Specialties

Recent Highlights and Upcoming Expeditions

Current Research

Current Projects

Activities

Publications

Related Resources

Research Scientist II

PhD, University of Colorado at Boulder, 1998

Specialties [top]

Remote sensing of sea ice; impact of sea ice on climate; operational sea ice analysis; assimilation of sea ice data into models

Recent Highlights and Upcoming Expeditions [top]

• October 2007: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was named to receive the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, along with former Vice President Al Gore. Meier contributed to the most recent IPCC report, Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis.
• September 2007: Reported on 2007 record Arctic sea ice loss and its global significance: collaborated on an analysis of the factors contributing to the extreme ice losses in 2007 with M. Serreze, J. Maslanik, M. Holland, J. Stroeve, and T. Scambos
• February 2007: Meier contributed to the IPCC report, Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis.
• October 2006: Reported on 2006 Arctic sea ice minimum and its global warming significance; collaborated on an analysis of the predicted and observed sea ice decline rates with J. Stroeve, M. Serreze, M. Holland, and T. Scambos.
• January 2006: Gave presentation with Julienne Stroeve to discuss the decline of arctic sea ice at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science
• Summer 2006: Began collaboration with arctic explorers to validate satellite data
• 2006: Consulted for NASA Scientific Visualization Studio production, "A Tour of the Cryosphere"
• 2005: Published several articles on shrinking arctic sea ice
• Contributed to the development of the NSIDC All About Sea Ice Web site

Current Research [top]

• Researching potential of AMSR-E imagery to derive high-resolution sea ice motions and detect small-scale dynamic processes
• Studying impact of earlier melt onset on the Arctic summer sea ice cover and correlation with minimum sea ice extent
• Collaborating with UCAR visiting scientist Mingrui Dai to improve a simple sea ice forecast model that assimilates observed data to improve predictions

Current Projects [top]

Bridging Perspectives from Remote Sensing and Inuit Communities on Changing Sea Ice Cover in the Baffin Bay Region

Kalman Filter Techniques for the Assimilation of Ice Concentration Data into an Ice Prediction Model

Potential Improved Sea Ice Analyses and Forecasts via Assimilation of Sea Ice Motions

Activities [top]

Member, American Geophysical Union

Member, American Association for the Advancement of Science

Member, Alliance for Marine Remote Sensing

Peer reviewer for the Journal of Geophysical Research (Oceans), Journal of Physical Oceanography, Journal of Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, Continental Shelf Research, Atmosphere-Ocean, Remote Sensing of the Environment, and Geophysical Research Letters.

Publications [top]

2007

Meier, W. N., et al. 2007. Chapter 4: Sea ice. In Integrated Global Observing Strategy Cryosphere Theme Report - For the Monitoring of our Environment from Space and from Earth. WMO/TD-No. 1405. Geneva: World Meteorological Organization.

Stroeve, J., M. M. Holland, W. Meier, T. Scambos, and M. Serreze. 2007. Arctic sea ice decline: Faster than forecast. Geophysical Research Letters 34, L09501, doi:10.1029/2007GL029703.

2006

Dai, M., T. E. Arbetter, and W. N. Meier. 2006. Data assimilation of sea-ice motion vectors: sensitivity to the parameterization of sea-ice strength. Annals of Glaciology 44(1): 357-360.

Meier, W. N., and M. Dai. 2006. High-resolution sea-ice motions from AMSR-E imagery. Annals of Glaciology 44(1): 352-356.

Meier, W. N., J. Stroeve, and S. Gearheard. 2006. Bridging perspectives from remote sensing and Inuit communities on changing sea ice cover in the Baffin Bay region. Annals of Glaciology 44(1): 433-438.

Stroeve, J., T. Markus, W. N. Meier, and J. Miller. 2006. Recent changes in the Arctic melt season. Annals of Glaciology 44(1): 367-374.

2005

Meier, W. M. 2005. Comparison of passive microwave ice concentration algorithm retrievals with AVHRR imagery in Arctic peripheral seas. IEEE Transactions in Geoscience and Remote Sensing 43(6): 1324-1337.

Meier, W., J. Stroeve, F. Fetterer, K. Knowles. 2005. Reductions in Arctic sea ice cover no longer limited to summer. Eos, Transactions of the American Geophysical Union 86(36): 326, doi:10.1029/2005EO360003.

Stroeve, J. C., M. C. Serreze, F. Fetterer, T. Arbetter, W. N. Meier, J. Maslanik, and K. Knowles. 2005. Tracking the Arctic's shrinking ice cover: Another extreme minimum in 2004. Geophysical Research Letters 32, doi: 10.1029/2004GL021810.

2004

Meier, W. N., M. Marquis, M. Kaminski, and R. Weaver. 2004. NASA EOS sensors demonstrate potential for multiparameter studies of Arctic sea ice. Eos, Transactions of the American Geophysical Union 85(46): 481, 488-489.

Van Woert, M. L., C. Z. Zou, W. N. Meier, and P. D. Hovey. 2004. Verification of the "Polar Ice Prediction System" sea ice concentration fields. Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology 21(6): 944-957.

2003

Arbetter, T. E., A. H. Lynch, J. A. Maslanik, and W. N. Meier. 2003. Effects of data assimilation of ice motion in a basin-scale sea ice model. In Ice in the environment: Proceedings of the International Association for Hydraulic Engineering and Research, vol. 3, 186-193.

Meier, W. N., T. Maksym, and M. Van Woert. 2003. Evaluation of operational microwave products: A case-study in the Barents Sea during October 2001. In Ice in the environment: Proceedings of the International Association for Hydraulic Engineering and Research, vol. 3, 213-222.

Meier, W. N., and J. A. Maslanik. 2003. Effect of environmental conditions on observed, modeled, and assimilated sea ice motion errors. Journal of Geophysical Research 108(C5), doi: 10.1029/2002JC001333.

2002

Van Woert M., C. Z. Zou, W. N. Meier, P. Hovey, and M. Chase. 2002. 24-hour forecast validation of the Polar Ice Prediction System. In Ice in the environment: Proceedings of the International Association for Hydraulic Engineering and Research, vol. 2, 445-452.

Related Resources [top]

Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES)
All About Sea Ice

Contact NSIDC User Services for more information.