Igor Esau

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.