Main areas of expertise
Observations and modeling of SLCPs.
Victor Alderson Professor of Applied Ocean Sciences and director of the Center for Atmospheric Sciences at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego (USA). Professor Ramanathan has been conducting original research in Climate and Atmospheric Science since the 1970s. He discovered the super greenhouse effect of halo carbons (CFCs) in 1975 and used observations to quantify the large global warming effect of black carbon. He led international field campaigns, developed unmanned aircraft platforms for tracking brown cloud pollution worldwide, and educates and trains the next generation of scientists. Based on his research, he developed a new approach for mitigating climate change that involves mitigating emissions of four short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) to drastically reduce near-term warming and slowing down the retreat of the Himalayan glaciers. He is now implementing this new approach in the field. Professor Ramanathan conducted work on observations and modeling of SLCPs, particularly black carbon in Asia. He founded, designed, and leads Project Surya, an extended effort to characterize and mitigate environmental impacts of black carbon, ozone, and methane in rural India. He also initiated ICAMP, a World Bank sponsored project to reduce soot emissions from the transportation sector in India. Involved in research on mitigation strategies and has published on technical and policy options for SLCP reduction.
