David Schneider is a leader of Antarctic and Arctic climate research, and the main developer of the Climate Data Guide. An integrative climate scientist, he is a strong advocate for using the best available science, data, technology and communication methods to build a better future for all.


Research interests

  • Documenting and interpreting the modern climate evolution of Antarctica, its global connections and its implications for sea level and climate sensitivity.
  • Investigating the natural and human-caused drivers of climate variability and change in the polar regions, and advancing the art of using climate models to understand these changes.
  • Understanding and documenting the strengths and limitations of the observational climate data that are used to evaluate Earth System models. Such observations are also used to gauge climate risks and vulnerability, to initialize seasonal to decadal climate predictions, as input into atmospheric and oceanic reanalyses, and to place extreme weather events into context.
  • Communicating climate science: Using the best available science to inform decisions on climate risks, solutions, adaptation and resilience.


Education

Ph.D.  University of Washington
M.S.    University of Pennsylvania
B.A.     Carleton College


Publications

38. Datta, RT, J Lenaerts, A Herrington, DP Schneider, Z Yin, and D Dunmire, 2022: Evaluating the Impact of Enhanched Horizontal Resolution over the Antarctic Domain Using a Variable-Resolution Earth Systems Model, The Cryosphere, in review, Preprint (Open Access).

37. Holland, PR, GK O'Connor, TJ Bracegirdle, P Dutrieux, KA Naughten, EJ Steig, DP Schneider, and A Jenkins, 2022: Anthropogenic and internal drivers of wind variability over the Amundsen Sea, West Antarctica, The Cryosphere, accepted. Puplished paper (Open Access).

36. Schneider, D.P., JE Kay and C. Hannay, 2022: Cloud and surface albedo feedbacks reshape 21st Century warming in successive generations of an Earth System Model, Geophysical Research Letters, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL100653 (Open Access paper).

35. Phillips, AC, C Deser, J Fasullo, DP Schneider, and IR Simpson, 2020: Assessing Climate Variability and Change in Model Large Ensembles: A User's Guide to "Climate Varibaility Diagnostics Package for Large Ensembles." UCAR/NCAR https://doi.org/10.5065/H7C7-F961 (Open Access)

34. Schneider, D.P. , Kay, J.E., and Lenaerts, J., 2020: Improved clouds over Southern Ocean amplify Antarctic precipitation response to ozone depletion in an Earth system model, Climate Dynamics, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-020-05346-8.

33. Fogt, R.L., Schneider, D.P., Goergens, Chad A., Jones, Julie M., Clark, Logan N., and Garberoglio, Michael, 2019: Seasonal Antarctic pressure variability during the 20th century from spatially complete reconstructions and CAM5 simulations, Climate Dynamics, 53, 1435-1452 [Article]

32. Schneider, D.P. and Fogt, R.L., 2017: Artifacts in century-length atmospheric and coupled reanalyses over Antarctica due to historical data availability, Geophysical Research Letters Article (Open Access).

31. Fogt, R.L., C.A. Goergens, J.M. Jones, D.P. Schneider , J.P. Nicolas, D.H. Bromwich, and H.E. Dusselier, 2017: A 20th Century perspective on summer Antarctic pressure change and variability and contributions from tropical SSTs and ozone depletion, Geophysical Research Letters, doi: 10.1002/2017GL075079 (Open Access).

30. Schneider, D.P. and C. Deser, 2017: Tropically driven and externally forced patterns of Antarctic sea ice change: Reconcilling observed and modeled trends. Climate Dynamics. [Article]

29. Jones, J.M., S.T. Gille, H. Goossee, N.J. Abram, P.O. Canziani, D.J. Charman, K.R. Clem, X. Costa, C. de Lavergne, I. Eisenman, M.H. England, R.L. Fogt, L.M. Frankcombe, G.J. Marshall, V. Masson-Delmotte, A.K. Morrison, A.J. Orsi, M.N. Raphael, J.A. Renwick, D.P. Schneider, G.R. Simpkins, E.J. Steig, B. Stenni, D. Swingedouw, and T.R. Vance, 2016: Assessing recent trends in high-latitude Southern Hemisphere surface climate, Nature Climate Change, 6, 917-926. [Article]

28. Schneider, D.P. and D. Reusch, 2016: Antarctic and Southern Ocean surface temperatures in CMIP5 models in the context of the surface energy budget, Journal of Climate, 29, 1689-1716. [Article]

27. Berkelhammer, M, D.C. Noone, H.C. Steen-Larsen, M. O'Neill, A. Bailey, C. Cox, D.P. Schneider, K. Steffen, and J.W.C. White, 2016: Surface-atmosphere decoupling limits accumulation at Summit, Greenland, Science Advances, 2, e1501704. [Article]

26. Mayewski, P.A., T. Bracegirdle, I. Goodwin, D.P. Schneider, N.A.N. Bertler, S. Birkel, A. Carleton, M. H. England. J-H. Kang, A. Khan, J. Russell, J. Turner, and I. Veliconga, 2015: Potential for Southern Hemisphere Climate Surprises, J. Quaternary Science, 30, 391-395. [Article]

25. Raphael, M.N., G.J. Marshall, J. Turner, R. Fogt, D.P. Schneider, D.A. Dixon, J.S. Hosking, J. Jones, and W. Hobbs, 2015: The Amundsen Sea Low: Variability, change and impact on Antarctic climate. Bull. Am. Met. Soc., 97, 111-121. [Article]

24. Schneider, D.P., C. Deser and T. Fan, 2015: Comparing the impacts of tropical SST variability and polar stratospheric ozone loss on the Southern Ocean westerly winds. J. Climate, 28, 9350-9372 [Article]

23. Fan, T., C. Deser, and D.P. Schneider, 2014: Recent Antarctic sea ice trends in the context of Southern Ocean surface climate variations since 1950, Geophys. Res. Lett., 41, 2419-2426. [Article]

22. D.P. Schneider, C. Deser, J. Fasullo, and K. Trenberth, 2013: Climate Data Guide Spurs Discovery and Understanding, Eos Trans. AGU, 94(13), 121. [Article]

21. E.J. Steig, Q. Ding, J.W.C. White, M. Kuttel, S.B. Rupper, T.A. Neumann, P. Neff, A. Gallant, P.A. Mayewski, K. C. Taylor, G. Hoffmann, D.A. Dixon, S. Schoeneman, B. Markle, D.P. Schneider, T.J. Fudge, A.J. Schauer, R.P. Teel, B.H. Vaughan, L. Burgener, J. Williams, and E. Korotkikh, 2013: Recent climate and ice sheet changes in West Antarctica compared to the past 2000 years, Nature Geoscience, 6, 372-375. [Article]

20. D. Noone, C. Risi, A. Bailey, M. Berkelhammer, D.P. Brown, N. Buenning, S. Gregory, J. Nusbaumer, D. Schneider, J. Sykes, B. Vanderwende, J. Wong, Y. Meillier, and D. Wolfe, 2013: Determining water sources in the boundary layer from tall tower profiles of water vapor and surface water isotope ratios after a snowstorm in Colorado, Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 13, 1607-1623. [Article]

19. Okumura, Y., D.P. Schneider, C. Deser, and R. Wilson, 2012: Decadal-interdecadal climate variability over Antarctica and linkages to the tropics: Analysis of ice core, instrumental, and tropical proxy data, Journal of Climate, 25, 7421-7441. [Article]

18. Schneider, D.P., and D.C. Noone, 2012: Is a bipolar seesaw consistent with observed Antarctic climate variability and trends?, Geophysical Research Letters, 39, L06704, doi:10.1029/2011GL050826. [Article] [Editors' Highlight] [ Nature Climate Change Research Highlight ] [EOS Research Spotlight]

17. Landrum, L., M. Holland, D.P. Schneider, and M. Hunke, 2012: Antarctic sea ice climatology,variability and late 20th-Century change in CCSM4, Journal of Climate, 25, 4817-4838. [Article]

16. Schneider, D.P., Y. Okumura and C. Deser, 2012: Observed Antarctic climate variability and tropical linkages, Journal of Climate, 25, 4048-4066. [Article]

15. Schneider, D.P., C. Deser, and Y. Okumura, 2012: An assessment and interpretation of the observed warming of West Antarctica in the austral spring, Climate Dynamics 38(1), 323-347, doi:10.1007/s00382-010-0985-x. [Article] [Antarctic temperature trends]

14. Zhong, Y., G. Miller, B. Otto-Bliesner, M. Holland, D. Bailey, D.P. Schneider, and A. Geirsdottir, 2011: Centennial-scale climate change from decadally-paced explosive volcanism: A coupled sea ice-ocean mechanism, Climate Dynamics, doi:10.1007/s00382-010-0967-z. [Article]

13. Kaufman, D.S., D.P. Schneider, N.P. McKay, C.M. Ammann, R.S. Bradley, K.R. Briffa, G.H. Miller, B.L. Otto-Bliesner, J.T. Overpeck et al., 2009: Recent warming reverses long-term Arctic cooling, Science, 325, 1236-1239, doi:10.1126/science.1173983. [Article]

12. Schneider D.P., C.M. Ammann, B.L. Otto-Bliesner, and D.S. Kaufman, 2009: Climate response to large, high latitude and low-latitude volcanic eruptions in the Community Climate System Model, Journal of Geophysical Research-Atmospheres, 114, doi:10.1029/2008JD011222. [Article]

11. Steig E.J., D.P. Schneider, S.D. Rutherford, M.E. Mann, J.C. Comiso, and D.T. Shindell, 2009: Warming of the Antarctic ice sheet surface since the 1957 International Geophysical Year, Nature, 457, 459-463, doi:10.1038/nature07669. [Article]

10. Monaghan A.J., D.H. Bromwich and D.P. Schneider, 2008: Twentieth-century Antarctic air temperature and snowfall simulations by IPCC Climate models. Geophysical Research Letters, 35, L07502, doi:10.1029/2007GL032630. [Article]

9. Schneider D.P., and E.J. Steig, 2008: Ice cores record significant 1940s Antarctic warmth related to tropical climate variability, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105, 12154-12158, doi:10.1073/pnas.0803627105. [Article]

8. Schneider, D.P., and D.C. Noone, 2007: Spatial covariance of water isotope records in a global network of ice cores spanning twentieth-century climate change, Journal of Geophysical Research, 112, D18105, doi:10.1029/2007JD008652. [Article]

7. Schneider, D.P., E.J. Steig, T. van Ommen, D. Dixon, P.A. Mayewski, J. Jones, and C.A. Bitz, 2006: Antarctic temperatures over the past two centuries from ice cores, Geophysical Research Letters, 33, doi:10.1029/2006GL027057. [Article]

6. Schneider, D.P., E.J. Steig, and T. van Ommen, 2005: High-resolution ice core stable isotopic records from Antarctica: towards interannual climate reconstruction, Annals of Glaciology, 41, 63-70, doi:10.3189/172756405781813357.[Article]

5. Steig, E.J., P.A. Mayewski, D. Dixon, S. Kaspari, M. Frey, D.P. Schneider, S.A. Arcone, G.S. Hamilton, V.B. Spikes, M. Albert, D. Meese, A. Gow, C.A. Shuman, J.W.C. White, S. Sneed, J. Flaherty, and M. Wumkes 2005: High-resolution ice cores from US-ITASE (West Antarctica): development and validation of chronologies and determination of precision and accuracy, Annals of Glaciology, 41, 77-84, doi:10.3189/172756405781813311.[Article]

4. Jacobel, R., B. Welch, E.J. Steig, and D.P. Schneider, 2005: Hercules Dome, Antarctica: A Possible Site for deep ice core drilling, Journal of Geophysical Research, 110, F01015, doi10.1029/2004JF000188. [Article]

3. Schneider, D.P., E.J. Steig, and J.C. Comiso, 2004: Recent climate variability in Antarctica from satellite-derived temperature data, Journal of Climate, 17, 1569-1583, doi:10.1175/1520-0442(2004)017.2. [Article]

2. Winebrenner, D.P., E.J. Steig, and D.P. Schneider, 2004:Temporal covariation of surface and microwave brightness temperatures in Antarctica, with implications for the observation of surface temperature variability using satellite data, Annals of Glaciology, 39, 346-350, doi:10.3189/172756404781813952. [Article]

1. Schneider, D.P., and E.J. Steig, 2002: Spatial and temporal variability of Antarctic ice sheet microwave brightness temperatures, Geophysical Research Letters, 29, 25.1-25.4, doi:10.1029/2002GL015490. [Article]