“Two big problems in mountain hydrology: How much snow and how fast will it melt?”
Dr. Jeff Dozer
Distinguished Professor – Snow hydrology, Earth System Science, Remote Sensing
University of California, Santa Barbara
Tuesday, October 30, 2018; 12pm -12:50pm
Boelter Hall 5264
Abstract: The recent Decadal Survey for Earth Science and Applications by the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine prioritized scientific objectives for future spaceborne deployments. The title of my talk directly addresses one of the top four objectives for hydrology, “Quantify rates of snow accumulation, snowmelt, ice melt, and sublimation from snow and ice worldwide at scales driven by topographic variability.” Remote sensing of snow water equivalent has posed a difficult problem for four decades, so perhaps a more likely approach will be through measurement of depth and modeling of snow density. The biggest uncertainty in estimating melt rate lies in the available information on snow albedo, for which an imaging spectrometer should be the best way to characterize its variability and validate measurements with multispectral sensors.
Bio: Jeff Dozier retired from the University of California, Santa Barbara in July, after teaching there for 44 years. He founded the Bren School and served as its first dean for 6 years. His research interests continue in the fields of snow hydrology, Earth system science, remote sensing, and information systems. He now leads a research project on “Headwaters to groundwater: resources in a changing climate,” with co-investigators at five UC campuses (including Mekonnen Gebremichael at UCLA) and two national labs. Earlier, he led six climbing expeditions to the Hindu Kush range in Afghanistan, hence his interest in snow and ice in the world’s mountains. He is also a certified telemark ski instructor.