Monash Memo - 23 May 2001

Back to this edition's story list

Monash develops niche in atmospheric science

Climate and atmosphere expert Professor David Karoly is planning to develop a leading Australian university research group in atmospheric science.

This will be Professor Karoly's main focus in his new role as the Faculty of Science's chair of meteorology, which is jointly funded by Monash and the Bureau of Meteorology. He is also head of the Department of Mathematics and Statistics.

"There is currently no department of atmospheric science at Monash or at any other Australian university," he said.

"My aim is to establish the atmospheric science group as a critical mass of experts who conduct research related to all areas of this emerging discipline.

"Atmospheric science is really a new cross-disciplinary science that combines the traditional sciences such as physics, chemistry and mathematics."

Professor Karoly's personal research interests include the dynamics of large-scale circulation of the atmosphere, greenhouse climate change, stratospheric ozone depletion and climate variations due to the El Nino effect.

The group will explore other fields such as the nature of cold fronts and how they affect bushfires, and how the land and plants interact with the atmosphere.

Other areas of interest will include the impact of clouds and rainfall on pollution and the tropical rainfall variability of Australian monsoons.

Professor Karoly said the research group's activities would involve collaboration between the Department of Mathematics and Statistics in the Faculty of Science and the School of Geography and Environmental Science in the Faculty of Arts.

He will also be responsible for overseeing the undergraduate program in atmospheric science within the Bachelor of Science degree.

He said his appointment was a natural progression from the affiliation agreement signed by Monash and the bureau in 1985, which encouraged research collaboration between the two institutions.

In 1993, he received the Meisinger Award for contributions to atmospheric research from the American Meteorological Society, which elected him a fellow in 1999.

He also received the Norbert Gerbier-Mumm International Award from the World Meteorological Organisation for a joint research paper with 10 international collaborators in 1998.

He is a member of several international and national committees and has written numerous papers and contributed chapters to books related to climate change.