Dr. Sam Anderson
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sam-science.bsky.social
Dr. Sam Anderson
@sam-science.bsky.social
2.4K followers 320 following 30 posts
postdoc at simon fraser university & columbia university // thinking and writing about heatwaves, glaciers, rivers, and us // canadian 🇨🇦 // he/him #climatechange #hydrology #LGBTinSTEM 🏳️‍🌈 #transrights 🏳️‍⚧️
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sam-science.bsky.social
... and that there are strong seasonal patterns in precipitation characteristics, too. Check out the full paper for more details (and maps!).
a) – d) The fraction of heatwave days with more than 1 mm of precipitation, for winter (DJF), spring (MAM), summer (JJA), and autumn (SON; columns). e) – h) The fraction of non-heatwave days with more than 1 mm of precipitation. i) – l) The difference in the fraction of wet-days between heatwave and non-heatwave days. Blue indicates where heatwave days are more frequently wet than non-heatwave days, and red indicates where heatwave days are less frequently wet than non-heatwave days.
August 19, 2025 at 3:54 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
We find that there are strong spatial patterns in where precipitation happens during heatwaves...
A map of 14,425 basins across North America from HYSETS, coloured according to the clusters defined by the basins’ heatwave-precipitation frequency curves. Basin colours and their corresponding cluster are defined by the colourbar (right). An inset of the west coast (left), with the inset area shown by the bounding box in the full map. White areas are those without basins in the HYSETS database.
August 19, 2025 at 3:54 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
I spend most of my time thinking and writing and researching about heat waves. Being in one reminds me why -- extreme heat cuts deep.
A map of the Northeast USA showing the forecast risk of unhealthy heat for Tuesday, June 24. High risk extends from NYC to Raleigh to Indiana.
June 23, 2025 at 2:54 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
✨ Archive newspapers teach us about the social and physical impacts of historical climate extremes ✨

Last week at @egu.eu I presented my recent work in which I use archived newspapers across North America in addition to climate reanalysis data to reconstruct "the lost heatwave" of 1941.
A photo of myself and my research poster, titled "The Unprecedented Western North American Heatwave of 1941: Digitized Newspapers to Understand Far-Reaching Social and Physical Impacts".
May 5, 2025 at 3:10 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
And, from two days later...
Headline from The Globe and Mail in 1941: "Removal of Tariff Helps Manufacture"
April 4, 2025 at 1:44 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
Headlines from The Globe and Mail in 1941 feel highly relevant in the modern day, too.
Newspaper headline from The Globe and Mail in July 1941: "Farm betterment / Tariff ups living cost of farmers"
April 4, 2025 at 1:05 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
Today I learned that the southernmost point of Nunavut -- Stag Island -- is deep in James Bay. This means that Nunavut extends further west than Alberta, further east than New Brunswick, near the North Pole, and further south than Edmonton.

The geography of this country is amazing. 🇨🇦
A map of Canada, pointing out the location of Stag Island, the southernmost part of Nunavut. Stag Island is further south than Edmonton, AB, and nearly as far south as Calgary, AB.
February 5, 2025 at 6:19 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
Hi! An introduction to my new followers:

1. I research how heatwaves impact rivers and water systems

2. I got into climate science because I love glaciers and snow, and I think it's nice when we have water to drink

3. I write about climate, water, and us

❄️🔥💧☀️
A mountain river flows in the Canadian Rockies An outflow of ice from the Illecillewaet Glacier, in Glacier National Park, British Columbia A headline from an op-ed in The Globe and Mail: "Glacier's are Western Canada's best friends. We'll need them against climate change -- just as much as we'll need each other"
January 14, 2025 at 4:27 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
Heatwaves aren't always dry -- and it turns out that the precipitation characteristics of North American heatwaves vary strongly in space and time. Come learn more at the Global Environmental Change online poster session at AGU!

#climatechange #earthscience #heatwave #AGU24
Maps of North America, showing how heatwave conditions are either wetter or drier than normal conditions. Results are shown in terms of both frequency of precipitation, and precipitation amount, for each season.
December 9, 2024 at 5:22 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
What's really interesting is if mean temperatures are warmer, these responses change differently than the underlying streamflow -- with implications for how we think about heatwave-driven flooding in spring!
December 8, 2023 at 9:20 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
Glacial and nival rivers respond to heatwaves with an initial surplus, and a delayed deficit -- here we quantify how these responses vary as a function of heatwave timing and glacier coverage.
December 8, 2023 at 9:17 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
*waiting intensifies*
October 2, 2023 at 8:05 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
I'm Sam 👋

I research climate change impacts on river flows in snowy regions -- especially curious about glaciers, heatwaves, and the people who live in and love these places. Based in Vancouver, BC!
September 26, 2023 at 5:16 PM
sam-science.bsky.social
Hi BlueSky! To introduce -- I'm Sam 👋

I love rivers 💧
I love glaciers 🧊
I do not love climate change 🥵
I do not love heatwaves 🔥

In my postdoc I'm thinking about how all of the above interact 🤔

#hydrology #earth-science
Aerial photo of a river meandering around a log jam, with sandy banks, and lush trees. Morning sunlight casts long shadows of the trees.
September 26, 2023 at 2:42 PM