GFDL Awards & Honors

P.C.D. (Chris) Milly, a leading expert in physical hydrology, hydrological modeling, and climate science, has been awarded the 2024 Robert E. Horton Medal by the American Geophysical Union (AGU). Throughout his distinguished career, Dr. Milly led the development of the hydrological component of GFDL’s climate models, significantly advancing the integration of hydrological processes into global […]

Congratulations to Nadir Jeevanjee, recipient of the 2025 Henry G. Houghton Award from the American Meteorological Society (AMS). This prestigious award recognizes Dr. Jeevanjee for “providing robust and comprehensive theoretical frameworks to illuminate complex phenomena in climate physics.” A Physical Research Scientist in GFDL’s Atmospheric Physics Division, Dr. Jeevanjee joined GFDL in 2016. Since then […]

Lucas Harris, Deputy Division Leader of the Weather and Climate Dynamics Division at GFDL, has been honored with the 2024 American Geophysical Union (AGU) Atmospheric Sciences Ascent Award. This award recognizes his outstanding research and leadership in high-resolution atmospheric model development and its applications for weather and climate predictions. The Ascent Award is presented annually […]

P.C.D. (Chris) Milly, a Research Hydrologist at GFDL from 1988 to 2022, has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering for “advances in the understanding of global and continental hydrology and their interactions with a changing climate.” This prestigious recognition places Dr. Milly among 114 new members elected this year for their contributions to […]

Tom Delworth, a Senior Scientist and leader of the Seasonal to Decadal Variability and Predictability division at GFDL, has been honored with the 2023 Presidential Rank Award.  One of the most prestigious awards in the civil service, it recognizes the important contributions of public servants across the federal government. “The Presidential Rank Awards highlight public […]

Congratulations to Vaishali Naik (Research Physical Scientist), recipient of the 2023 Piers J. Sellers Global Environmental Change Mid-Career Award from the American Geophysical Union (AGU). With this award, AGU recognizes Dr. Naik for her “outstanding contributions in research, educational, or societal impacts in the area of global environmental change, especially through interdisciplinary approaches.” Known for […]

Ronald Stouffer has been awarded the 2024 Syukuro Manabe Climate Research Award from the American Meteorological Society (AMS), “for groundbreaking development of coupled atmosphere-ocean climate models with innovative applications to characterize and quantify global climate variability and change.” Stouffer began his research career at GFDL in 1977, working with Syukuro Manabe, and was a senior […]

Rong Zhang, a Senior Scientist and head of GFDL’s Ocean and Cryosphere Division, was elected a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) for 2023 for her “seminal contributions to the study of the Atlantic Ocean and its role in global climate.”  Dr. Zhang is considered a leading expert on the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation […]

For Ming Zhao’s “growing research accomplishments and leadership in climate model development”, he has been recognized with the 2022 AGU Ascent Award. A Senior Physical Scientist at GFDL, Zhao conducts research focused on challenging topics with extensive societal and economic implications, while also being exceptionally skilled in the development of climate models. Dr. Zhao successfully […]

Honoring his contributions to the advancement of physics, the American Physical Society (APS) elected NOAA Climate Scientist V. “Ram” Ramaswamy among its 2021 Fellows. The APS Fellowship Program recognizes members who have made exceptional contributions in physics research, important applications of physics, leadership in or service to physics, or physics education. As Director of the […]