Professor David Hannah, a Professor of Hydrology in the School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of Birmingham, describes his research in understanding events such as floods and droughts in their climatic context.
60 seconds with Professor David Hannah
I am David Hannah, a Professor of Hydrology at the University of Birmingham. Understanding and responding to climate and human impacts on hydrological systems is vital for the management of freshwaters.
My research focuses on 3 related themes in the field of hydroclimatology with an overall goal to use observations and models to understand hydrological events (such as floods and droughts) in their climatic context.
Firstly, we work in glacier-fed river basins in Arctic and alpine environments to create new knowledge of the climate drivers, hydrological response and habitat conditions that control water availability and river biodiversity.
Secondly, our research focuses on linking variations in river flow to climate and land changes (now and into the future) and understanding the interconnected-ness of the water cycle.
Thirdly, we seek to unravel the multiple controls on river temperature to understand the potential of different adaptations to climate change to reduce high temperature extremes that may be damaging for aquatic organisms.
Professor David Hannah's profile