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Rob Thompson

Postdoctoral Research Scientist in Meteorology, University of Reading
I'm a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Reading, currently doing research into rainfall measurement, looking at how we measure rainfall, its accuracy and usefulness, particularly for flood producing rainfall.

Most of my work has been in using dual-polarisation weather radar to get improved rainfall rates - often paired with disdrometers and rain gauges, and dealing with the issues they have during the heavy rains that matter the most, working on problems such as attenuation, beam blocking, the radar bright band and drop size distribution changes. Recent work is moving towards the measurement of rainfall from space on A new technique for measuring global rainfall. Previous work has been under a number of projects, most notably the NERC funded FFIR (Flooding From Intense Rainfall) programme.

I've also spent a number of years as a teaching fellow, teaching abroad range of courses for post- and undergraduate students in meteorology and related disciplines. They have included, fundamentals of synoptic meteorology, hydrology, statistics and computer programming - and have visited and taught in China - where the University of Reading has a partnership with NUIST.

Finally I have done a lot of outreach as I think its really important that the science we do can reach a wide audience, I've visited many schools, given public talks, taken part in national science week, written in magazines and newspapers and appear on TV reasonably frequently.

Education:
2007 University of Reading, PhD Meteorology
2002 University of Reading, BSc (Hons.) Physics and Meteorology

Why forecasting snow is so difficult in the UK

Jan 25, 2023 04:39 am UTC| Nature

Cold winter weather in the UK almost always brings with it talk of snow. British people tend to approach weather forecasts of snow with a combination of excitement and trepidation. Who doesnt like the sight of unspoilt...

Economy

South Korean Won Leads Asian FX Losses as Dollar Rises

The South Korean won led declines across Asian currencies on Monday as the U.S. dollar strengthened, while the Japanese yen retreated after giving up some of its intervention-driven gains. The U.S. Dollar Index rose 0.18%...

Oil Prices Rise as Hormuz Reopening Remains Uncertain

Oil prices climbed on Monday as uncertainty over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz continued to support the market, despite Iran and Oman moving closer to an agreement on new shipping routes through the strategic...

Gold Prices Hold Near Seven-Week High as Markets Await U.S. Inflation Data

Gold prices remained largely steady on Monday, hovering near a seven-week high as investors assessed Middle East geopolitical risks and looked ahead to key U.S. inflation data that could influence the Federal Reserves...

Asian Stocks Rise as Weak US Jobs Data Eases Fed Rate Hike Bets

Asian stocks mostly advanced on Monday, following record highs on Wall Street as weaker-than-expected U.S. employment data reduced expectations for a Federal Reserve interest rate hike in September. Japan and South Korea...

Asian Stocks Rise as Weak US Jobs Data Eases Fed Rate Hike Fears

Asian stock markets moved higher on Monday, following record gains on Wall Street as weaker U.S. employment data reduced expectations for an imminent Federal Reserve interest rate hike. Oil prices also advanced as...

Politics

Houthi Attack on Yemen’s Mocha Port Kills Seven, Injures 30

Seven people were killed and 30 others wounded after Houthi forces launched a large-scale drone and missile attack on Yemens Red Sea port city of Mocha, according to the Yemeni military. In a statement issued early Monday,...

Germany Warns of Daily Hybrid Warfare Threats

Germany is facing foreign hybrid warfare operations on a daily basis, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt has warned after authorities discovered an explosive-carrying drone at Leipzig/Halle Airport. Dobrindt said hostile...

ICE to Complete Nationwide Body Camera Rollout by End of August

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will equip all officers and agents working in the field with body-worn cameras by the end of August, accelerating a nationwide rollout that was initially expected to take...

Iran-Oman Near Strait of Hormuz Deal as Shipping Tensions Persist

Iran and Oman are nearing an agreement on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, but Tehran says a bilateral deal alone will not be enough to fully reopen the critical global energy route. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas...

Joe Biden’s Prostate Cancer Has Spread Further, Hunter Biden Says

Former U.S. President Joe Bidens prostate cancer has spread beyond his bones and is causing significant pain, according to his son, Hunter Biden, who discussed his fathers health in a BBC interview. Speaking to the BBCs...

Science

Blue Origin New Glenn Explosion Could Delay Launch Operations Until 2028

Blue Origin is facing a significant setback after a dramatic explosion involving its New Glenn rocket severely damaged a launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, repairs to the...

Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Explodes During Launch Pad Test, Delaying Space Ambitions

Blue Origin suffered a major setback after its uncrewed New Glenn rocket exploded during a launch pad test in Florida on Thursday, raising new challenges for Jeff Bezos space company as it competes with Elon Musks SpaceX...

SpaceX Delays Starship V3 Launch Ahead of Potential Record IPO

SpaceX on Thursday postponed the highly anticipated launch of its 12th Starship rocket test from Texas after technical issues interrupted the final countdown. The company now plans to attempt the Starship V3 launch again...

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

Technology

Sony, TSMC Eye $6.3 Billion Japan Chip Venture for Next-Gen Image Sensors

Sony Group and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) are reportedly preparing to invest about 1 trillion yen ($6.32 billion) in a new Japanese semiconductor venture focused on next-generation chips for image...

Nvidia Seen Beating Q2 Targets as Vera Rubin Cycle Begins

Nvidia (NVDA) could enter a multi-quarter growth cycle as shipments of its next-generation Vera Rubin AI chips begin, with BofA Global Research forecasting stronger-than-expected quarterly results and maintaining a bullish...

OpenAI Restricts Astra AI Over Cyberattack Risks

OpenAI has reportedly restricted parts of the development of its next-generation AI model, code-named Astra, after early evaluations indicated the system could potentially carry out sophisticated cyberattacks with limited...

Nvidia to Invest Up to $3 Billion in Blackstone-Backed Lancium

Nvidia is reportedly preparing to invest as much as $3 billion in Lancium, a Blackstone-backed power infrastructure developer involved in the Stargate artificial intelligence infrastructure initiative, as demand for...

Meta Ordered to Pay $567M Over Child Safety Violations in New Mexico

Meta Platforms Inc. has been ordered to pay $567 million into a fund designed to address harm to young people, in a major legal ruling involving child safety on Facebook and Instagram. Judge Bryan Biedscheid of New Mexicos...