NANSEN CENTER - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Advisor
- Finance
- Finance Advisor / Finance Department
Job Titles:
- Project Leader
- Senior Researcher / Sea Ice Modelling Group
Job Titles:
- Project Leader
- Research Leader, Senior Researcher / Ocean and Sea Ice Remote Sensing Group
Ocean and Sea Ice Remote Sensing Group antonio.bonaduce@nersc.no +47 907 53 594
Job Titles:
- Researcher
- Researcher / Ocean and Sea Ice Remote Sensing Group
Artem Moiseev is a physical oceanographer. He obtained his PhD in ocean remote sensing from the University in Bergen (Norway) in 2021, while employed at the Nansen Center, working with satellite data to improve how to detect ocean surface currents from space.
Moiseev studies upper ocean dynamics, ocean-atmosphere, and wave-current interactions using synergy of satellite and in-situ observations and models. His main interest is in developing new solutions for observing ocean wind, waves, and surface currents from satellite Synthetic Aperture Radars. His main expertise is with Doppler shift observations from Sentinel-1 where he has been developing retrieval algorithms for retrieving ocean surface currents, signal calibration, and product validation. He also has experience in open-source software development, geospatial data processing and analysis, and machine learning.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Remaining Board
Job Titles:
- Adjunct Researcher / Ocean Modelling Group
Job Titles:
- Research Coordinator
- Research Coordinator / Research
Job Titles:
- Project Leader
- Employee 's Elected Representative
- Research Leader, Senior Researcher / Sea Ice Modelling Group
Job Titles:
- Research Assistant / Data Assimilation Group
Job Titles:
- Norwegian Defence Research Establishment, Norway
Job Titles:
- Researcher
- Researcher / Ocean and Sea Ice Remote Sensing Group
Fabio Mangini is an oceanographer and obtained his PhD from the University of Bergen in 2022, while employed at the Nansen Center. In his PhD, he mostly used observations to analyze the atmospheric and oceanic contributions to sea-level change in northern Europe.
Manginis research interests lie within sea-level variations. Changes in sea level can happen on short and long timescales and they have different impacts on society. Mangini wants to quantify the contribution of both winds and open ocean to sea-level variations over the northern European continental shelf from monthly up to decadal timescales. In his work he uses both in-situ and remote-sensing observations to provide more robust conclusions and help identify the weaknesses and strengths of each individual observing system used today. This will make our knowledge on sea-level variations more complete, allowing for improved mitigation measures.
Job Titles:
- Researcher
- Researcher / Acoustic and Oceanography Group
Florian Geyer is a physical oceanographer. He obtained his PhD at the University of Bergen in 2010, while employed at the Nansen Center, working on measurements and models of ocean bottom currents.
Geyer's main interests are data analysis and combining underwater acoustic and physical oceanography. He is very experienced in Arctic fieldwork, as he has been participating in multiple research cruises to Svalbard, Fram Strait, and the central Arctic. He also has experience in the data processing of acoustic data and data assimilation of acoustic thermometry data using the 4DVar-method.
Job Titles:
- Research Leader, Senior Researcher / Climate Dynamics and Prediction Group
Job Titles:
- Automation Engineer
- Scientific Software Developer
- Scientific Software Developer / Scientific Data Management Group
Frode Monsen is an automation engineer. He obtained his Bachelor of Engineering degree at Bergen Ingeniørhøgskole in 1995.
Monsen's work is focusing on standard metadata, data storage, and formats. He develops data catalogues and services for visualising and analysing geographic data. His work is relevant to support research projects producing large amounts of data as management of these data has to be approached properly. Monsen also develops the necessary software for such purposes, among others.
Job Titles:
- Adjunct Researcher
- Adjunct Researcher / Data Assimilation Group
Geir Evensen was a pioneer of advanced data assimilation methods in the 20 years he spent as researcher at the Nansen Center, where he was a group leader for modeling and data assimilation. Today his main employer is NORCE Energy. In his adjunct position at the Nansen Center, Evensen is providing methodological developments of Ensemble Smoother methods, teaching and supervision of junior scientists.
Job Titles:
- Researcher
- Researcher / Sea Ice Modelling Group
Guillaume Boutin is a physical oceanographer. He obtained his PhD at the University of Western Brittany in Brest (France) in 2018.
Boutin studies sea-ice in interaction with the ocean, most often in the marginal ice zone in the transition between drift ice and the open sea. During his PhD, he worked on modelling interactions between waves and sea ice.
His favourite questions are: What happens when the ice is broken into small floes (usually by waves)? How important are small-scale sea-ice dynamics (for example small cracks in the sea ice) for the interaction between the ocean, sea ice, and atmosphere? He is optimistic that he will be able to provide answers to these questions in the near future!
At the Nansen Center, he is now part of the development team for the sea ice model neXtSIM (next-generation sea ice model). To investigate how sea ice interacts with the ocean in the most realistic way possible, he has connected neXtSIM with an ocean model and a wave model (NEMO and WAVEWATCH III).
Job Titles:
- Project Manager, Senior Researcher / Climate Dynamics and Prediction Group
Job Titles:
- Senior Researcher
- Senior Researcher / Climate Dynamics and Prediction Group
Igor Esau is a climatologist and meteorologist with a research focus on atmospheric physics and turbulence modelling. He obtained his PhD at the Uppsala University (Sweden) in 2003.
Esau is working with theories, models, and data analysis related to turbulence in the planetary boundary layer - the lowermost kilometre of the atmosphere and the upper hundred meters of the ocean. Turbulence is defined as irregular motion of air and the most challenging weather conditions are found in storms (strong winds) and stills (weak winds and low air quality days). The societal calls for renewable energy, sustainable communities and climate actions have promoted the planetary boundary layer research to the top of the scientific agenda. Esau's work contributes to developing smart and sustainable cities through state-of-the-art detailed atmospheric modelling based on various observations. His overarching research question addresses the role of turbulence and the earth's surface in local climate processes. He uses physical models to understand how society interacts with nature and weather nature-inspired solutions can improve quality of our environment. This research is complemented by the search for a sustainable local climate service model. He is currently working on urban climate research and development of the models for small but vigorous - turbulent - air motions.
Job Titles:
- Project Leader
- Leader Research Coordination, Senior Researcher
- Leader Research Coordination, Senior Researcher / Research
Johnny A. Johannessen is a physical oceanographer. He received his PhD from University of Bergen in 1997.
Job Titles:
- Senior Researcher / Data Assimilation Group
Job Titles:
- Research Assistant
- Research Assistant / Sea Ice Modelling Group
Karoline Holand has a bachelor's degree in meteorology and oceanography from the University of Bergen, and is working on a master's degree in applied mathematics with specialization in fluid mechanics and computer-based methods for wave prediction at the University of Bergen.
At the Nansen Center, she works in the Sea Ice Modelling group under the supervision of Guillaume Boutin. She evaluates simulations of the neXtSIM sea-ice model in the Arctic against in-situ data, buoy data.
Job Titles:
- Head of Finance
- Head of Finance / Finance Department
Knut Holba is part of the center's management team and leads the finance department's areas of responsibility:
Preparation of financial statements and budgets
Finance, accounting and payroll
Resource management
Project and consortium agreements
Budgeting, follow-up and reporting of research projects
Job Titles:
- Member of the Remaining Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the Remaining Board
- Project Leader
- Employee 's Elected Representative
- Research Leader, Senior Researcher / Data Assimilation Group
- Research Leader, Senior Researcher / Laurent
Bertino is an applied mathematician with 20 years of experience in data assimilation and ocean modelling and various other models. He obtained his PhD in geostatistics from the Ecole des Mines de Paris, France in 2001, and is now leading the Data Assimilation Group at the Nansen Center.
Bertino develops and improves ways to replicate and predict what happens in the ocean, with a special focus on the Arctic. His present interests lie in the interplay of data assimilation and machine learning as well as the monitoring and prediction of sea ice and icebergs. He uses his expertise in sequential data assimilation methods like the Ensemble Kalman Filter.
Numerical model simulations are hypothetical outcomes of the dynamics of a system, but do not usually match reality. Data assimilation techniques keep these simulations on track by including a regular flow of data from satellites and in-situ sensors. For example, data assimilation is able to correct the position of the ice edge and the location of ocean eddies. This allows to initialise skilful numerical predictions. One example of his work is the development and operation of the TOPAZ sea-ice and ocean forecasting system - including ocean primary production - from its first demonstration in January 2003 to its inclusion in the European services providing operational oceanography data: the Copernicus Marine Service.
Bertino has led several projects applying ensemble data assimilation methods in collaboration with other disciplines, for example to soil moisture, snow depletion and volcanic ash transport. He has also led two European projects dedicated to sea-ice forecasting and the interaction of waves and sea ice. He has also managed industry-driven modelling studies in the South China Sea, in the Gulf of Mexico, and in the Barents and Kara Seas. The purposes of these studies were for example to evaluate the consequences of hurricanes or to evaluate design criteria of offshore assets.
Job Titles:
- Research Assistant / Data Assimilation Group
Job Titles:
- Researcher
- Researcher / Ocean and Sea Ice Remote Sensing Group
Ocean and Sea Ice Remote Sensing Group mohamed.babiker@nersc.no +47 55 20 58 00
Mohamed Babiker obtained his PhD degree in hydrology at the University of Bergen in 2004.
Babiker has more than 20 years of experience with the use of remote sensing and geographic information systems when processing satellite data. He works on improving satellite data (such as SAR, Synthetic Aperture Radar), and on using different sensors to look at specific problems (sensor synergy). He has carried out studies of extremely dry areas and their groundwater flows and environmental monitoring of refugee camps using satellite data. He is currently working with sea-ice mapping, icebergs, glacier monitoring, as well as arranging data for shipping in polar areas.
Job Titles:
- Adjunct Researcher
- Adjunct Researcher / Climate Dynamics and Prediction Group
Noel Keenlyside is a pioneer in the field of climate prediction, providing new methods and mechanistic understanding. Keenlyside is a Professor at the University of Bergen, and in his adjunct position at the Nansen Center, he brings expertise for the development of new methods of climate predictions, contributes to the writing of proposals, and helps with the supervision of junior scientists.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Remaining Board
Job Titles:
- Project Leader
- Senior Researcher
- Senior Researcher / Climate Dynamics and Prediction Group
Richard Davy is a climatologist. He obtained his PhD in Physics from York University (Canada) in 2009 focusing on the atmospheric boundary layer and water cycle of Mars through his work on the NASA Phoenix mission. He created models and used observations from the Phoenix lander to demonstrate that it snows on Mars.
Davy has extensive knowledge on climate processes related to boundary layer meteorology and the interactions between ocean, sea ice, and atmosphere. The boundary layer is the lowermost level of the atmosphere that extends from the ground up to a few kilometers in the air. Since this is the part of the atmosphere we all live and breathe every day it is crucial to understand the process that control the conditions in the boundary layer. His work has demonstrated how boundary layer processes determine the strength of climate warming and variability as well as air pollution.
Job Titles:
- Adjunct Researcher / Climate Dynamics and Prediction Group
Job Titles:
- Researcher
- Researcher / Ocean Modelling Group
Shuang Gao is a marine biogeochemical and ecosystem modeller. She obtained her PhD at the Alfred Wegener Institute for Marine and Polar Research in Germany in 2014. After her PhD, she worked as a researcher and postdoc at the University of Bergen and Institute of Marine Research in Norway.
Her recent research has centred on developing and utilizing biogeochemical/physical/ecosystem models to assess climate change impact on marine biogeochemistry, e.g., on marine primary production and ocean carbon uptake.
At the Nansen Center, she is part of the ocean modelling team, working on developing the biogeochemical/ecosystem model of the coupled model system (HYCOM-ECOSMO) focusing on the North Atlantic and Arctic region.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Remaining Board
Job Titles:
- Project Leader
- Project Manager
- Senior Researcher
Stein Sandven is a physical oceanographer and majored (cand. real) at the University of Bergen in 1979, researching ocean circulation in the Indian Ocean.
Sandven's research interests include sea ice, ocean currents, water masses, acoustics and the development of ocean observing systems, mainly in the Arctic Ocean. Observing systems using instruments on ships, moorings, drifting buoys, and subsurface floats are important tools to collect data for ocean, sea ice, marine ecosystems, and climate research. He is also working with satellite remote sensing, which is an essential part of the ocean observing systems. As coordinator of many research projects in the last 30 years, he has a strong interest in developing international and national collaboration in Arctic research. One of the recent projects he has been leading was INTAROS, an EU-funded project with 49 partners from 20 countries. The project contributed to improve different observing systems in the Arctic which is important for further research and to support shipping, tourism, and fishing, as well as for local communities. In addition, he has been active in educating students, tomorrow's scientists, teaching them in remote sensing, shipping in the Arctic, and other useful Arctic knowledge.
Job Titles:
- Scientific Software Developer / Scientific Data Management Group
Job Titles:
- Computer Scientist
- Project Leader
- Research Leader
- Senior Researcher
- Research Leader, Senior Researcher / Scientific Data Management Group
Torill Hamre is a computer scientist and she leads the Scientific Data Management Group at the Nansen Center. She obtained her PhD at the University of Bergen in 1995.
Hamre's research focuses on standard metadata and data formats, development of data catalogues, data portals, and services for analysis and visualisation of geographic data. This includes developing data delivery chains in close collaboration with scientists collecting in-situ observations or generating products from observations of environment and climate. Furthermore, she is providing training in FAIR data management for young scientists as well as experienced scientists.
Job Titles:
- Researcher / Climate Dynamics and Prediction Group
Job Titles:
- Researcher / Climate Dynamics and Prediction Group