Frontiers in Mathematics Lecture Series

Date: March 18, 2019

Time: 4:00PM - 5:00PM

Location: Blocker 117

Speaker: Rupert Klein, Freie Universität Berlin

Title: Scales in Weather and Climate

Abstract: The science of weather and climate is challenging for many reasons, one being the multiscale nature of atmosphere-ocean flows. In this lecture I will first explain the notion of scales in this context through concrete examples, such as tropical hurricanes or the desertification of the Sahara some 8000 years ago. I will move on to discuss how mathematical formalization and solution techniques allow us to systematically unravel many, but far from all, of the underlying physical processes. An outline of remaining major challenges at the forefront of today’s weather and climate research will reveal that substantial progress can be expected only through intense interdisciplinary research involving the natural sciences as much as mathematics and computer science.