MARIA VITTORIA GUARINO
Overview of My Research
I am an Atmospheric Scientist and Numerical Modeller based at the International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) - Earth System Physics group, and Honorary Research Fellow at the British Antarctic Survey (Cambridge, UK).
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I study the atmosphere (lower- and upper- layers) and the coupled atmosphere-ice-ocean system by means of numerical models. I am particularly interested in (and I have published about) atmospheric gravity wave propagation and breaking, and large-scale coupling between the atmosphere and the ocean.
BIO
My Story
After graduating with a MSc in Environmental Science from Università del Salento (Lecce, IT) in 2014, I was awarded a PhD in “Atmosphere, Oceans and Climate” from the University of Reading (UK), Department of Meteorology, in 2017.
During my PhD studies, I investigated the dynamics of a type of atmospheric gravity waves, known as “mountain waves”, combining mesoscale model simulations, observations and theory.
As part of my PhD, I visited the Research Application Laboratory (RAL) of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (BO, USA). There I studied the occurrence of mountain wave turbulence over the Rocky Mountains.
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From 2017 to 2020, I worked at the British Antarctic Survey (Cambridge, UK) as Earth System Modeler. I ran global climate model simulations that contributed to the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6 project). CMIP6-based research constitutes the scientific basis for the 2021 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report.
In 2020, I joined the University of Leeds where I worked on modelling the upper atmosphere as part of the WAVECHASM project. I was in charge of developing a new gravity wave transport parameterisation for the WACCM climate model.
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I am currently a Research Fellow at the ICTP - Earth System Physics section. My research concerns the coupling between the atmosphere and the ocean at the polar regions via sea ice. In particular, I am interested in how sea ice is affected by changes in the parameterised orographic gravity wave drag in current climate models.
MY RESEARCH
From Theory, via Modelling, to Reality
Gravity waves are a constant presence in our skies. Most of the time invisible, their existence is occasionally revealed through cloud patterns. As they propagate, gravity waves transport energy and drive changes in winds, temperature and chemical composition of the atmosphere.
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I studied how gravity waves generated in the lower layers of the atmosphere propagate upwards, up to ~120km above the ground, and influence the chemical and dynamical structure of the Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere. In particular, I have worked on improving the representation of these gravity waves in the WACCM model.
Within the context of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6, CMIP6, I simulated the Earth's past climate at 127.000 years ago. This period is known as the Last Interglacial Period. Past climate simulations help us investigate how the Earth’s climate responds to natural forcing.
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I have studied the coupling between the atmosphere, the ice and the ocean in past and present climate conditions. In particular, I looked at how changes in sea ice extent and iceberg discharge rate can drive changes in the oceanic and atmospheric circulation.
Mountain waves are atmospheric gravity waves generated by the interaction between atmospheric flows and orography. When air masses are forced to rise by the underlying orography, the ascending air triggers an oscillatory motion known as 'mountain wave'.
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I have studied how the amplitude of these waves is influenced by a wind direction that changes with height. By breaking at various heights, mountain waves can generate high-altitude atmospheric turbulence (known as Clear Air Turbulence, CAT). CAT poses a serious hazard to aviation, and mountain wave-induced turbulence is currently one of the most poorly predicted type of aviation turbulence.
Numerical modelling represents the indispensable tool of my research. My expertise lies in setting up and running numerical models, interpreting model outputs and performing models validation against theory and/or observations.
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The numerical models used in my research are: the Weather, Research and Forecasting Model (WRF-ARW), the UK Earth System Model (UKESM), which consists of the Unified Model (UM) for the atmosphere, the NEMO model for the ocean and the CICE model for the sea ice, and the Whole Atmosphere Chemistry Climate Model (WACCM).
OTHER IMPORTANT STUFF
CONTACT ME
Thanks for your interest in my research. Get in touch with any questions regarding my work and publications.
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