Claudia Stephan appointed Professor at the University of Rostock

At the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, Claudia Stephan previously headed the Minerva Fast Track research group “Cloud-Wave Coupling”. The group was working on mesoscale dynamics, in particular internal gravity waves generated by clouds and precipitation. A particular focus of the research was on the question of how the properties of convection influence the properties of gravity waves and how gravity waves in turn influence the properties of clouds and precipitation.

The modeling department at the IAP, which Claudia Stephan has now taken over as head, is concerned with atmospheric processes in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT) and investigates the coupling mechanisms to adjacent layers. The aim is to gain a better understanding of the climate system and its natural and anthropogenic variability, with a particular focus on the MLT. In order to work on these key research areas, theories and various numerical models are being developed.

Claudia Stephan: “The coupling of the atmospheric layers due to dynamic processes primarily results from the vertical propagation of waves and their interactions with the large-scale circulation. With my research group at the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, I was able to expand my expertise in this area. I am very much looking forward to now extending my research to higher layers of the atmosphere. Among other things, the IAP has two first-class observation departments. I would like to link modeling and observations in order to investigate current problems caused by climate change and space travel. Examples are the increased longevity of space debris resulting from the decreasing density of the MLT due to climate change and the elevated air pollution due to the increasing number of rocket launches.”

Contact

Prof. Dr. Claudia Stephan
Leibniz Institute of Atmospheric Physics at the University of Rostock (IAP)
ccstephan@iap-kborn.de
Phone: +49 38293 68 300