David J. Stensrud

David J. Stensrud

Research Meteorologist

Leader, Models and Assimilation Team

Some of the American, Spanish, and French participants at the European Conference on Tornadoes and Severe Storms, held at Meteo-France in the beautiful city of Toulouse during February 2000. From left: Victor Homar Santaner, Harold Brooks, Richard Peterson, Chuck Doswell, Fermin Elizaga Rodriguez, Miguel Gaya, Jean Dessens, Dave Stensrud, and Clemente Ramis. Photograph courtesy of Miguel Gaya of the Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia, Centre Meteorologique des Iles Baleares, Palma de Mallorca, Spain.

Internet: David.Stensrud@noaa.gov

David Stensrud
National Severe Storms Laboratory
1313 Halley Circle
Norman, OK 73069

Telephone: (405) 366-0418
FAX:       (405) 366-0472

As the head of the Models and Assimilation Team (MAT) of the Forecast Research and Development Division I am responsible for coordinating our activities as they relate to improving forecasts of severe and hazardous weather events. These activities cover a broad range of subjects, and include exploring four-dimensional data assimilation techniques, investigating the potential uses of short-range model ensembles in forecasting severe weather events, including new data sources and poorly observed mesoscale features in model initial conditions, developing new and improved conceptual models of weather events, verifying model forecasts using both standard and new data sources, understanding model sensitivities, and improving our understanding of the processes involved in dryline formation. The wide variety of work being conducted in this group guarantees me an interesting tenure as team leader.

Involved in several Special Projects at the National Severe Storms Laboratory.

Biographical information

I spent my youth growing up in a suburb just outside of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Being of solid Norwegian stock, I am well adapted to cold climates and can even survive the smell of lutefisk. After graduating from High School, I immediately headed for the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The infamous "Pail and Shovel" party ran the student government during my stay in Madison, so Bascom Hill was covered with pumpkins every fall, we had the Statue of Liberty on the ice of Lake Mendota every winter, pink flamingos covered Bascom Hill every spring, and the Halloween and Oktoberfest parties were tons of fun. Amidst all these distractions, I still managed to graduate after only 4 years with a Bachelor of Arts in meteorology and mathematics.

Just a few weeks later I was driving across Nebraska during the passage of a nocturnal squall line. The rain was so heavy that I was forced to drive at only 10 mph for what felt like forever. Only the incessant cloud-to-ground lightning allowed me to see the road at all. My reason for such madness was to reach Salt Lake City, Utah, the following day, where I was to begin a summer internship with the National Weather Service Scientific Services Division at Western Region Headquarters. Potentially my one and only claim to fame is that I succeeded in developing a program for AFOS that works! ;-) I have no idea whether or not it is still in use.

I entered into graduate school at The Pennsylvania State University, working with Dr. Nels Shirer on a low-order spectral model of boundary layer rolls. One of my first graduate classes dealt with nonlinear dynamics and chaos theory, so I quickly developed a non-classical view of the world. My thesis was completed in two years, just in time for the summer graduation ceremony, and I stayed on at PSU until being hired by the National Severe Storms Laboratory (government paperwork takes forever!). I was the last hire of Dr. Edwin Kessler, the first Director of NSSL. Ed retired four days after I arrived - hopefully just a coincidence.

Since arriving in Norman, I have spent my entire professional career at NSSL. However, I applied for and was awarded a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration long-term training assignment to return to graduate studies and begin my Ph.D. work. Being a good alumnus, I went back to Penn State to study the modeling of mesoscale convective systems (MCSs) in weakly-forced large-scale environments with Dr. J. Michael Fritsch. After 3.5 years, I finally completed my Ph.D., and have been involved in mesoscale modeling ever since. I am presently the Leader of the Models and Assimilation Team (MAT).

Current Research

My primary research interests are in

the modeling and forecasting of hazardous weather using mesoscale models, with a particular emphasis on events that occur in rather benign synoptic environments.
the incorporation of mesoscale features into model intial conditions
methods to interrogate intelligently mesoscale model output in an operational forecasting environment
the use of numerical models in the future of weather forecasting with an emphasis on short-range ensemble forecasting (SREF)
examining the model partitioning of surface sensible and latent heat fluxes and their improvement through the incorporation of satellite-derived land use and land cover data
the ability to simulate low-level jets with mesoscale models
understanding the processes associated with the occurrence of convection during the Mexican monsoon, including the phase relationships between tropical easterly waves and midlatitude troughs, and coastally trapped surges over the Gulf of California.
understanding and predicting, both numerically and operationally, flash flood events
the influence of persistent mesoscale regions of convection on the large-scale environment

More information on my research interests is found in my Vita.

Educational activities

I'm involved in educational outreach through

teaching a graduate level class on the Physics of Mesoscale Models at the University of Oklahoma (once every 4 semesters)
visiting local schools as opportunities arise
being a Member of the Troop Committee of Troop 792, Boy Scouts of America
being involved in the Research Experience for Undergraduates program within the Oklahoma Weather Center

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"I've worked for NOAA for almost half of those first 30 years!"