Kerry Emanuel is an atmospheric scientist who has devoted his career to understanding mesoscale and tropical weather systems as well as the role of water in earth’s climate. His research has aided the understanding of rain and snow bands in winter storms, the effect of phase change of water on fronts and cyclones, and the physics of hurricanes and other tropical phenomena. He has brought physical modeling to bear on the quantification of long-term hurricane risks and was the first to predict that hurricanes would become more intense as the climate warms.
Kerry is a co-director of the Lorenz Center at MIT, a climate think-tank devoted to basic, curiosity-drive research. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Philosophical Society.
Professional position
- Professor, Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Subject groups
- Earth and environmental sciences
Atmospheric physics and meteorology
