Faculty Profiles
Luke Van Roekel
Title: Assistant Professor of Atmospheric Science
Office Location: CSE 254
Phone:715-682-1280
Email: lvanroekel@northland.edu
Education
- Ph.D. Atmospheric Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 2010
- M.S. Atmospheric Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 2006
- B.A. Mathematics, Concordia College, Moorhead, MN 2003
Profile
I am very excited to be at Northland College, a school where quality of teaching is valued as much as meaningful research experiences for students and faculty. Having grown up in southern Minnesota, I was always fascinated by weather especially severe storms (summer and winter). However, in graduate school, my interests changed focus to the impact of regional scale phenomena on the large scale climate. The microclimates in northern Wisconsin are a perfect setting for my research as well as any weather enthusiasts, with varying landscapes inducing wild fluctuations in weather over small distances.
When not continuing my training as a keyboard jockey, I enjoy playing in musical ensembles, golfing, fishing, biking, and playing around the neighborhood with my two kids. I am looking forward to all this Lake Superior/Northern Wisconsin region has to offer in terms of camaraderie, activities, and natural beauty.
Research
Most recently my research has focused on the interplay in medium scale ocean eddies (6-12 miles across), which are simply swirls of water, and Langmuir cells. The latter have been seen by many people when out on the lake in higher wind conditions. They appear as nearly straight lines of bubbles. The Langmuir cells have swept the bubbles into lines. Both of these features have been shown to dramatically influence the larger scale ocean and thus impact climate.
I have also done research on the strength of the Gulf stream/Overturning circulation as well as monthly sea surface temperature variability in the Pacific Ocean. All of my research relies heavily on supercomputing resources around the county.
In addition to modeling research, I am also very interested (and have published a paper on) the impact of alternative teaching techniques in college science course.