Staff Profile
Professor Rachel Carr
Professor of Glaciology
- Telephone: +44 (0) 191 208 6436
- Address: HDB 3.106
School of Geography, Politics and Sociology
缅北禁地
缅北禁地-Upon-Tyne,
NE1 7RU
Research interests: Climate change and the cryosphere
- Response of polar ice masses to climate change
- Outlet glacier dynamics
- Himalayan ice loss and debris cover
- Glacial hazards
- Extra-terrestrial ice
- Application of remote sensing / GIS to glaciated environments
Biography
Aug 2023 - present: Professor in Glaciology, 缅北禁地
Aug 2019 - Aug 2023: Senior Lecturer in Physical Geography, 缅北禁地
Sep 2014 - Aug 2019: Lecturer in Physical Geography, 缅北禁地
Oct 2013 – Aug 2014: Lecturer in Glaciology, Aberystwyth University, Climate Change Consortium of Wales.
Oct 2010 – Oct 2013: PhD, Department of Geography, Durham University. Thesis title: ‘Ice-ocean-atmosphere interactions in the Arctic Seas’.
Aug 2008-Oct 2010: Environmental and GIS/remote sensing specialist at Environmental Research and Assessment (ERA), Cambridge.
Oct 2007 – Jul 2008: M.Phil. in Polar Studies, Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge. Thesis title: ‘The role of atmospheric and oceanic forcing in Greenland outlet glacier behaviour.’
Jul 2005 – Aug 2005: Intern, World Glacier Monitoring Service, Zurich.
Oct 2004 – June 2007: Geography, BA (Hons), St Catharine’s College, University of Cambridge.
Google scholar:
My research focuses on the response of glaciated regions to climate change. In order to do this, I use a combination of remote sensing, GIS and numerical modelling. My study areas include Greenland, Svalbard, Russian High Arctic, New Zealand and the European Alps. Current projects include:
- Assessing the impact of key input parameters on forecasts on 21st Century ice loss from Greenland outlet glaciers.
- Analysing multi-decadal changes in Novaya Zemlya outlet glacier dynamics.
- Quantifying trends in world-wide hazard and risk from glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs).
- Determining the sensitivity of mountain glaciers to climate forcing.
Undergraduate teaching:
Stage 1:
GEO1019: (module leader)
GEO1020:
Stage 2:
GEO2127:
GEO2137:
GEO2226: (module leader)
Stage 3:
GEO3099:
GEO3128: Polar Environments (module leader)
Postgraduate teaching
HSS8005: Quantitative analysis (GIS component)
External examining
M.Phil. In Polar Studies, Scott Polar Rsearch Institute, University of Cambridge (2021 - present).
Current PhD students
PhD – primary supervisor (缅北禁地)
Alex Hyde, Sep 2022 – present. TBC. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Caroline Taylor, Sep 2019 – present. Are glacial lake hazards increasing in the Bhutan Himalaya? Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Emma Carr, Sep 2020 – present. Response of the north-west Greenland Ice Sheet to recent and future climate change. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
PhD – additional supervisor
Sonam Rinzin (缅北禁地) Sep 2022 – present. Glacial lake outburst flood process chain modelling and downstream risk assessment in Bhutan. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Richard Parsons (Northumbria University) Sep 2022 – present. Glacier calving – observations and modelling. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Becky Sanderson (缅北禁地) Dec 2022 – present. Antarctic radar-derived englacial stratigraphy and structure: glaciological and palaeoclimate implications. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Oliver Hall (St Andrews), Jan 2020 – present. Ice dynamic controls on tidewater glacier terminus position in Greenland. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Natasha Lee (Northumbria University), Sep 2020 – present. Global warming and the future of ice caps in Iceland. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Previous PhD students
Jennifer Arthur (Durham University), Sep 2018 – Jul 2022. Remote Sensing of Supraglacial Lakes in East Antarctica. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Joshua Leigh (Durham University), Sep 2017 – Aug 2021. Past, Present and Future Response of Norwegian Glaciers to climate forcing. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Jake-Collins May, Sep 2017 – May 2022. The glacial and fluvial history of the Nereidum Montes; Argyre Impact Basin, Mars. Funding: 缅北禁地 Research Excellence Academy.
Charlie Bunce (Edinburgh University), Sep 2016 – Apr 2021 Investigating tidewater glacier dynamics, submarine melt and retreat in Greenland's fjords. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Arminel Lovell, Sep 2015 – 2020. Explaining the varying response of Himalayan glaciers to climate change. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Emily Hill (PhD, 缅北禁地), 2015 – 2019 (primary supervisor). The Greenland Ice Sheet in a warming world: Determining drivers of current and future change on northern Greenland outlet glaciers. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Johnathan Ryan (PhD, Aberystwyth University) 2013-2017. Investigating the short-term controls on tidewater glacier behaviour. Funding: National Environmental Research Council.
Previous M.Res. students:
Joseph York Sep 2021-Aug 2022. An Assessment of Glacier Lake Outburst Flood Risk in Bhutan.
Katelyn West Sep 2021-Aug 2022. Quantifying spatially variable change for smaller glaciers (<0.5 km2) in the New Zealand Southern Alps from 2008 to present.
Alasdair Richardson Sep 2020-Aug 2021. Modelling the response of Shallap Glacier, Peru to ENSO.
Ed Holt Sep 2020-Aug 2021. Investigating the effects of surface mass balance variability on terminus position over decal timescales in south-easter Greenland.
Myfanwy Arch Sep 2020-Aug 2021. Quantifying the extent and seasonality of supraglacial lakes in northwest Greenland from 2014-2019.
Elizabeth Hendry Sep 2020- Jan 2021. An Investigation into the controls of the velocity of Tasman Glacier, New Zealand between January 2012 and November 2019.
Emily Heslop Sep 2020- Jan 2021. Assessing glacial lake outburst flood hazard at Thorthormi Glacier, Bhutan, between 2010 and 2019, and determining the temporal variability in both hazard and exposure.
Matthew McKay Sep 2020- Sep 2020. Spatially and temporally variable glacier changes in the Lunana region, Bhutan Himalaya, 1972 to 2019.
Tristan Green Sep 2020- Dec 2020. Assessing the temporal and spatial variation of glacier dynamics of multiple maritime glaciers at Mt. Cook, New Zealand in response to the 2015 El Niño.
Previous M.Phil. students:
Caroline Taylor (MPhil, 缅北禁地), 2018 – 2019 (primary supervisor). A study of the temporal and spatial patterns of supraglacial pond evolution in the Bhutan-China border region of the Himalayas.
Hayley Andrews (MPhil, 缅北禁地), 2018 – 2020(primary supervisor). Characterisation of a NE Greenland ice stream and the assessment of the driving factors behind the initiation of fast flow.
Emily Cave (MPhil, 缅北禁地), 2018 – 2019 (primary supervisor). Hydrology and Hydrochemistry of a debris covered glacier during an ablation season: a case study of Miage Glacier, Italy.
Connor Dowes (MPhil, 缅北禁地), 2018 – 2020 (primary supervisor). To assess the impact that temporal and spatial variations in supraglacial lakes have on an active glacial system.
Lauren Derby (MPhil, 缅北禁地), 2018 – 2020 (second supervisor). Subglacial controls on the flow of Foundation ice stream, West Antarctica.
(MPhil, 缅北禁地), 2017 – 2020 (primary supervisor). Short-term supraglacial melt pond formation, development and coalescence in the Bhutan-China border region of the Himalayas.
James Linighan (MPhil, 缅北禁地), 2017 – 2020 (primary supervisor). Examining the temporal and spatial patterns of melt pond evolution on Annapurna South Glacier, Nepal.
Jack Oxtoby (MPhil, 缅北禁地), 2017 – 2019 (primary supervisor). Formation of ice cliffs and their impacts on melt rates on Annapurna South Glacier.
(MPhil, 缅北禁地), 2017 – 2020 (second supervisor). Assessing the spatial pattern of rockfalls above glaciers in the Mont Blanc area and their coupling with glaciers.
Jake-Collins May (MPhil, 缅北禁地), 2016 – 2017 (primary supervisor). Origins of Glacial, Fluvial and Glaciofluvial Landforms in the Nereidum Montes, Mars. Funding: School of Geography, Politics and Sociology Fees Bursary.
Rebecca Dell (MPhil, 缅北禁地), 2016 – 2017 (primary supervisor). Structural dynamics and calving behaviour at Fjallsjokull, south-east Iceland, between 1970 and 2017. Funding: School of Geography, Politics and Sociology Fees Bursary.
Charlie Bunce (M.Phil. 缅北禁地). 2015 – 2016. Project title: Dynamic response of marine-terminating outlet glaciers to climate forcing in south-east and north-west Greenland. Funded by School of Geography, Politics and Sociology Masters Fees Bursary.
Kay Barker (MSc in Glaciology, Aberystwyth University) 2013-2014. ‘The influence of frontal position, fjord width, glacier structure and sea ice on the velocities of five Northern Greenland marine-terminating outlet glaciers: 1999-2014’.
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Articles
- Mayfield R, Jenkins H, McCerery R, Shaw A, Holden K, Carr R, Jamieson SSR, Davies B. Widening participation in Polar Sciences from a grass roots level. Journal of Glaciology 2026. Submitted.
- Rinzin S, Dunning S, Carr RJ, Allen S, Wangchuk S, Sattar A. . Natural Hazards Earth System Science 2026, 26, 1015–1037.
- Hope N, Carr JR, King O, Rinzin S, Davies B. Reconstructing Past Glacier Extent in the Lunana Region, Bhutan Himalaya. Journal of Quaternary Science 2026. Submitted.
- Rinzin S, Dunning S, Carr R, Allen S, Dorji T, Cheche C, Rai J, Dangal NR, Yangzom K, Tenzin T. Public warning and evacuation experiences during recent GLOF events (2019 and 2023) and recommendations for future preparedness: Insights from Lunana, Bhutan. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction 2026. Submitted.
- Speybroeck N, Paramitasari D, Fomo M, Carey M, Carr R, Castin E, Delforge D, Tonnelier M, Dermauw V, Charalampous P. Glacial Lake Outburst Floods and their human toll: a global systematic review and meta-analysis. Nature Climate Change 2026. Submitted.
- Deakin KA, Stokes CR, Jamieson SSR, Carr JR. . Reviews of Geophysics 2025. In Press.
- Ross N, Sanderson RJ, Kulessa B, Siegert M, Paxman GJG, Nichols KA, Siegfried MR, Jamieson SSR, Bentley MJ, Jordan TA, Batchelor CL, Small D, Eisen O, Winter K, Bingham RG, Callard SL, Carr R, Dow C, Fricker HA, Hill E, Hills BH, Hofstede C, Jeofry H, Napoleoni F, Sauthoff W. . The Cryosphere 2025. Submitted.
- Carr JR, Barrett A, Rinzin S, Taylor C. . Journal of Glaciology 2025, 71, 1-19.
- Hyde A, Carr JR, Dunning S, Van Wyk de Vries M. . Journal of Glaciology 2025, 71, e126.
- Rinzin S, Dunning S, Carr R, Sattar A, Mergili M. . Natural Hazards and Earth System Science 2025, 25(6), 1841–1864.
- Carr JR, Hill EA, Gudmundsson GH. . Cryosphere 2024, 18(6), 2719-2737.
- Leigh JR, Jones RS, Stokes CR, Evans DJA, Carr JR, Andreassen LM. . Boreas 2024, 53(4), 619-654.
- Carr JR, Murphy Z, Nienow P, Jakob L, Gourmelen N. . Journal of Glaciology 2024, 70, e10.
- Richardson A, Carr JR, Cook S. . Journal of Glaciology 2024, 70, e12.
- Taylor C, Robinson T, Dunning S, Carr JR. The rise of GLOF risk: trends, drivers and hotspots between 2000 and 2020. Earth's Future 2023. Submitted.
- Brough S, Carr JR, Ross N, Lea J. . Journal of Geophysical Research 2023, 128(4), e2022JF006857.
- Taylor C, Robinson T, Dunning S, Carr JR, Westoby M. . Nature Communications 2023, 14, 487.
- Carr E, Carr JR, Ross N. . Arctic, Antarctic, Alpine Research 2023, 55(1), 2186456.
- Goliber S, Black T, Catania G, Lea JM, Olsen H, Cheng D, Bevan S, Bjork A, Bunce C, Brough S, Carr JR, Cowton T, Gardner A, Fahrner D, Hill E, Joughin I, Korsgaard NJ, Luckman A, Moon T, Murray T, Sole A, Wood M, Zhang E. . Cryosphere 2022, 16(8), 3215-3233.
- Goliber S, Black T, Catania G, Lea J, Olsen H, Cheng D, Bevan S, Bjork A, Bunce C, Brough S, Carr JR, Cowton T, Gardner A, Fahrner D, Hill E, Joughin I, Korsgaard NJ, Luckman A, Moon T, Murray T, Sole A, Wood M, Zhang E. . The Cryosphere 2022, 16(8), 3215–3233.
- Taylor C, Carr JR, Rounce D. . Journal of Glaciology 2022, 68(267), 101-113.
- Arthur JF, Stokes CR, Jamieson SR, Carr JR, Leeson AA, Verjans V. . Nature Communications 2022, 13, 1711.
- Williams R, Griffiths H, Carr JR, Hepburn A, Gibson M, Williams J, Irvine-Fynn T. . Geomorphology 2022, 398, 108028.
- Hill EA, Gudmundsson GH, Carr JR, Stokes CR. . Journal of Glaciology 2021, 67(261), 147 - 157.
- Arthur JA, Stokes CR, Jamieson SSR, Miles B, Carr JR, Leeson AA. . Journal of Glaciology 2021, 67(265), 933-951.
- Ballinger TJ, Hanna E, Hall RJ, Carr JR, Brasher S, Osterberg EC, Cappelen J, Tedesco M, Ding Q, Mernild S. . International Journal of Climatology 2021, 41(S1), E2778-E2800.
- Leigh JR, Stokes CR, Evans DJA, Andreassen LM, Carr JR. . Journal of Maps 2021, 17(2), 348-366.
- Leigh JR, Stokes CR, Evans DJA, Carr JR, Andreassen LM. . Arctic, Antarctic, Alpine Research 2020, 52(1), 281-311.
- Arthur J, Stokes CR, Jamieson SSR, Carr JR, Leeson A. . Progress in Physical Geography 2020, 44(6), 837-869.
- Collins-May JL, Carr JR, Balme MR, Ross N, Russell AJ, Brough S, Gallagher C. . Journal of Geophysical Research - Planets 2020, 125(9), e2019JE006302.
- Arthur JA, Stokes CR, Jamieson SSR, Carr JR, Leeson AA. . The Cryosphere 2020, 14(11), 4103–4120.
- Lovell AM, Carr JR, Stokes CR. . Remote Sensing 2019, 11(12), 1452.
- Dell R, Carr R, Phillips E, Russell AJ. . Journal of Glaciology 2019, 65(250), 321-336.
- Leigh JR, Stokes CR, Carr RJ, Evans IS, Andreassen LM, Evans DJA. . Journal of Glaciology 2019, 65(254), 873-888.
- Brough S, Carr RJ, Ross N, Lea J. . Frontiers in Earth Sciences 2019, 7, 123.
- Hill EA, Gudmundsson GH, Carr JR, Stokes CR. . The Cryosphere 2018, 12(12), 3907-3921.
- Lovell AM, Carr JR, Stokes CR. . Remote Sensing of Environment 2018, 210, 434-443.
- Bunce C, Carr RJ, Nienow PW, Ross N, Killick R. . Journal of Glaciology 2018, 64(246), 523-535.
- Hill EA, Carr JR, Stokes CR, Gudmundsson GH. . The Cryosphere 2018, 12(10), 3243-3263.
- Carr JR, Stokes CR, Vieli A. . Annals of Glaciology 2017, 58(74), 72-91.
- Carr JR, Bell H, Killick R, Holt T. . The Cryosphere 2017, 11(5), 2149-2174.
- Hill EA, Carr JR, Stokes CR. . Frontiers in Earth Science 2017, 4, 111.
- Ryan JC, Hubbard AL, Box JE, Todd J, Christoffersen P, Carr JR, Holt TO, Snooke N. . The Cryosphere 2015, 9, 1-11.
- Carr JR, Vieli A, Stokes CR, Jamieson SSR, Palmer SJ, Christoffersen P, Dowdeswell JA, Nick FM, Blankenship DD, Young DA. . Journal of Glaciology 2015, 61(225), 137-150.
- Carr JR, Stokes CR, Vieli A. . Journal of Glaciology 2014, 60(219), 155-170.
- Carr JR, Stokes CR, Vieli A. Recent progress in understanding marine-terminating Arctic outlet glacier response to climatic and oceanic forcing: Twenty years of rapid change. Progress in Physical Geography 2013, 37(4), 435 – 46.
- Carr JR, Vieli A, Stokes CR. . Journal of Geophysical Research 2013, 118(3), 1210-1226.
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Book Chapters
- Carr JR. . In: Stokes C, ed. Comprehensive Cryospheric Science and Environmental Change. Elsevier, 2025. In Press.
- Adalgeirsdóttir G, Ananicheva M, Andersen ML, Carr R, Clason C, Colgan WT, Copland L, Glazovsky A, Hubbard A, Kjeldsen KK, Mernild S, Moholdt G, Wagner T, Wouters B, Van Wychen W. . In: Box, JE; Sharp, ME, ed. Snow, Water, Ice and Permafrost in the Arctic (SWIPA). Oslo, Norway: Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP), 2017, pp.137-168.
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Report
- Harris CM, Carr JR, Lorenz K, Jones S. Important Bird Areas in Antarctica: Antarctic Peninsula, South Shetland Islands, South Orkney Islands. Environmental Research & Assessment Ltd., Cambridge, 2011.