Dr John Bruun
Lecturer
Mathematics and Statistics
I’m a Physicist (Theoretical Physics, Lancaster degree: First including History minor, PhD 1994 and CPhys), science communicator and Lecturer in Mathematics at Exeter.
I am interested in data analytics and how we can better identify and explain physical phenomena (chaotic and regular) in the climate system, especially its impact to the biosphere. I'm also a professional member of the UK and Irelands Institute of Physics (IOP), currently as Co-Chair of the Space Group and member of Environmental Physics and Nonlinear and Complexity Phyics Groups and have previosly been Chair for the Physics Communicators Group and co-opted to the Women in Physics Group.
I updated our understanding of the ENSO in 2017 & 2018 by identifying the Heartbeat of the Southern Osillation phenomena. This is a ocean-land-atmosphere coupled system. The phenomona explains the presence of low frequency modulation (multidecadal) across the Pacific basin and introduced a new method of spectral analysis to climatic science called dominant frequency state analysis (DFSA).
The spatial wave dispersion characteristics of the Earth system are being investigated with a spatial extension to DFSA (sDFSA) developed through the Models 2 Decisions programme. This is being applied within the Isca simulation environment to help us ascertain how wave modes may alter in the context of tipping point transitions and the teleconnection characteristics that influence precipitation in Sub-Saharan Africa (Sahel) and Asia. Current work also includes extending the general extreme value process approach that I helped develop for the Northern European coastal flooding infrastructure to include climatic teleconnection.
Overall these methods enable the identification of dynamic structure (both climatic modes and teleconnection) and extremes in a physically consistent way across observational, simulated models and paleo reconstruction records.
Current research and science communication work themes:
A) ENSO teleconnection impact to food security risks in Sahel.
B) ENSO teleconnection and wave dispersion relationships in the Earth system.
C) How paleo time scale records help inform contemporary understanding of the Earth system.
D) Non-linear dynamic structure of Earth system modes, hysteresis and extreme value processes.
E) Biological response characteristics in the context of physical forcing (vegetation and planktonic).
F) The transfer of Theoretical Physics knowledge and associated methods into climatic science.
G) Establishing creative and diverse ways to communicate the physics of the Earth system at both an advanced level and at an informed
public and policy level.
Please get in touch if you would like develop a collaboration/ PhD or Internship on any of these topics or to know more about DFSA and extreme process methods and their use.