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Global and planetary change — An editorial
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Global and Planetary Change Planetary change characterizes the Earth system. The record from the earliest rocks to the most recent measurements from space describe a rich record of pervasive global change. An inventory of events and trends in Earth history is preserved in rocks and sediments. Historical records and modern observations depict variability on time scales of centuries to decades. Within this short time period, the role of humans in altering the global environment is becoming increasingly clear. The prospect of future global change follows from the spectrum of Earth observations and from the realization that humans are a major element in generating global change. The concern for the future of our planet adds a sense of urgency to our scientific investigation. The consequences of global change for life and societies is uncertain. The impact on vital resources, such as water, are largely unexplored. The urgency associated with understanding global change defines the major scientific issues and problems of our time. The scientific challenges associated with the prospect of a changing planet are reflected in the priorities and goals of major national and international programs including the International Geosphere-Biosphere Program (IGBP), Earth System Science (NASA), the World Climate Program, and the International Lithosphere Program. The primary goals " . . . to obtain a scientific understanding of the entire Earth System on a global scale by describing how its component parts and their in.teractions have evolved, how they function, and how they may be expected to continue to evolve on all time scales . . . " has been well stated by the Report of the NASA Earth System Sciences Committee (1987). The focused objective of IGBP " . . . to describe and understand the interactive physical, chemical, and biological processes that regulate the Earth's unique environment for life, the changes that are occurring in this system, and the manner in which
An Editorial
they are influenced by human actions . . . " underlines the scientific challenge. The need to understand future changes on our planet, and in particular to understand the consequences of human actions in the global environment, is considerable motivation to understand how the Earth system operates. The potential benefits of understanding the Earth as a system extend over a broad range of social, economic and scientific problems and endeavors. The scientific problems associated with understanding the Earth as a planet, and the critical needs of humans to understand how the Earth system operates are the impetus for Global and
Planetary Change. The traditional approaches in the study of the Earth have resulted in a considerable appreciation of the complexities of the Earth and a recognition of the importance and diversity of the interactions between the components of the Earth system. The scientific issues and problems associated with global change clearly cross traditional scientific boundaries. The objective of the journal Global and Planetary Change is to achieve an interdisciplinary view of the causes, processes and limits of variability in planetary change. The objectives naturally focus attention on the complex, interacting components of the Earth including the global hydrologic cycle, biogeochemical cycles, the physical climate system, the interplay of global tectonics and solar-driven processes, the environment for life, and the human interaction with global change. Consequently, topics will include but are not limited to, changes in the chemical composition of the oceans and atmosphere, climate change, sea level variations, human geography, global tectonics, global ecology and biogeography. An understanding of any of these components requires communication and interaction across the disciplines of the Earth Sciences and a balance between observations, process studies and models. The priorities and objectives for under-
viii standing global change and meeting the critical needs of societies represents a tremendous scientific challenge. T h e need to create communication at the interfaces of our disciplines and to foster the interactions needed to achieve this new view of the E a r t h is critical to this endeavor. Global and Planetary Change was formulated as an i m p o r t a n t step towards satisfying the need to communicate at the interfaces of the disciplines which are essential to understand an ever changing planet. This need defines the
character of the journal. T h e key criteria for manuscripts are global scope or implications for global scale problems, significance beyond a single discipline and a focus on the causes, processes and limits of planetary change. T h e intent of Global and Planetary Change is for new discoveries or progress in one discipline to foster advances or act as a catalyst to understand the earth as a system. E.J. BARRON (University Park, PA)
Global and Planetary Change Planetary change characterizes the Earth system. The record from the earliest rocks to the most recent measurements from space describe a rich record of pervasive global change. An inventory of events and trends in Earth history is preserved in rocks and sediments. Historical records and modern observations depict variability on time scales of centuries to decades. Within this short time period, the role of humans in altering the global environment is becoming increasingly clear. The prospect of future global change follows from the spectrum of Earth observations and from the realization that humans are a major element in generating global change. The concern for the future of our planet adds a sense of urgency to our scientific investigation. The consequences of global change for life and societies is uncertain. The impact on vital resources, such as water, are largely unexplored. The urgency associated with understanding global change defines the major scientific issues and problems of our time. The scientific challenges associated with the prospect of a changing planet are reflected in the priorities and goals of major national and international programs including the International Geosphere-Biosphere Program (IGBP), Earth System Science (NASA), the World Climate Program, and the International Lithosphere Program. The primary goals " . . . to obtain a scientific understanding of the entire Earth System on a global scale by describing how its component parts and their in.teractions have evolved, how they function, and how they may be expected to continue to evolve on all time scales . . . " has been well stated by the Report of the NASA Earth System Sciences Committee (1987). The focused objective of IGBP " . . . to describe and understand the interactive physical, chemical, and biological processes that regulate the Earth's unique environment for life, the changes that are occurring in this system, and the manner in which
An Editorial
they are influenced by human actions . . . " underlines the scientific challenge. The need to understand future changes on our planet, and in particular to understand the consequences of human actions in the global environment, is considerable motivation to understand how the Earth system operates. The potential benefits of understanding the Earth as a system extend over a broad range of social, economic and scientific problems and endeavors. The scientific problems associated with understanding the Earth as a planet, and the critical needs of humans to understand how the Earth system operates are the impetus for Global and
Planetary Change. The traditional approaches in the study of the Earth have resulted in a considerable appreciation of the complexities of the Earth and a recognition of the importance and diversity of the interactions between the components of the Earth system. The scientific issues and problems associated with global change clearly cross traditional scientific boundaries. The objective of the journal Global and Planetary Change is to achieve an interdisciplinary view of the causes, processes and limits of variability in planetary change. The objectives naturally focus attention on the complex, interacting components of the Earth including the global hydrologic cycle, biogeochemical cycles, the physical climate system, the interplay of global tectonics and solar-driven processes, the environment for life, and the human interaction with global change. Consequently, topics will include but are not limited to, changes in the chemical composition of the oceans and atmosphere, climate change, sea level variations, human geography, global tectonics, global ecology and biogeography. An understanding of any of these components requires communication and interaction across the disciplines of the Earth Sciences and a balance between observations, process studies and models. The priorities and objectives for under-
viii standing global change and meeting the critical needs of societies represents a tremendous scientific challenge. T h e need to create communication at the interfaces of our disciplines and to foster the interactions needed to achieve this new view of the E a r t h is critical to this endeavor. Global and Planetary Change was formulated as an i m p o r t a n t step towards satisfying the need to communicate at the interfaces of the disciplines which are essential to understand an ever changing planet. This need defines the
character of the journal. T h e key criteria for manuscripts are global scope or implications for global scale problems, significance beyond a single discipline and a focus on the causes, processes and limits of planetary change. T h e intent of Global and Planetary Change is for new discoveries or progress in one discipline to foster advances or act as a catalyst to understand the earth as a system. E.J. BARRON (University Park, PA)