ABOUT ME
I am a research hydrologist and climatologist, recently retired from the U.S. Geological Survey, a Visiting Researcher for Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and a Distinguished Visiting Researcher at the Desert Research Institute. I research the hydrology, climate, and water resources of the West, focusing on regional surface water and groundwater resources, hydroclimatic variability, and climate-change impacts. For contracting purposes, I have recently established a one-person LLC, called Michael Dettinger Climate Science, LLC.
Over the years, I've been:
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physical-sciences team leader for DOI-DOD ecosystem planning in the Mojave Desert (way back in the 1990s),
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founding member of the CIRMONT Western Mountain Climate Sciences Consortium,
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co-editor of the 2008 and 2016 State of Bay-Delta Science reports,
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research advisor for USGS Surface-Water Discipline,
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member of the USGS Global Change Science Strategic Planning Team,
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lead author of the Water Resources chapter of the 2013 National Climate Assessment,
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convening lead author of California 4th Climate Assessment Sierra Nevada Region Report,
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a member of the Standing Review Board for NASA's Surface-Water/Oceanographic Topography (SWOT) mission.
I've authored and co-authored 150+ scientific articles and chapters in scholarly journals and books, 30+ government reports, and 80+ other reports in less formal outlets. My work has been cited in the scientific literature more than 26,000 times (>11,000 in the past 5 yrs).
Photo: Lamoille Cyn, Ruby Mtns, Nevada
EDUCATION
PROFESSIONAL HONORS
Hydrology FELLOW,
American Geophysical Union
2014-present
1973-1977
University of California, San Diego
BA Physics, Summa cum Laude
Atmospheric & Hydrospheric FELLOW, American Association for the Advancement of Science
2018-present
SENIOR SCIENTIST, US Geological Survey
2015-2019
1977-1979
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
MS Civil Engineering (Water Resources),
1990-1997
University of California, Los Angeles
MS & PhD Atmospheric Sciences
CLIMATE SERVICE AWARDS,
California Department of Water Resources
2007, 2014
VICE PRESIDENT GORE'S NATIONAL PERFORMANCE REVIEW AWARD
for physical-science leadership in multiagency DOD/DOI Mojave Ecosystem Initiative
1996
SPECIAL RECOGNITION AWARD, California Extreme Precipitation Symposium
2020
