Katrin Meissner

Professor Katrin Meissner serves as Director of the Climate Change Research Centre at the University of New South Wales and is an Associate Investigator of the Australian Research Council's Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes. Her research employs Earth System Climate Models and paleoclimate records to investigate abrupt climate change events, thresholds, and feedback mechanisms in the climate system, with particular emphasis on terrestrial biogeochemical cycles and ocean circulation dynamics.

Research interests focus on:

• Dynamics of abrupt climate transitions and tipping points
• Interactions between ocean circulation and carbon cycling
• Paleoclimate reconstruction using model-data synthesis
• Impacts of Southern Ocean processes on global climate
• Biogeochemical feedbacks in warming and cooling scenarios

Publications demonstrate consistent focus on paleoclimate modeling, particularly Last Interglacial and glacial termination dynamics, Southern Ocean processes, ice-sheet interactions, and carbon cycle feedbacks. Recent work expands into climate health impacts, including extreme heat mortality and air pollution effects on birth outcomes.

Scientific awards include:

• Multiple ARC Discovery Grants (2013-2025)
• UNSW Science Goldstar & Silverstar Awards
• ARC Future Fellowship (Level II)
• NSERC Accelerator and Discovery Grants
• CFCAS Targeted Project Grant

Leads the Climate Change Research Centre, coordinating interdisciplinary climate research. Manages significant grant portfolios and collaborates internationally on model intercomparison projects (e.g., CMIP6-PMIP4). Current work investigates Eocene climate dynamics, ocean deoxygenation, and climate-health interactions using high-resolution modeling approaches.