Henning Rust

Prof. Dr. Henning Rust is a Professor of Statistical Meteorology at the Department of Geosciences, Freie Universität Berlin, and head of the Statistical Meteorology Group. He co-speaks the Hans-Ertel-Centre for Weather Research, funded by the German Weather Service (DWD), and contributes to national and international climate projects like MiKlip and BINGO. His work bridges statistical modeling, extreme event analysis, and climate risk communication.

• PhD in Theoretical Physics (2007, University of Potsdam)
• Diplom in Physics (2001, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg)
• BSc with Honours in Physics (1998, Brock University, Canada)

Research Interests focus on stochastic precipitation models, extreme convective events, statistical downscaling, and forecast verification. He specializes in time series analysis and long-range dependence in climatological data.

His recent publications analyze decadal climate predictability, compound extremes (e.g., ozone-weather interactions), and citizen science applications in weather education. Notable works include skill score decomposition for Atlantic climate phases and flexible IDF curve modeling for urban hydrology.

Awards include a summa cum laude PhD and the Distinguished Graduation Student Award for Physics. He supervises PhD and Master’s students on topics like windstorm risk modeling and precipitation extremes.

Additional roles: German Meteorological Society (executive board), MiKlip steering committee, and climate communication via self-built weather station projects.