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New online format for Leipzig University’s research communication

Multimedia feature story on Rocky Mountain measurement campaign published

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To mark the meteorological start of winter today (1 December 2023), Leipzig University’s Office for University Communications is publishing its first multimedia story entitled “In search of snow’s secrets”. The story is packed with photos, diagrams and videos, and opens with the following words: “High up in the majestic Rocky Mountains, where the peaks seem to touch the sky and the wilderness shines in all its splendour, four researchers from Leipzig embarked on an ambitious adventure.”

The picture shows a ascreenshot of the story.
A new multimedia approach to research communication: Leipzig University publishes an illustrated feature story on snowfall research. Screenshot: SUK

The feature story revolves around a snowfall measurement campaign by meteorologists from Leipzig University in the Rocky Mountains. Junior Professor Dr Heike Kalesse-Los from the Leipzig Institute for Meteorology explains why this happened in the Rocky Mountains, at an altitude of almost 2,900 metres: “The best way to understand complex snowfall processes is with a large amount of data. The Rocky Mountains receive many times more snow than Germany. Ten metres of snow fell on Gothic last winter.”

Heike Kalesse-Los is one of the four protagonists of the multimedia feature story who personally produced a wealth of video and photographic material on location in the Rocky Mountains and made it available to illustrate their research project: against the breathtaking backdrop of the 3,850-metre-high Gothic Mountain, they have opened a new chapter in the history of snow research.

Readers will find fascinating insights into the research questions and findings, information about the team and an impressive journey to where it all happened.

In search of snow’s secrets