Toward a process-oriented understanding of water in the climate system
January 2025. Our topical review, inspired by the US CLIVAR Water Isotopes Working Group and Workshop, is out in Environmental Research – Climate. Read on to learn how isotopic tools have advanced our understanding of processes regulating hydroclimate, and don’t miss the companion review by Dee et al.
S2noCliME – Snow Sensitivity to Clouds in a Mountain Environment
December 2024. This winter, our group is helping conduct S2noCliME, a campaign to study cloud and precipitation processes in the Rocky Mountains. Campaign science goals include 1) understanding how large-scale water vapor transport mechanisms interact with the mountain “barrier” to influence the characteristics of snowfall and 2) evaluating the role of microphysical processes, such as riming, in modifying snowfall near the ground (which ultimately affects water resources for communities downstream). As part of the effort, we will make continuous measurements of isotope ratios in water vapor from the Storm Peak Laboratory near Steamboat Springs, Colorado.
CAESAR – Cold Air Outbreak Experiment in the Sub-Arctic Region
April 2024. In winter 2024, our group spent 6 weeks north of the Arctic circle making airborne measurements of intense oceanic surface fluxes, low-level cloud properties, and atmospheric thermodynamics and composition. This NSF NCAR video showcases what working on an Arctic airborne mission is like. Our goal was to evaluate how cold-air outbreaks influence mesoscale circulation patterns and cloudiness. Learn more about CAESAR and the data we helped collect.