Erik Palmén
Encyclopedia
Erik Herbert Palmén was Finnish
meteorologist
. He worked at the University of Chicago
in the Chicago school of meteorology (started by Carl-Gustaf Rossby
) on cyclone
s and weather front
s with Vilhelm Bjerknes. He contributed to the explanation of the dynamics of the jet stream
and the analysis of data collected by radiosonde
s; his preprocessed and quality checked datasets were widely used by other researchers. Palmen was a multisided researcher who published articles in meteorology
, geophysics
and oceanography
. The 1969 book by Palmen and Chester W. Newton, "Atmospheric Circulation
Systems: Their Structure and Interpretation", is still used as lecture material in the universities around the world.
Palmen was the director of Finnish Institute of Marine Research
, a professor in Helsinki University and a member of the Finnish Academy of Arts and Letters. His nickname by students, friends and colleagues was Maestro and he was well known for his passion for cigars and interest of effects of weather on agriculture
.
Palmen received the Buys-Ballot Medaille of Royal Dutch Academy in 1964. Then, when enough computing power was available and the first steps of numerical weather prediction
were taken, the value of work done by the Chicago School 10-20 years earlier was really appreciated.
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
meteorologist
Meteorology
Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere. Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 18th century. The 19th century saw breakthroughs occur after observing networks developed across several countries...
. He worked at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
in the Chicago school of meteorology (started by Carl-Gustaf Rossby
Carl-Gustaf Rossby
Carl-Gustaf Arvid Rossby was a Swedish-U.S. meteorologist who first explained the large-scale motions of the atmosphere in terms of fluid mechanics....
) on cyclone
Cyclone
In meteorology, a cyclone is an area of closed, circular fluid motion rotating in the same direction as the Earth. This is usually characterized by inward spiraling winds that rotate anticlockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere of the Earth. Most large-scale...
s and weather front
Weather front
A weather front is a boundary separating two masses of air of different densities, and is the principal cause of meteorological phenomena. In surface weather analyses, fronts are depicted using various colored lines and symbols, depending on the type of front...
s with Vilhelm Bjerknes. He contributed to the explanation of the dynamics of the jet stream
Jet stream
Jet streams are fast flowing, narrow air currents found in the atmospheres of some planets, including Earth. The main jet streams are located near the tropopause, the transition between the troposphere and the stratosphere . The major jet streams on Earth are westerly winds...
and the analysis of data collected by radiosonde
Radiosonde
A radiosonde is a unit for use in weather balloons that measures various atmospheric parameters and transmits them to a fixed receiver. Radiosondes may operate at a radio frequency of 403 MHz or 1680 MHz and both types may be adjusted slightly higher or lower as required...
s; his preprocessed and quality checked datasets were widely used by other researchers. Palmen was a multisided researcher who published articles in meteorology
Meteorology
Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere. Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 18th century. The 19th century saw breakthroughs occur after observing networks developed across several countries...
, geophysics
Geophysics
Geophysics is the physics of the Earth and its environment in space; also the study of the Earth using quantitative physical methods. The term geophysics sometimes refers only to the geological applications: Earth's shape; its gravitational and magnetic fields; its internal structure and...
and oceanography
Oceanography
Oceanography , also called oceanology or marine science, is the branch of Earth science that studies the ocean...
. The 1969 book by Palmen and Chester W. Newton, "Atmospheric Circulation
Atmospheric circulation
Atmospheric circulation is the large-scale movement of air, and the means by which thermal energy is distributed on the surface of the Earth....
Systems: Their Structure and Interpretation", is still used as lecture material in the universities around the world.
Palmen was the director of Finnish Institute of Marine Research
Finnish Institute of Marine Research
The Finnish Institute of Marine Research is a research institute founded in 1918 that is subordinate to the Ministry of Transport and Communications...
, a professor in Helsinki University and a member of the Finnish Academy of Arts and Letters. His nickname by students, friends and colleagues was Maestro and he was well known for his passion for cigars and interest of effects of weather on agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
.
Palmen received the Buys-Ballot Medaille of Royal Dutch Academy in 1964. Then, when enough computing power was available and the first steps of numerical weather prediction
Numerical weather prediction
Numerical weather prediction uses mathematical models of the atmosphere and oceans to predict the weather based on current weather conditions. Though first attempted in the 1920s, it was not until the advent of computer simulation in the 1950s that numerical weather predictions produced realistic...
were taken, the value of work done by the Chicago School 10-20 years earlier was really appreciated.