Summary
Dr. Baker Perry is a Professor of Climatology at the University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada State Climatologist, and National Geographic Explorer whose work spans the highest mountains on Earth. Inspired by his childhood years living in the Andes of Bolivia and Peru, Perry has dedicated his career to understanding the climate of critical water towers that provide freshwater to downstream communities and ecosystems.
An internationally recognized mountain climatologist and expedition leader, Perry led the installation of the world’s highest-altitude weather station network on Mount Everest, including stations near the summit that are transforming scientific understanding of extreme high-elevation environments. His research has also taken him to the highest peaks of the Andes, where he collaborates with local scientists, indigenous communities, and elite mountain climbers to investigate climate change, glacier retreat, water resources, and extreme weather.
With more than 30 years of alpine mountaineering experience, Perry has completed numerous scientific expeditions above 20,000 feet, including multiple ascents above 26,000 feet on Everest. His unique combination of exploration and science has advanced understanding of some of the planet’s least-studied environments while helping inform water-resource management and climate resilience for communities downstream. Since earning his Ph.D. in 2006, he has published more than 50 peer-reviewed studies and is widely recognized for bringing the spirit of exploration into both scientific discovery and the classroom.
Research interests
High-elevation climate science, orographic precipitation, climate-cryosphere interactions, and meteorological instrumentation
Education
- Ph.D., Geography (Climatology), University of North Carolina, 2006
- M.A., Geography, Appalachian State University, 1998
- B.A., Comparative Area Studies, Duke University, 1996
Selected publications
- Khadka, A., L.B. Perry, T. Matthews, T.G. Sherpa, C.B. Shrestha, D. Shrestha, D. Aryal, S. Tuladhar, N. Pradhananga, D. Kayastha, P. Athans, D.Y. Sherpa, A. Elmore. 2026. Weather station data from the Mount Everest region, Nepal: 3,810 – 8,810 m. Earth System Data Science, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2026-183
- Graves, B., T. Matthews, L.B. Perry, T. Edwards, R. Taylor, F. Brun, P. Wagnon, A. Khadka, D. Shrestha. 2026. Modelling accumulation of a high-altitude Himalayan glacier. Journal of Glaciology: 72:e32. doi:10.1017/jog.2026.10147
- King, O., N. Montoya, B.J. Davies, T. Matthews, M. Vargas, S. Ghuffar, T. Gribbin, L.B. Perry, M. Rado, R. McNabb, L. Nicholson, J. Ely. 2025. The impact of supraglacial ice cliff and pond formation on debris-free, tropical glacier mass loss. Journal of Glaciology. 2025;71:e132. https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2025.10109
- Pokhrel, P. Wagnon, F. Brun, A. Khadka, T. Matthews, A. Goutard, D. Shrestha, L.B. Perry, M. Réveillet. Accurate and autonomous snow water equivalent measurements using a cosmic ray sensor on a Himalayan glacier. The Cryosphere, 18, 5913–5920, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-5913-2024
- Van Wyk de Vries, M., T. Matthews, L.B. Perry, N. Thapa, H. Guy, R. Wilby. 2024. At-scale Model Output Statistics in mountain environments. Geoscientific Model Development, 17, 7629–7643, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-7629-2024
- Gribbin, T., J.D. Mackay, A. MacDonald, D.M. Hannah, W. Buytaert, J.R. Baiker, N. Montoya, L.B. Perry, A. Seimon, M. Rado, S. Arias, M. Vargas. 2024. Bofedal wetland and glacial melt contributions to dry season streamflow in a high-Andean headwater watershed. Hydrological Processes, 38(8), e15237. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.15237
- Sherpa, T.C., T. Matthews, L.B. Perry, A. Thapa, P.K. Singh, A. Khadka, I. Koch, M. Pelto, P. Panday, D. Aryal, D. Shrestha, S. Kang, P.A. Mayewski. 2023. Insights from the first observations of winter weather near Mount Everest’s summit. Weather, http://doi.org/10.1002/wea.4374
- Dragone, N.B., L.B. Perry, A. Solon, A. Seimon, T.A. Seimon, S.K. Schmidt. 2023. Genetic analysis of the frozen microbiome at 7,900 m a.s.l., on the South Col of Sagarmatha (Mount Everest). Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research, https://doi.org/10.1080/15230430.2023.2164999
- Matthews, T., L.B. Perry, A. Khadka, T.G. Sherpa, D. Shrestha, D. Aryal, S. Tuladhar, N. Thapa, N. Pradhananga, P. Athans, D.Y. Sherpa, H. Guy, A. Seimon, A. Elmore, K. Li, N. Alexiev. 2022. Weather observations reach the summit of Mount Everest. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 103: E2827-E2835, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-22-0120.1
- Birkel, S., P.A. Mayewski, L.B. Perry, A. Seimon, M. Andrade-Flores. 2022. Reanalysis inter-model comparison of temperature and precipitation for the Andean Altiplano and adjacent Cordilleras. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, http://doi.org/10.1029/2021EA001934
- Matthews, T., L.B. Perry, D. Aryal, A.C. Elmore, A. Khadka, M. Pelto, D. Shrestha, R. Wilby. 2022. Weather on K2 during historic first winter ascent. Weather 77: 49-52. https://doi.org/10.1002/wea.4094
- Fyffe, C.L., E. Potter, S. Fugger, A. Orr, S. Fatichi, K. Medina, R.Å Hellström, M. Bernat, C. Aubry-Wake, W. Gurgiser, L.B. Perry, W. Suarez, D.J. Quincey, E. Loarte, F. Pellicciotti. 2021. The energy and mass balance of Peruvian glaciers. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 126, e2021JD034911. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021JD034911
- Pelto, M., P. Panday, T. Matthews, J. Maurer, L.B. Perry. 2021. Observations of winter ablation on glaciers in the Mount Everest Region in 2020-2021. Remote Sensing 2021: 13(14) 2692. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13142692