Research Interests & Background
Professor Overpeck (“Peck”) is a climate scientist who has written over 200 papers on climate and the environmental sciences, served as a Coordinating Lead Author for the Nobel Prize winning IPCC 4th Assessment (2007), and also as a Lead Author for the IPCC 5th Assessment (2014). Other awards include the US Dept. of Commerce Gold Medal, a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Walter Orr Roberts award of the American Meteorological Society, and the Quivira Coalition’s Radical Center Award for his work with rural ranchers and land managers. Peck has active climate research programs on five continents, loves trying to understand drought and megadrought dynamics (and risk) the world over. He has appeared and testified before Congress multiple times, is a Fellow of the AAAS and AGU, and tweets about climate-related issues (@GreatLakesPeck).
Selected Colorado River Publications & Presentations
Publications
Overpeck, J.T. and B. Udall (2020). Climate change and the aridification of North America. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 117 (22), 11856-11858.169.
Udall, B., and J. Overpeck. 2017. “The 21st Century Colorado River Hot Drought and Implications for the Future.” (Accepted Article.) Water Resources Research. February 17. 10.1002/2016WR019638,
Ault, T.R., J. E. Cole, J.T. Overpeck, G.T. Pederson, and D.M. Meko. 2014. Assessing the Risk of Persistent Drought Using Climate Model Simulations and Paleoclimate Data. Journal of Climate 27:7529-7549, October. DOI: 10.1175/JCLI-D-12-00282.1.
Vano, J.A., B. Udall, D.R. Cayan, J.T. Overpeck, L.D. Brekke, T. Das, H.C. Hartmann, H. G. Hidalgo, M. Hoerling, G.J. McCabe, K. Morino, R.S. Webb, K. Werner, and D.P. Lettenmaier. 2013. Understanding Uncertainties in Future Colorado River Streamflow. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 95, 59-78, 10.1175/BAMS-D-12-0228.1.
Overpeck, J.T. 2013. The challenge of hot drought. Nature 503: 350-351.
Routson, C.C., C.A. Woodhouse, and J.T. Overpeck. 2011. Second century megadrought in the Rio Grande headwaters, Colorado: How unusual was medieval drought? Geophysical Research Letters 38: L22703, 10.1029/2011GL050015.
Presentations
“The “Full Suite” of Assumptions” at the 40th Annual Summer Water Conference of the Getches-Wilkinson Center (Charting a Better Course for the Colorado River: Identifying the Data and Concepts to Shape the Interim Guidelines Renegotiation). Boulder, CO; June 6, 2019.
“Drought, Water Security, and Ecosystem Disruption – the Southwest Climate Challenge” at the New Mexico State University Climate Change Education Seminar Series. Las Cruces, NM; March 6, 2019.
“Climate Science and the Need for Action” at the Michigan Climate Action Summit. Grand Rapids, MI; February 21, 2019.
“New perspectives on future climate change risk and ecosystem change” at the University of New Mexico Department of Biology’s annual Research Day (keynote lecture). Albuquerque, NM; March 31, 2017.
“Changing Knowledge and Science – Climate Change, Water and the West” at the Wallace Stegner Center 22nd Annual Symposium – Water in the West: Exploring Untapped Solutions. Salt Lake City, UT; March 23, 2017.
“New perspectives on future climate change risk and ecosystem change” at the University of New Mexico Department of Biology’s annual Research Day (keynote lecture). Albuquerque, NM; March 31, 2017.
“Changing Knowledge and Science – Climate Change, Water and the West” at the Wallace Stegner Center 22nd Annual Symposium – Water in the West: Exploring Untapped Solutions. Salt Lake City, UT; March 23, 2017.
“Increasing Megadrought Risk at the Intersection of Decadal to Centennial Variability and Climate Change” at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union. San Francisco, CA; December 14, 2016.
“Use-inspired Paleoenvironmental Science and Data: A Deep Whole-Earth Time Dimension” at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union. San Francisco, CA; December 13, 2016.
“The Colorado River, Climate Change and Drought.” Restoring the West conference. Utah State University, Logan, UT; October 19, 2016.
“Understanding future hydroclimatic risk in the Southwest.” Plenary talk and Panel, Arizona Hydrological Society Annual Meeting, September 16, 2016, Tucson AZ; September 16, 2016.
“Changing Climate in a Changing Future: Impact on Our Water Resources” Law and the Colorado River: Cooperation in the Face of Shortage. CLE International. Las Vegas, NV. February 4, 2016.
Presenter at the Colorado River Symposium of the Water Education Foundation, . September 17-18, 2015.