ABSTRACT:  Annual snow cover extent (SCE) over Northern Hemisphere (NH) lands has averaged lower since the late 1980s than during the first half of the satellite era that began in the late 1960s.  This is most evident from late winter through spring, and in the past decade has been exceedingly pronounced at high latitudes in May and June.  Monthly SCE is calculated at the Rutgers Global Snow Lab from daily SCE maps produced by meteorologists at the National Ice Center.  The most recent five years have been amongst the lowest seven May NH SCEs on record, with Eurasian (Eur) SCE at a record low in 2013. North American (NA) SCE achieved a record minimum in May 2010, but of late has not been as consistently low as over Eurasia. The past seven Junes have seen record minimum SCEs over NH and Eur, with six of these the lowest over NA.  The recent early timing of arctic snowmelt appears to be occurring at an equivalent if not greater pace than the loss of summer Arctic sea ice extent.  In addition to examining SCE, this lecture will discuss associations between snow cover, atmospheric circulation patterns and other components of the climate system.

SPEAKER BIO:  Dr. David A. Robinson is a professor in the Department of Geography at Rutgers University and since 1991 has served as New Jersey’s State Climatologist.  A NJ native, he earned a bachelor’s degree in geology at Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA and a doctorate in earth sciences at Columbia University prior to arriving at Rutgers.  Dave’s research interests are in applied climate, especially related to New Jersey, and in climate dynamics and change, particularly focused on global snow cover.  He is a contributor to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, to the National Climate Assessment, and sits on the National Academy of Sciences’ Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate.  Dr. Robinson is a Fellow of the American Meteorological Society, has been named a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Environmental Hero, and is past president of the American Association of State Climatologists.  He recently received the Rutgers Presidential Public Service award and last month received the Lifetime Achievement Award of the New Jersey Association for Floodplain Management.