The Science of Hurricanes and Climate: A lecture with meteorologist and climate scientist, MIT professor Dr. Kerry A. Emanuel

WHAT: The Lowell Lecture Series at the New England Aquarium and The Lorenz Center of Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) present the annual John H. Carlson Lecture featuring MIT Professor Post-Tenure of Atmospheric Science Dr. Kerry A. Emanuel.

A prominent meteorologist and climate scientist, Dr. Emanuel will focus on the climate and history of hurricanes, uncovering why the most benign of Earth’s climates produce the most destructive storms on our planet. In this talk, he will delve into the mysteries of why hurricanes are both violent and rare, how their beautifully coherent structures emerge from the background of tropical weather, and what physics govern their intensities, diameters, and tracks. He will also explore the fascinating and important question of how hurricanes respond to climate change, making use of observations, advanced models, theory, and newly emerging geological evidence of pre-historic hurricanes. Dr. Emanuel will conclude his talk with an enigma: Do hurricanes alter climate?

WHEN: Thursday, October 23 at 6:30 p.m. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with a cash bar available. All are invited to arrive early to explore exhibits by MIT students and climate scientists in the Simons Theatre lobby.

WHERE: In person at the New England Aquarium’s Simons Theatre, 1 Central Wharf, Boston. The lecture will also be livestreamed via Zoom.

HOW: Register here for in-person and virtual attendance to the event. Advance registration is required. This free lecture is made possible by a generous gift from MIT alumnus John H. Carlson to the Lorenz Center and is presented in partnership with the New England Aquarium and the Lowell Institute.

WHO: Dr. Kerry Emanuel is the Cecil and Ida Green professor post-tenure of atmospheric science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he served on the faculty from 1981 to 2022.

His specialty is hurricane physics. He was the first to investigate how long-term climate change might affect hurricane activity, an issue that continues to occupy him today. His interests also include cumulus convection and advanced methods of sampling the atmosphere in aid of numerical weather prediction.

He is the author or co-author of over 300 peer-reviewed scientific papers and three books, including Divine Wind: The History and Science of Hurricanes, published by Oxford University Press. Dr. Emanuel was a co-founder of MIT’s Lorenz Center, a climate think tank devoted to basic, curiosity-driven climate research. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and a Fellow of the Royal Society of London.

MEDIA CONTACT: Pam Bechtold Snyder—617-686-5068; psnyder@neaq.org