Dirk Olonscheck

Dirk Olonscheck is a Research Scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology (MPI-M) in Hamburg, Germany, working within the Department of Climate Dynamics in the Director's Research Group (CDY). He has been with the institute since 2013 in various capacities, currently serving as a Research Scientist since 2023 under the mentorship of Sarah Kang.

His educational background includes a Ph.D. in Earth System Modelling from the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology (2015-2018), a Master of Science in Atmospheric and Climate Science from ETH Zurich (2012-2014), and a Bachelor of Science in Geoecology from the University of Potsdam and University College London (2009-2012).

Dr. Olonscheck's research focuses on climate variability, particularly internal climate variability and its changes under global warming. His work examines sea surface temperature patterns, temperature variability, climate extremes, and Arctic sea ice dynamics. He has made significant contributions to understanding how climate models represent observed patterns and how internal variability affects climate projections.

His publication record shows a strong focus on large ensemble climate modeling, with recent work exploring tropical Pacific warming patterns, Arctic marine heatwaves, and the relationship between climate model resolution and the representation of extreme precipitation events. His research demonstrates consistent patterns of change in temperature variability with increases on tropical land and decreases at high latitudes.

Dr. Olonscheck has received recognition through the prestigious Alexander-von-Humboldt Postdoctoral Fellowship, which supported his research at the University of Edinburgh in 2020.

He actively mentors early-career researchers, currently supervising postdoctoral researchers Aruhasi and Shreya Dhame. He serves on PhD advisory and examination committees for several students including Alec Sherrill, Siân Chilcott, Daniel Burt, and Celine Gieße. He has also supervised Master's students Jhanvi Kumar and Alec Sherrill.

Dr. Olonscheck teaches 'Grundlagen für Meteorologie und Klima' (Lecture Weather and Climate Extremes) for BSc students during the winter semester (2023/2024, 2024/2025).