CURRICULUM VITAE - JEAN-FRANÇOIS LOUIS

PERSONAL DATA

Born: 30 June 1944, in Liège, Belgium

Citizenship: Belgium

Residence: 38 Prospect St.,
Belmont, MA 02478
USA

Phone: 617 4893113

Email: jf@jflouis.com

Current occupation: Retired scientist, consultant.

EDUCATION

Ph.D. (Astrogeophysics) 1974 University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado

Undergraduate degree (Engineering Physics) 1967 University of Liège, Belgium

EXPERIENCE

1984-2001 Principal Scientist, Numerical Weather Prediction Group, Atmospheric and Environmental Research, Inc.

Managed AER's NWP group for more than 10 years, then Principal Scientist and member of AER's Technology Solutions Center. Main duties: develop a research program in numerical weather prediction, with emphasis on the use of satellite and other remotely sensed data, write proposals and secure funding to support the group, supervise and mentor other scientists and programmers, and develop commercial products based on the work of the various groups of AER. Main accomplishments at AER are as follows.

(Sponsoring Agency) Description

- (NASA and USAF) Led or participated in several projects to improve the use of various types of satellite data in numerical weather prediction, including microwave moisture data (SSM/I) and scatterometer winds (NSCAT, ERS). Performed observing system simulations to evaluate the impact of new systems such as possible lidar wind sensors.

- (NASA) Developed a system to improve the analysis and forecast of hurricanes, taking advantage of satellite imagery to estimate phase errors in the first guess of the analysis.

- (NOAA, NSF and Electricité de France) Developed a program to improve local weather forecasting systems for industry, using physically based models to compute the local influences on the large scale forecast.

- (US Dept of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program) Developed a variational method to assimilate the remote sensing data gathered at the ARM sites.

- (NOAA) Developed a new cloud cover parametrization for NWP or climate models.

- (NOAA) Supervised the evaluation of the legacy software for the AWIPS project (modernization of the National Weather Service).

- (Hong Kong Observatory) Deputy Manager of project to develop and install a meteorological data processing system project for the new Hong Kong airport.

- (Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)) Evaluation of mesoscale models for air quality simulations. Supervised simulation of various pollution episodes using the NCAR MM5 mesoscale model.

- (Internal AER) Member of AER's Technology Solutions Center, a high level management group in charge of developing commercial products based on the work of the various groups of AER.

1976-1984 Scientist, then Senior Scientist, ECMWF, Reading, United Kingdom.

Member of the Physical Aspect Section of the ECMWF Research Department. Main accomplishments:

- Devised a scheme for the parameterization of the atmospheric boundary layer in the ECMWF global forecast model. This scheme was later adopted by many NWP and climate research groups around the world for their general circulation models and is still widely used today.

- Participated in the design of convection and cloud parameterization schemes

- Worked on problems related to higher order closure schemes for boundary layer turbulence.

- Developed a single column model for physical parametrization studies.

- Was in charge of creating a limited area version of the forecast model to allow high resolution experiments. This limited area model was the basis for the HIRLAM model used by several European countries for their own short-range forecast model.

- Managed the creation of the first documentation of the ECMWF model.

1974-1975 NRC Research Associate, NOAA Environmental Research Laboratory, Boulder, Colorado.

Under Dr. V. Derr. Set up an experiment to measure the structure functions of the aerosol distribution in the boundary layer using a lidar.

1967-1974 Research Assistant, NCAR, Boulder, Colorado.

Under Dr. E. Danielsen. Developed a two-dimensional model of the transport of minor constituents in the atmosphere, which took account of both the mean circulation and the eddy fluxes in an internally consistent fashion. This model successfully simulated the evolution of stratospheric ozone and the transport of radioactive particles from atmospheric nuclear tests.

OTHER RELEVANT ACTIVITIES

1993-2001: Member and, for 3 years, Chairman of ECMWF Scientific Advisory Committee. This committee of twelve scientists, chosen for their expertise in numerical weather prediction, advises the Council of ECMWF on the progress and research plans of the Centre.