| Gerhard Kramm | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 9, 1946 Cologne, Germany |
| Residence | United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Fields | Meteorology, Earth System Science |
| Institutions | University of Alaska Fairbanks |
| Alma mater | University of Applied Sciences Cologne (B.E., 1973), University of Cologne (B.S., 1975; M.S., 1980), Humboldt University of Berlin (Ph.D., 1994) |
| Doctoral advisor | Karlheinz Bernhardt |
| Known for | physics of the planetary boundary layer |
Gerhard Kramm (born July 9, 1946 in Cologne, Germany) is a naturalized American atmospheric scientist with interests in theoretical meteorology. His work is mainly focused on physics of the planetary boundary layer, atmospheric turbulence and its impact upon atmospheric chemistry, atmospheric dynamics, atmospheric radiation, cloud physics, micro- and mesoscale numerical modeling.
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Kramm earned a B.E. in Industrial Engineering at University of Applied Sciences Cologne, Germany, in 1973, a B.S. and a M.S, in Meteorology at University of Cologne, Germany, in 1975 and 1980, respectively He earned a Ph.D. in meteorology at Humboldt University of Berlin, Germany, in 1994.[1] Within the framework of his doctoral thesis he investigated the exchange of ozone and highly reactive nitrogen species between the atmosphere and the biosphere.[2] From 1980 to 1985 he worked as a research and teaching assistant at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University of Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Department of Theoretical Meteorology. From 1985 to 1988 he worked as a research scientist at the Industrieanlagen-Betriebsgesellschaft mbH at Ottobrunn, Germany (during that time the joint research and test center for the German air and space industry) where he was mainly engaged in mesoscale meteorological modeling and super computing. From 1988 to 1997 he worked as a research scientist at the Fraunhofer-Institute for Atmospheric Environ¬mental Research at Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. From 1998 to 1999 he was a visiting lecturer at University of Potsdam, Germany, where he taught micrometeorology. From 1999 to 2001 he worked as a research associate at the Materialforschungs- und Prüfungsanstalt für das Bauwesen Leipzig e.V., Germany, mainly engaged in fire safety research. In 2001 he joined the Atmospheric Science Group of the Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF). Since 2003 Kramm has served as an associate faculty at the College of Natural Science and Mathematics, UAF, where he has taught atmospheric dynamics, atmospheric radiation, physics of the atmospheric boundary layer, and turbulence. Since 2005 he has served as a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of the Calcutta Mathematical Society. In summer 2007 Kramm served as the lead instructor of the Science Teacher Education Program (STEP) 2007 on Global Climate Change. This program was funded by the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development.[3]
Kramm has expressed skepticism about global warming[4]
In his Community Perspective issued by the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner on January 25, 2009, Kramm argued that the three recommendations of Hansen et al. (2008) for a decrease of the atmospheric CO2 concentration to a level of 350 ppm by volume, as already discussed in their article "Target Atmospheric CO2: Where Should Humanity Aim?",[5] are politically motivated. He continued that even the IPCC does not claim such a decrease in the atmospheric CO2 concentration is feasible. IPCC scenarios that assume a reduction of human-caused CO2 emissions during the 21st century to pre-1990 levels show that the atmospheric CO2 concentration will tend to a so-called equilibrium concentration of about 550 ppmV, where equilibrium means that the total (natural plus anthropogenic) CO2 emission equals the total CO2 uptake by vegetation and oceans. Inferred from the paper "On the recognition of fundamental physical principles in recent atmospheric-environmental studies" in which a global budget equation for long-lived atmospheric trace gases like CO2 was offered,[6] Kramm argued that the three actions Hansen and colleagues recommended to reduce the atmospheric CO2 concentration are scientifically unsound.[7]
Kramm has published papers in peer-reviewed journals and books.[8]
Kramm and his wife Nicole have no children. His hobbies include ballroom dancing (favorite dances are Argentine Tango,[13] Rumba, Bachata, Cha Cha, Viennese Waltz, Foxtrot, Swing), gardening, playing with his cat, and reading books on history of science, history of the 20th century, and naval history.[14]