Tim Carlsen

Tim Carlsen serves as a Researcher at the Section for Meteorology and Oceanography within the Department of Geosciences at the University of Oslo's Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. Appointed to this position in 2021 following a postdoctoral fellowship at the same institution (2019-2021), he contributes to Norway's leading polar climate research infrastructure while maintaining international collaborations across European Arctic projects.

His academic trajectory includes doctoral research at Leipzig University (2014-2018), where he developed expertise in cryospheric remote sensing and cloud microphysics. This foundation supports his current work bridging observational data with climate modeling frameworks.

Carlsen's research centers on mixed-phase cloud dynamics in polar regions, with particular emphasis on ice nucleation processes and cloud-phase transitions. His investigations into snow surface reflectivity examine bidirectional reflectance distribution functions under varying illumination and surface conditions. Utilizing multi-platform remote sensing (satellite, airborne, ground-based lidar/radar), he addresses critical gaps in understanding Arctic Amplification mechanisms. Current projects integrate field campaigns like NASCENT with global climate model evaluation.

Analysis of his 15 most recent publications (2017-2025) reveals three dominant research thrusts: (1) Arctic cloud-phase representation in CMIP6 models, (2) ice nucleating particle impacts on high-latitude precipitation, and (3) snow grain size retrieval methods for cryospheric albedo modeling. His work consistently employs multi-sensor validation approaches, with growing emphasis on aircraft icing prediction and drifting snow-cloud interactions.

Carlsen actively contributes to major research initiatives including the ERC Consolidator Grant 'STate-dEPendent Cloud feedbacks' (STEEPEGE), ERC Start-up grant 'Mixed-phase clouds and climate' (MC2), and the BRACE-MY capacity-building project. His involvement in IceSAFARI demonstrates applied research for aviation safety, while the ACT-Pilot project connects his cloud physics expertise to Arctic sustainability transitions.

As part of Oslo's Meteorology and Oceanography section, he collaborates with international teams on field experiments across Svalbard and Antarctica. His current work focuses on improving cloud microphysics parameterizations in Earth system models through targeted observational constraints, with emerging interest in drone-based icing condition monitoring.