On January 29, NASA launched the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) instrument, a satellite that will collect soil moisture data to enhance climate modeling and improve lives by predicting floods and droughts.
The National Research Council (NRC) issued a report on January 23 detailing eight priorities for the next decade for ocean research and laying out the difficult financial decisions the marine science community faces.
Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Mike Crapo (R-ID) reintroduced a bill to help fund wildfire suppression operations. If enacted, the bill would allow budget overruns incurred from fighting wildfires to be paid for with money earmarked to natural disasters rather than non-fire allocated accounts or fire prevention funding.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) picked Craig McLean to be the next Assistant Administrator for the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR).
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and NASA released reports (NOAA, NASA) showing that 2014 was the warmest year on record for temperatures of both land and ocean surfaces. Japan’s Meteorological Agency confirmed that their records also show 2014 as the warmest year.
On December 16, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on the status of the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS), which will replace the current polar orbiting satellite, Suomi-National Polar-orbiting Partnership (S-NPP).
According to a statement released on December 31, China has ended export quotas they previously placed on rare earth elements (REEs) after the World Trade Organization (WTO) declared the quotas illegal in August 2014.
A bill approving Keystone XL passed out of committee, underwent the amendment process in the Senate, and was approved by the full Senate by a vote of 62-36 on January 29.