AfricaArray network can be adapted to meet those needs,
A "broader impacts" plan discussing ways to support science education in Africa and the U.S. and how to effectively provide information to decision-makers in government agencies and NGOs.

Background Information

Over the past few years, as the AfricaArray seismic network has been developed, many scientists from allied fields have inquired about expanding the geographic extent of the network and adding additional sensors to the network for making a range of in-situ measurements. It is widely recognized that obtaining field observations from Africa can be challenging, and therefore to the extent that it is possible, the AfricaArray partners are interested to work with other organizations and scientists to take advantage of the established network infrastructure for obtaining new environmental observations in Africa.

As an initial step in expanding the AfricaArray seismic network, starting in July 2010 GPS receivers and automated weather stations will be added to 20 or more AfricaArray stations. Funding for this network expansion has been provided by the National Science Foundation through UNAVCO.

Agenda

Follow this link to the Agenda, updated May 21.

Registration

Participation in this workshop is open to anyone interested in the objectives of this workshop. There is no registration fee. Registration for the workshop closes May 10, 2010. Visit the Registration Page to register.

Registered Participants as of May 21, 2010

Hotel and other information

A block of hotel rooms for workshop participants has been reserved at:

Washington Hilton
1919 Connecticut Ave., NW
Washington, District of Columbia
United States 20009
Tel: 1-202-483-3000
Fax: 1-202-232-0438

Reservations have been made at this hotel for participants who are receiving travel support or have contacted Toni Mooney requesting assistance with making hotel reservations. Reservation confirmation numbers will be provided soon. If you have not yet made a hotel reservation and would like to stay at the Washington Hilton, please contact Toni Mooney (aqm3psu.edu) for assistance.

The hotel is about a 20-25 minute walk from the meeting venue at Howard University. A map and directions will be provided soon on this web site. Information about shuttles from the airports to the hotel will also be provided soon.

Workshop Venue

108 Chemistry Building, Howard University, Washington D.C. A map of the campus can be downloaded here.

Airport - Hotel Transportation

Shuttle service is provided by SuperShuttle with door-to-door shared ride vans. You can be picked up at the airport or from your hotel.

How to Get to SuperShuttle When You Land:

Washington DC Area Shuttle Service from IAD (Dulles) Airport:
Upon arrival, after collecting your luggage, proceed to the SuperShuttle ticket counters, located on the lower level just before the East and West exits. After purchasing a ticket a service representative will escort you to the loading areas at 1D and 1E. Representatives will be dressed in a blue SuperShuttle uniform. They are on site from 6:00 AM to 2:00 AM daily. Outside of these hours please call 800-258-3826 for assistance. The SuperShuttle fee is $29 per person and discounts are offered for additional passengers. The fee is $56 if you purchase a return ticket.
Washington DC Area Shuttle Service from DCA (Reagan) Airport:
Upon arrival, after collecting your luggage, proceed to the SuperShuttle ticket counters located in Terminal B and C baggage claim area located next to doors 4 and 9. Ticket counters are open daily from 6:00 AM to 1:00 AM. Guests arriving in Terminal A should proceed outside to the SuperShuttle loading area immediately outside the Terminal A door. Outside of these hours please call 800-258-3826 for assistance. The SuperShuttle fee is $14 per person and discounts are offered for additional passengers. The fee is $22 if you purchase a return ticket.

Hotel - Howard University Transportation

Walk: It is a 30-minute (brisk) walk from the hotel to 108 Chemistry Building, Howard University. A map can be downloaded here.
Van: There will be two 15-passenger vans (marked with the Penn State logo) providing transport from the hotel to the workshop venue. On June 2, the vans will leave at 7:45 am from the hotel entrance. On June 3 and 4, the vans will leave at 8 am from the hotel entrance. The vans will return to the hotel from Howard University at the end of the workshop activities each day.
Taxi: It is about a 10-minute cab ride from the hotel to Howard University. If several people share a cab, the cost should be no more than $1-2 per person.

Metro

There are two stops on the Metro near to Howard University (Shaw- Howard University; U Street-Cardozo). It is about a 10-minute walk to the meeting venue from each one. There is a Howard University shuttle that runs every 20 minutes from the Shaw-Howard Univ. Metro Station. In order to utilize this shuttle service you will need to get a shuttle pass from the Johnson Administration Bldg Rm B11. The shuttle schedule can be found at: http://www.howard.edu/parking/schedule/summer.htm.

Parking Passes

Daily parking passes are also available at the Johnson Administration Bldg Rm B11 for $4.00.

Meals

Dinner on June 2 will be provided for all participants at the Howard University Faculty Club at no cost to participants. Box lunches will be provided on June 2, 3 and 4 for all participants at no cost to participants. Mid-morning and mid-afternoon tea/coffee will be provided on June 2, 3 and 4 for all participants at no cost to participants. Participants receiving travel support will receive information about how additional meal costs and incidentals will be covered.

Travel support

Limited travel support is available.

Participants from the US: Support for US scientists to participate in this workshop has been provided by the National Science Foundation. Scientists interested in attending the workshop should complete the Support Application Form by April 16, 2010. Notification of travel support to attend the workshop will be provided by April 23. Applications from junior scientists and graduate students are strongly encouraged. Self-supporting participants are also welcome to attend the workshop.

Participants from Africa: Travel support will be provided to participants from Africa who have been notified by the workshop conveners in advance of submitting an application.

Participants from other parts of the world: Self-supported participants from all countries are welcome to attend the workshop.