IRTG Travel Grants Programme
PhD researcher Janna Rückert joined the EGU Snow Science Winter School in Davos
I had the wonderful chance to take part in the 7th EGU Snow Science Winter School in Davos, Switzerland, from January 29th to February 4th, 2023.
Motivated lecturers from different institutes from Switzerland, Finland, France and the UK gave insights into a variety of snow-related topics. Their talks gave a great overview, covering, e.g., snow measurements as well as modelling and remote sensing, snow climate feedbacks and snow hydrology.
A big part of the school was dedicated to field work and we learned different measurement techniques ranging from traditional snow pits to state-of-the-art microcomputed tomography. Luckily, we had snow and great weather conditions in Davos: perfect for being outside in the snow all day to do measurements.
Thereby I gained a different perspective on data that I had been working with before. I now have not only a much better idea about the way such data is obtained but also about its uncertainties and limitations. One example are snow parameters derived from measurements with the SnowMicroPen instrument. I am now able to interpret existing data from the MOSAiC campaign and use that in a current study. Also, with the insights gained, both from the program and the many informal discussions with others during mealtimes, I already revised some of the parameters in my current model setup for the simulation of microwave emissions of snow on Arctic sea ice.
During the winter school, we came up with our own little research question in small teams and carried out the measurements that we planned ourselves, always with support from the lecturers. Organizing our own field work and the quick data analysis thereafter was very instructive.
The winter school was a great chance to meet other students, which I was really enjoying after a PhD time dominated by Covid restrictions and virtual meetings.
I can conclude that snow is beautiful and that I am grateful to the organizers of the winter school and the IRTG that enabled my participation!
A list of all funded travel grants can be found on the IRTG page here.
