The University of Colorado at Boulder's Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences has named Dr. Mark Serreze as the new director of the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), a national information and referral center for data regarding the Earth’s frozen regions. Serreze begins as interim director immediately; his full appointment starts August 16, 2009. He replaces Dr. Roger Barry, who retired from the post in 2008 after 31 years of service.
Serreze, a senior research scientist at NSIDC since 2005, is also a research associate professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder, and a Fellow of CU’s Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES). He studies Arctic climate, and the causes and global implications of climate change in the Arctic. Serreze is well known for his research on the declining sea ice cover in the Arctic Ocean.
Serreze has authored over 90 scientific publications, including an award-winning textbook, The Arctic Climate System, which he co-wrote with former NSIDC director Roger Barry. He has also served on numerous advisory boards and science steering committees. In 2004, he testified before the U.S. Congress on changes in Arctic sea ice cover.
As NSIDC director, Serreze plans to build on NSIDC’s current collaborations within CU, and with the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), and national funding agencies. He also plans to seek new opportunities to serve NSIDC’s scientific and public audiences. NSIDC receives most of its funding from NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Serreze said, “NSIDC will become an indispensable national asset, providing the global research community, public, and decision makers with the data and information needed to understand and prepare for the consequences of the changing cryosphere.”
NSIDC supports research into the Earth’s frozen realms by managing and distributing scientific data, creating tools for data access, supporting data users, performing scientific research, and educating the public about the cryosphere. NSIDC also makes climate data and science accessible to the public and decision makers, through efforts such as Arctic Sea Ice News and Analysis, an online scientific analysis of changing sea ice conditions.
Richard Armstrong served as interim director of NSIDC from 2008 to April 2009.
NSIDC is part of CU’s Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences.
For more information, please contact the NSIDC Press Office at +1 303.492.1497 or press@nsidc.org.