A special issue of the scientific journal Advances in Atmospheric Sciences honours the memory of our dear colleague Yongqi Gao, who passed away in July 2021.
Yongqi Gao joined the Nansen Center in 1996, after completing his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the Peking University and the Institute of Atmospheric Sciences in Beijing, China. He quickly became a highly valued member of staff here, both as a researcher and colleague. Through his broad expertise in oceans, atmosphere, and climate, in the High North and globally, Gao has left his mark.
Gao had a unique ability to – and also enjoyed – bringing people together and creating research collaborations and friendships across national borders and cultures. He played a key role in establishing the Nansen-Zhu Centre in China. The establishment of this center has led to extensive cooperation between Norwegian and Chinese research communities. He was also an important contributor to the development of the Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research and established close collaboration with researchers from the center’s three other partners: the University of Bergen, the Institute of Marine Research and NORCE.
As the leader of several Norwegian, Nordic, and European research projects, Gao was a researcher with whom many people had a connection. Several hundred researchers took part in a memorial symposium for Gao in 2022. Many of these have contributed new research in the areas in which Gao was involved. The research results have been compiled in a special issue of Advances in Atmospheric Sciences. The articles illustrate how his close colleagues are continuing Gao’s work. They describe anthropogenic and natural climate change in Europe, Asia, and the Arctic, and how changes in different regions affect each other. It also explains what creates extreme weather, the extent to which it can be predicted, and the societal consequences of climate change.
Tore Furevik, Director of The Nansen Center: “I had a close and long-standing collaboration with Gao, which has meant a lot to me. I would like to thank Noel Keenlyside, Shengping He, and Fei Li at the University of Bergen, who led the work on the special issue of Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, and also the other researchers who have contributed to this worthy memorial to a dear colleague and friend.”
