CSU Water Faculty CSU WFCSU

By Department


By Expertise

Christopher A. Hiemstra, Ph.D.

Research Scientist II, Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere

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Expertise


Snow Hydrology / Glaciers

Models / Computer Data Management / GIS


Biography

After concluding a B.S. in Environmental Science (1996) from Creighton University, I began my studies at the University of Wyoming where I earned M.S. (1999) and Ph.D. (2003) degrees in botany. There, I studied snow redistribution by wind at upper treeline and its subsequent ecosystem effects. Following graduate school, I worked as a Research Associate/Scientist in Colorado State’s Department of Atmospheric Science, where I gained additional skills in atmospheric science modeling and science education. I migrated to the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere, CIRA, in 2006. I study snow-vegetation interactions and snow accumulation, redistribution, and melt in Arctic, alpine, mountain, shrubland, and grassland landscapes; I strive to integrate field studies and modeling of snow in these landscapes.

Other Research Interests

Landscape ecology; Snow-vegetation interactions

Contact

Office: 12 Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere
Office Phone: (970) 491-3647
Email: hiemstra@cira.colostate.edu
Website: http://lamar.colostate.edu/~hiemstra/