Pico Mountain Observatory

Earth’s atmosphere is fundamental to life and society. It plays a role in climate and weather and influences individuals and economies. Michigan Tech researchers, 12 faculty in five departments, seek to understand atmospheric science to maintain a livable planet by making clouds, wading in the Great Lakes, and grabbing particles high-in-the-sky.

Areas of Emphasis

Atmospheric Sciences at Michigan Tech emphasizes research on:

  • The Perturbed Atmosphere, Air Quality, Climate, and Society—to improve our understanding of atmospheric processes and impacts related to key issues of societal importance, such as climate change and emissions, transport, and transformation of air pollution.
  • Atmospheric Interactions—to understand the natural and perturbed atmosphere and its interactions with the rest of the earth system, including the biosphere, hydrosphere, and solid Earth.
  • Physics and Chemistry of the Atmosphere—to learn new fundamental physical and chemical processes that govern the behavior of the atmosphere and its interactions with human activities, solar radiation, and the natural world.
  • Advanced Analytical and Numerical Tools—to develop and apply new methods for laboratory simulations, measurement, and analysis of atmospheric properties (using in-situ lab, field, and remote-sensing techniques) and using computer simulations of atmospheric transport, microphysics, and chemistry to study complex atmospheric properties and interactions—from micro- to macro-scale.

For more information on specific research interests of our atmospheric sciences faculty members, please see Focus Areas or Faculty.

We are actively recruiting new graduate students.

Richard Honrath Memorial Lecture Fund

Robert Honrath

The Atmospheric Sciences program was founded by our colleague Professor Richard E. Honrath.

To honor Richard and to support his vision of scholarship, a memorial fund has been established, Richard E. Honrath Memorial Lecture Fund. This fund will provide support for Richard E. Honrath Memorial Lecture and for undergraduate and graduate students.

  • 46th
    ranked in the nation among top 50 NSF research expenditures