CV
Short Biography:
Dr. Gemechu Fanta Garuma is a renowned researcher in the field of Environmental Science, with a specialization in Atmospheric Physics and Dynamics. He has conducted extensive research on a variety of topics pertaining to space environments and climate science, including urban climate, air quality, wind energy meteorology, and the effects of climate change on vulnerable population.
Dr. Garuma's work on urban climate research has been applied to many parts of the world. He has published numerous high-quality papers on reputable international journals, and his research has contributed greatly to the broader scientific understanding of the impacts of climate change on urban environments. In addition to his research, Dr. Garuma is also a respected scholar and academic, having earned his Ph.D. in Environmental Science from a top-tier university. He is widely recognized as an expert in his field and has been invited to speak at conferences and events all over the world.
Through his work, Dr. Garuma has demonstrated a deep commitment to advancing our understanding of the complex and pressing challenges that face our planet in the 21st century. He has shown an unwavering dedication to his field, and his contributions have helped to shape the course of research on urban climate science for years to come.
Summary of qualifications:
May 2015 - July 2019 - PhD in environmental sciences (specialty in Atmospheric Sciences) at University of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM), Montreal, Quebec, Canada: the PhD research work involves urban surface parameterizations to quantify the impact of urban surfaces on regional weather/climate, such as (a) solving urban surface physics: energy, radiation and water balance equations, and turbulence closure schemes typical for urban scale roughness , and (b) numerical computation involving computer programs such as FORTRAN, C, C++, and (c) data analysis and visualization using computer programs: PYTHON and NCL(PYNGL).
August 2014 - December 2014 (4 months) - Internship at University of Quebec at Montreal: Assessment of impact of land-surface organic matter on current and future climate
2011-on-going- Research work at Addis Ababa University: climate models for wind energy micro-siting and urban flooding assessments
2005-2007(2 years) - MSc (Atmospheric Physics)- thesis title " ultraviolet (UV) radiation measurement in Africa and UV-cloud-ozone-aerosol interaction"
2001-2005(4 years) - BSc in Applied Physics ( 4 years) - final year project title: Theoretical basis of wind energy generation
Modelling experience: Global Circulation Models (GCM) - ModelE and Speedy; Mesoscale models - Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) both Advanced Research WRF (ARW) and Non-hydrostatic Mesoscale Model (NMM) WRF, Regional Climate Model (RegCM-4); Microscale model (Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model OR Hydrodynamic model - OpenFOAM.
3 years research experience on wind energy micro-siting
3 years research on urban flooding
Computer operating system experience - 10 years linux (ubuntu), 12 years Windows xp, 3 years Backtrack linux
Programming - 9 years FORTRAN, 13 years C, C++ and Object Oriented Programming (OOP), 5 years python, 9 years MATLAB and 5 years Octave, 5 years Internet Programming (IP) using html
Geographical Information System (GIS) visualization programs - NCL, Python, MATLAB, R, Panoply
Education:
Employment:
October, 2019 - now- Assistant professor, Atmospheric and Climate Sciences (AtClim) Unit Leader at Space Science and Geospatial Institute, SSGI (former Ethiopian Space Science and Technology Institute)
May, 2015 - July, 2019 - PhD Researcher, University of Quebec at Montreal
September, 2011 - April, 2015 - PhD Researcher, Addis Ababa University
September, 2009 - August, 2011 - Lecturer, Ambo University
April, 2008- August, 2009 - Trainee pilot, Ethiopian Airlines Aviation Academy
Publications:
Garuma, G. F. (2022). How the Interaction of Heatwaves and Urban Heat Islands Amplify Urban Warming. Advances in Environmental and Engineering Research, 3(2), 1-42.
Strauss, R.D., Giday, N.M., Seba, E.B., Chekole, D.A., Garuma, G.F., Kassa, B.H., Dugassa, T. and Diedericks, C., 2022. First results from the ENTOTO neutron monitor: Quantifying the waiting time distribution. Advances in Space Research.
Garuma, G.F., Tessema, S.B., Tiky, A.Y., Eshete, Y.C., Adde, Y.A., Giday, N.M., Elsea, M.W., Cui, Y., Yuanwei, C., Gedefaw, D.K. and Gadisa, D.Z., 2020. First Ethiopian Remote Sensing Satellite (ETRSS-1): Mission information and overview.
Garuma, G.F., Blanchet, J.P., Girard, É. and Leduc, M., 2018. Urban surface effects on current and future climate. Urban climate, 24, pp.121-138. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.uclim.2018.02.003.
Garuma, G.F., 2017. Review of urban surface parameterizations for numerical climate models. Urban Climate.
Ringard, J., Dieppois, B., Rome, S., Diedhiou, A., Pellarin, T., Konaré, A., Diawara, A., Konaté, D., Dje, B.K., Katiellou, G.L. and Sanda, I.S., Hassan, B., Vischel, T., Garuma, G. F., Mengistu, G., Camara, M., Diongue, A., Gaye, A. T., Descroix, L., 2016. The intensification of thermal extremes in west Africa. Global and Planetary Change, 139, pp.66-77.
Garuma, G. F., Y. Abebe and M. Gizaw, Ultraviolet(UV) Radiation Measurement in Africa; Based on TOMS and NOAA satellited data, VDM Verlag Dr. Muler, 2010.
Garuma, G. F., Ultraviolet (UV) Radiation and its physical Modulating Factors in Africa Based on TOMS and NOAA Polar Orbiting Satellites. Diss. aau, 2007.
Presentations:
Garuma, G. F, Sushama, L., 2016, December, Impact of urban regions on the surface energy and water partitioning over east North America, AGU Fall Meeting, San Francisco, USA.
Garuma, G. F., Sushama, L., Gulilat, D. and Francois, R., 2017, April. Impact of urban regions on the surface energy and water partitioning over east North America. In EGU General Assembly Conference Abstracts (Vol. 19, p. 5469).
Roberge, F., Sushama, L. and Garuma, G. F, 2017, April. Simulations of the Montréal urban heat island. In EGU General Assembly Conference Abstracts (Vol. 19, p. 5454).
Garuma, G. F., Sushama, L., Gulilat, D. and Francois, R., 2017, May, Impact of urban regions on the over current and future climate over east North America. CNRCWP annual meeting.
Workshop and Summer School participation:
AGU Fall Meeting, Washington DC, USA, 10-14 December 2018. For the abstract click here.
EGU General Assembly 2017. For the abstract click here.
AGU Fall Meeting, San Francisco, USA, 12-16 December, 2016. For the abstract click here.
Water and Society summer School: A space-time framework for integrated studies, Oleron (CAES and CNRS), France, 11-17 may, 2014. For more about the school Click here.
The 3rd Regional climate and impact modelling for Eastern Africa: Climate, Water, Agriculture and Health, Addis Ababa University (AAU), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 14 Oct. 13 Nov., 2013. Click for more.
The Second Regional Climate and Impact Modelling Workshop for Eastern Africa, Addis Ababa University (AAU), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 14-19 Nov., 2011.
International Conference on Ecosystem Conservation and Sustainable Development: Natural Resource for Livelihood Enhancement, Ambo University (AmboU), Ambo, Ethiopia, 10-12 February 2011.
Workshop on Active Learning in Optics and Photonics, Addis Ababa University (AAU), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 18-24 Nov., 2013. Click here for more.
Previous works,
Introduction to Environmental Physics ( click to read ) - Compiled module for the use of course work in Ethiopian Universities. Many Ethiopian universities (Meda Welabu University, Ambo University and Mizan Tepi University) are using this module for their course work.
Introduction to Atmospheric Physics ( click to read ) - Compiled course module for the use of course work in Ethiopian Universities.
A monograph entitled "Ultraviolet Radiation Measurement in Africa" (click here ).
MSc thesis entitled "Surface Ultraviolet Radiation Measurement in Tropical Africa" click here
Weather Forecast Modeling - One pre-operational weather forecast model for Ethiopia in collaboration with colleagues - http://weather.aau.edu.et
Lecture notes, training modules, seminars,
You can download/view some of my course notes from the lecture notes section of this page.
Research interests:
Urban climate modeling
Linking meso-scale atmospheric models with micro-scale (CFD) models
Impact of global warming and urban land use changes on flooding and wind storm in urban areas
Turbulent fluid flow modeling
wind flow characteristics (flow separation and anisotropy) over the complex terrain
prediction of mean wind velocity over complex terrain ( read the seminar presentation )
wind energy site selection
Parametrization of land surface-climate interaction
Atmospheric Boundary Layer (ABL) Turbulence parametrization
Space climate and space weather - Sun-Earth interaction
Contact address:
Bole road/ Africa Avenue
P. O. Box 1009 CODE 1250
Addis Ababa
Ethiopia
E.mail: gemechufanta@gmail.com or gemechuf@essti.gov.et
Tel: +251-911-961482