Marwan Katurji

Associate ProfessorMarwan Katurji

Meteorology, Physical Geography
Beatrice Tinsley Rm 228
I aim for discovery while appreciating the complexity of natural phenomena. My students will solve the environmental problems of tomorrow.

Qualifications & Memberships

Research Interests

I specialize in surface-atmosphere interactions, and has undertaken numerous research projects throughout New Zealand, the United States and Antarctica. My research interest is around modelling, simulating, measuring and analyzing atmospheric phenomena, and I use advanced field measurement and numerical modeling techniques to tackle my research objectives.

I am particularly interested in coherent turbulent structures (CTS) within the first 1km of our atmosphere above ground level (also called the atmospheric boundary-layer). CTS is a unique fabric of turbulence that controls the spatial variability of temperature and moisture across our landscape. I conduct laboratory and field experiments using state of the art in situ, aerial, remote sensing measurement systems, and also high resolution numerical weather simulations to develop a better understanding of these coherent turbulence structures.

Some of my research projects involve wind turbulence for wind energy applications, air pollution dispersion modelling, forest canopy turbulence measurements, Antarctic meteorology, wild-land fire weather and fire-atmospheric interactions, and stable boundary layers in complex terrain.

I have a growing interest in Antarctic Dry Valley climates because of the extreme environment on the continent. In Antarctica I try to understand mesocyclones (or Antarctic storms) in the Ross Sea Region.

Recent Publications

  • Purdie H., Zawar-Reza P., Katurji M., Schumacher B., Kerr T. and Bealing P. (2023) Variability in the vertical temperature profile within crevasses at an alpine glacier. Journal of Glaciology 69(274): 410-424. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/jog.2022.73.
  • Zhang J., Katurji M., Zawar-Reza P. and Strand T. (2023) The role of helicity and fire–atmosphere turbulent energy transport in potential wildfire behaviour. International Journal of Wildland Fire 32(1): 29-42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/wf22101.
  • Hilland RVJ., Bernhofer C., Bohmann M., Christen A., Katurji M., Maggs-Kölling G., Krauß M., Larsen JA., Marais E. and Pitacco A. (2022) The Namib Turbulence Experiment: Investigating Surface-Atmosphere Heat Transfer in Three Dimensions. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 103(3): E741-E759. http://dx.doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-20-0269.1.
  • Hofsteenge MG., Cullen NJ., Reijmer CH., Van Den Broeke M., Katurji M. and Orwin JF. (2022) The surface energy balance during foehn events at Joyce Glacier, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Cryosphere 16(12): 5041-5059. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-5041-2022.
  • Katurji M., Noonan B., Zhang J., Valencia A., Shumacher B., Kerr J., Strand T., Pearce G. and Zawar-Reza P. (2022) Atmospheric turbulent structures and fire sweeps during shrub fires and implications for flaming zone behaviour. International Journal of Wildland Fire 32(1): 43-55. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/wf22100.