Atmospheric Scientist Specializing in Snow Research
From
Aurora, Colorado
MSU Denver
BS Meteorology
the university of queensland
PhD Atmospheric Science
I am the Lead Scientist and Station Manager of the University of California, Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Laboratory. My research focuses on developing a better understanding of snowfall and snowpack physical processes, the impact of climate change on those processes, and the development of new measurement methods and instrumentation. Particular focuses of my research are the impacts of wildfire and rain-on-snow events on snowpack and water storage.
I have enjoyed teaching a wide range of courses on meteorology, climatology, hydrology, and broader global environmental change.
I am a proponent and active participant in science communication and I believe that sharing research and science with the broader community is beneficial to all those involved and results in better science-informed policy.
Recent Publications
2022
Heggli, A., Hatchett, B., Schwartz, A.J., Bardsley, T., & Hand, E., 2022. Towards Snowpack Runoff Decision Support. iScience, 104240.
2021
McGowan, H., Borthwick, K., Schwartz, A.J., Callow, J.N., Bilish, S. and Browning, S., 2021. Atmospheric rivers: An overlooked threat to the marginal snowpack of the Australian alps. Journal of Hydrometeorology, 22(10), pp.2521-2532.
Schwartz, A.J., McGowan, H. and Callow, N., 2021. Snowpack thermal patterns in pre-and post-bushfire Snow Gum forests. Journal of Hydrology, 602, p.126789.
Schwartz, A.J., McGowan, H. and Callow, N., 2021. Influence of bushfire on accumulation and ablation of a marginal montane snowpack in Snow Gum forests. Journal of Hydrology, 603, p.126795.
2020
Landolt, S.D., Gaydos, A., Porter, D., DiVito, S., Jacobson, D., Schwartz, A.J., Thompson, G. and Lave, J., 2020. Inferring the Presence of Freezing Drizzle Using Archived Data from the Automated Surface Observing System (ASOS). Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology, 37(12), pp.2239-2250.
Schwartz, A.J., McGowan, H. and Callow, N., 2020. Impact of fire on montane snowpack energy balance in Snow Gum forest stands. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 294: 108164.
Schwartz, A.J., McGowan, H.A., Theobald, A. and Callow, N., 2020. Quantifying the impact of synoptic weather types and patterns on energy fluxes of a marginal snowpack. The Cryosphere, 14(8): 2755-2774.
2018
Landolt S, Rasmussen R, Hills A, Underwood W, Knight C, Jachcik A, Schwartz A.J., 2018. The NCAR-FAA Snow Machine: An Artificial Snow-Generation System. Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology. https://doi.org/10.1175/JTECH-D-18-0006.1.
More about me
First job
Cashier at a garden center
Hobbies
Mountain biking, Hiking, Homebrewing
favorite food
Tacos
I grew up near Denver, Colorado fascinated by severe weather and the large snowstorms that came from upslope wind events. I became particularly interested in snow and winter weather while snowboarding in the Colorado Rockies and interested in the impacts of climate change on snow during my PhD research in Australia’s Snowy Mountains.
I love being out in the elements as it gives me a real connection with nature and the raw power of the the world. Snowshoeing, snowboarding, and snowmobiling are all big winter hobbies of mine that I love. I am also a huge fan of severe convective weather, am a regular storm chaser, and have captured some great tornado photos. I have chased storms in North America and Australia.