Faculty
William Gallus
Professor and Program Director
Synoptic and Mesocale Meteorology, Numerical Weather Prediction
3025 Agronomy
Dept. of Geological and Atmospheric Sciences
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011
515-294-2270
Email: wgallus@iastate.edu
Abbreviated
CV
About Me
Education
B.S. (with Highest Honors) Pennsylvania State University, 1987
M.S. (NSF Graduate Fellow) Colorado State University, 1989
Ph.D. Colorado State University, 1993
Research
My research interests are primarily directed toward improved
prediction of small-scale atmospheric phenomena, especially severe
thunderstorms and their rainfall. Improvements in computational technology
in recent years has allowed for increasingly fine grid spacing to
be used in numerical weather prediction models. However, the benefits
of improved resolution may be more modest than the meteorological
community originally thought. Forecasts of warm season thunderstorm
system rainfall remain rather poor. My own research with the Eta and
WRF models suggests there is no way in the forseeable future that
improvements can be made to guarantee good results consistently in
a single deterministic forecast. Thus, current research projects include
study of how ensemble forecast systems might best improve these difficult
rainfall forecasts. In addition, I am investigating whether forecast
skill for these systems is a function of the larger-scale environment
and convective morphology. Finally, my interest in severe storms extends
into other research projects aimed toward improving student understanding
of storm-scale dynamics through the use of a virtual tornadic thunderstorm,
and toward construction of homes better designed to withstand tornado
winds through wind tunnel testing in a state-of-the-art laboratory
tornado simulator that allows for a translating vortex.
Research Projects
- Gallus, W. A., Jr., C. Cervato, and T. Greenbowe, 2006-2008: Development
of cutting edge geoscience virtual reality applications for classroom
instruction and pedagogical evaluation of the impact on learning
of VR technology. NSF
Fig 1
Fig
2
Link
to application download
- Gallus, W. A., Jr., and M. Segal, 2006-2008: Evaluating the predictability
of mesoscale circulations, morphologies, and rainfall evolution
for warm season convective systems using near-cloud resolving grid
resolution. NSF
- Gallus, W. A., Jr., and M. Olsen, 2006-2008: Model investigations
of Upper Troposphere/Lower Stratosphere water vapor and transport
into the stratosphere. NASA
- Sarkar, P. P, F. Haan, and W. A. Gallus, Jr., 2002-2006: Study
of tornadoes and their effect on built structures considering system
morphology. NSF
Brochure
Ames
Tribune Article
- Sarkar, P. P, F. Haan, H. Hu, W. A. Gallus, Jr., V. Dayal, and
E. S. Takle, 2006-2007: Reducing wind-induced damages from storms.
NOAA
Projects
Teaching
Meteorology 411/511 Synoptic Meteorology (3 credits)
Meteorology 417/517 Mesoscale Forecasting Laboratory (3 credits)
Meteorology 407/507 Mesoscale Dynamic Meteorology (3 credits)
Meteorology 321 Meteorological Internship (1-2 credits)
Course
Descriptions
Selected Refereed Papers
Cervato, C., W. A. Gallus, Jr., P. Boysen, and M. Larsen, 2009: Today's forecast: higher thinking with a chance of conceptual growth. EOS, 90, 20, 19 May 2009.
Gallus, W. A., Jr., 2009: Application of object-oriented verification techniques to ensemble precipitation forecasts. Wea. Forecasting. (in press).
Ebert, E. E., and W. A. Gallus, Jr., 2009: Toward better understanding of the contiguous rain area (CRA) method. Wea. Forecasting, (in press).
Clark, A. J., W. A. Gallus, Jr., M. Xue, and F. Kong, 2009: A comparison of precipitation skill between small convection-resolving and large non-convective-resolving ensembles. Mon. Wea. Rev., (in press).
Clark, A. J., Schaffer, C. J., K. Johnson-OMara, and W. A. Gallus, Jr., 2009: Climatology of storm reports relative to upper-level jet streaks. Wea. Forecasting, (in press).
Aligo, E. A., W. A. Gallus, Jr., and M. Segal, 2009: On the impact of WRF model vertical grid resolution on Midwest summer rainfall forecasts. 24, Wea. Forecasting, 575-594.
Gallus, W. A., Jr., and M. Pfeifer, 2008: Intercomparison of simulations using 5 WRF microphysical schemes with dual-Polarization data for a German squall line. Advances in Geosciences, 16, 109-116.
Haan, F. L., Jr., P. P. Sarkar, and W. A. Gallus, Jr., 2008: Design, construction and performance of a large tornado simulator for wind engineering applications. Engineering Structures, 30, 1146-1159.
Gallus, W. A., Jr., E. V. Johnson, and N. Snook, 2008: Spring and summer severe weather reports over the Midwest as a function of convective mode: A preliminary study. Wea. Forecasting, 23, 101-113.
Clark, A., W. A. Gallus, Jr., and T.-C. Chen, 2008: Contributions of mixed physics and perturbed lateral boundary conditions to the skill and spread of precipitation forecasts from a WRF ensemble. Mon. Wea. Rev., 136, 2140-2156.
Kuai, L., F. L. Haan, Jr., W. A. Gallus, Jr., and P. P. Sarkar, 2008: CFD Simulations of the flow field of a laboratory-simulated tornado for parameter sensitivity studies and comparison with field
Measurements. Wind and Structures, 11, 2, 75-96.
Clark, A., W. A. Gallus, Jr., and T.-C. Chen, 2007: Comparison of the diurnal cycle in convection-resolving and non-convection-resolving mesoscale models. Mon. Wea. Rev., 135, 3456-3473.
Aligo, E. A., W. A. Gallus, Jr., and M. Segal, 2007: Evaluation of rainfall forecast spread in an ensemble initialized with different soil moisture analyses. Wea. Forecasting, 22, 299-314.
Jankov, I., W. A. Gallus, Jr., M. Segal, and S. E. Koch, 2007: Influence of initial conditions on the WRF-ARW model QPF response to physical parameterization changes. Wea. Forecasting, 22, 501-519.
Publications
