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Fascinated by the wide variety of clouds in the most diverse regions of the world

Faces of Leipzig University: Professor Heike Kalesse-Los

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Dr Heike Kalesse-Los studied meteorology at Leipzig University. After working at several other institutions, her path led her back to Leipzig University. Initially as a junior professor on the tenure track and since 1 July 2024 as a professor, she has been researching and conducting field work on clouds and precipitation around the world , both in Leipzig and in the field. She has also taken paths less travelled to communicate her research to the public. Read Leipzig university magazine’s interview below.

Prof Heike Kalesse-Los
Prof Heike Kalesse-Los, Photo: Antje Gildemeister Fotografie

What did you study – and where?

I’ve come full circle now because I started in Leipzig, where I studied meteorology.

What have been the key stages in your career since then?

In my dissertation at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, I used airborne passive radiation measurements to investigate how the shape of ice crystals influences the properties of cirrus clouds. I then “switched” from passive to active remote sensing and did my postdoctoral research at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, studying what cloud radar measurements can tell us about the dynamics of ice clouds. Afterwards, I returned to Leipzig. I spent the first three years at the Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research (TROPOS) investigating how cloud radar measurements can be used to derive information about mixed-phase clouds in which ice crystals and supercooled liquid water coexist. From April 2018 to June 2024, I then was a junior professor at the Institute for Meteorology (LIM) at Leipzig University, where I am now continuing my research.

What fascinates you about your field of research and what are your areas of specialisation?

I am fascinated by the wide variety of clouds and find it fascinating to learn more about them and their complexity every day. My research group focuses on using ground-based synergetic atmospheric remote sensing instruments  to answer scientific questions about cloud formation and development, as well as about precipitation formation and the fate of precipitation below clouds. As our measuring instruments are mobile, we can study clouds in the most diverse regions of the world. Some of our field measurement campaigns have taken us to the Arctic, Patagonia, the trade-wind region of the Atlantic and the Rocky Mountains in the US, which has allowed us to study a wide variety of cloud types and precipitation types. Thanks to the measuring equipment available, in recent years we have also begun to research in the field of renewable energies. For example, we are investigating the extent to which shortest-term forecasts for the power generation capacity of wind farms can be improved if additional wind measurements from anemometers and wind Llidars are included in the forecasts. We are also interested in using our measuring instruments for new applications, for example, in the area of the interaction between climate change and biodiversity research.

enlarge the image: The picture shows a ascreenshot of the story.
As a junior professor at Leipzig University, Dr Heike Kalesse-Los was one of four protagonists in the Office for University Communications’ multimedia story In Search of Snow’s Secrets. Screenshot: Office for University…

Have you set yourself a specific research goal for your work at Leipzig University? And can you tell us a little bit about this?

In the coming years, I plan to focus on the further development of machine learning-based methods to derive various microphysical cloud and precipitation parameters from the measured instrument variables such as the distribution of liquid water and ice in mixed-phase clouds, the shape – or rather the degree of riming – of ice particles, and the occurrence of secondary ice production. I would also like to make greater use of synergies between observations made in the atmospheric sciences and ecology, for example, to understand more about the distribution of falling precipitation, especially under trees. There are still surprisingly many unanswered questions here, including questions concerning the run-off of precipitation along tree trunks and the size distribution of raindrops under trees, which can influence soil erosion. 

Could you briefly name a few key areas that you would like to focus on in teaching?

Interactive teaching is important as it helps students to really understand the subject matter. It is an alternative to lecture-style teaching that works well in the field of meteorology thanks to the ratio of lecturers to students. I would like to expand on this and also incorporate the analysis of the remote sensing data collected in my working group more into my teaching in order to strengthen the link between teaching and research. I have had good experiences with “flipped lectures", in which students work on material themselves in small groups and present it to everyone in the lecture, and I would also like to develop this format further.

Here is a sentence that we would like you to complete: “For me, Leipzig University is ... ”

... the place where I studied and now want to teach and research at in the long term.

What discovery, invention or insight would you like to see in the next ten years?

It would be wonderful if everyone would realize that our personal habits and actions have a major influence on the future and that it is up to us to ensure that the earth remains liveable for future generations. In this context, I would like to see topics such as resource conservation, healthy eating, sustainable transport, and mindfulness addressed at school in an age-appropriate way. 

What are your hobbies?

I like to garden and do yoga as these are a good way to counterbalance my work as a researcher. But thanks to my son, I often spend my free time playing Lego Duplo and making sand castles instead. 

Do you have a particular motto in life that helps you through difficult times?

Yes, several. Everything passes. Every day that you are alive is a gift. It’s up to you if the glass is half-empty or half-full.

Can you tell us when and where you were born?

And I thought asking women their age was a no-go? ;) I was born in 1979 in Mühlhausen, Thuringia.

The multimedia story In Search of Snow’s Secrets begins with the words: “High up in the majestic Rocky Mountains, where the peaks seem to touch the sky and the wilderness shines in all its splendour, four researchers from Leipzig [including Dr Heike Kalesse-Los] embarked on an ambitious adventure.” They collected a wealth of video and image material on site in the Rocky Mountains and made this available to illustrate their research project. Against the breathtaking backdrop of the 3,850-metre-high Gothic Mountain, the researchers opened a new chapter in the history of snow research.

The multimedia story is a production of the Office for University Communications.

 

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