Christopher Skinner

Christopher Skinner is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Environmental Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, part of the Climate Change Initiative and the Kennedy College of Sciences. His work focuses on climate change impacts, using climate models to study how Earth system perturbations influence weather and climate events. He holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Earth System Science from Stanford University (2014) and a B.S. in Atmospheric Science from Cornell University (2008).

Research interests include climate modeling, weather extremes, and biosphere-atmosphere interactions. Skinner has been recognized with the 2022 Department Teaching Excellence Award (EEAS). His grants include NSF-funded studies on vegetation contributions to future climate (2024), NOAA-funded drought-heatwave analysis (2020), and NSF research on atmospheric rivers (2019).

Key research areas span paleoclimatology, hydrological cycles, and climate extremes. His work addresses past climate dynamics (e.g., Heinrich Stadial 1, Last Glacial Maximum) and future projections of droughts, heatwaves, and atmospheric river behaviors. Collaborations involve multidisciplinary teams analyzing climate model outputs and observational data to understand societal and ecosystem impacts.

Labs/Teams: Active contributor to the Climate Change Initiative and Environmental Earth and Atmospheric Sciences department at UMass Lowell. Engaged in collaborative projects with institutions like Stanford University and NOAA.