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Kristin Poinar

Assistant Professor of Geology
University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences

AREAS OF EXPERTISE:

Climate change, Greenland Ice Sheet, ice sheet modeling, sea level rise, Antarctica, Great Lakes ice cover

Head shot of Kristin Poinar, UB faculty expert on ice sheets and climate change.

Kristin Poinar can speak to the media about climate change, ice sheets and sea level rise.

As a researcher, she uses computer modeling to understand how Earth’s ice sheets are shrinking and contributing to rising oceans. She investigates how ice and water move and interact within glaciers, and how these processes affect a glacier’s health and flow speed and the rate of a glacier’s decline.

Poinar’s work focuses primarily on the Greenland Ice Sheet. One of her studies found that meltwater inside certain deep fissures called crevasses can reach bedrock and find its way to the ocean, contributing to sea level rise. She gave an international TED Talk on this research in 2017.

In addition to the Greenland Ice Sheet, Poinar can discuss the Antarctic Ice Sheet and prehistoric ice sheets such as the Laurentide Ice Sheet. Closer to home, she can also speak to media about ice cover on the Great Lakes.

CONTACT:

Kristin Poinar, PhD
Assistant Professor of Geology
University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences
UB RENEW Institute

NEWS ABOUT KRISTIN POINAR