Michael Oppenheimer is the Albert G.
Milbank Professor of
Geosciences and International Affairs in
the Woodrow Wilson School and
the Department of Geosciences at Princeton University
. Prior to joining Princeton he was Chief
Scientist with
Environmental
Defense Fund, where he managed the Climate and Air Program.
Prior to
his position at the Environmental Defense Fund, Dr. Oppenheimer
served as Atomic and Molecular Astrophysicist at the
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and Lecturer on
Astronomy at Harvard
University
. He received an S.B. in chemistry from
M.I.T.
, a Ph.D. in chemical physics from the University of
Chicago
, and pursued post-doctoral research at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for
Astrophysics
.
Among Oppenheimer’s other current professional positions are a
multi-year appointment as Visiting Professor at NYU School of Law
and as a Science Advisor to the Environmental Defense Fund.
Broadly speaking, Oppenheimer’s research interests focus on the
science of Earth’s atmosphere and public policy governing it,
particularly with respect to
climate
change and its impacts. Much of his research aims to understand
the potential for "dangerous" outcomes of increasing levels of
greenhouse gases by exploring the effects of
global warming on ecosystems such as coral
reefs, on the ice sheets, on sea level, and on patterns of human
migration. He also studies the role of scientific uncertainty,
scientific learning, and the scientific assessment process in
decisions on problems of the global environment. His research on
policy initiatives includes analyses of emissions trading, and
implications of alternative carbon and climate management
strategies including bio-fuels, carbon capture and storage, and
geo-engineering.
Oppenheimer is a long-time participant in the
Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which won the Nobel Peace Prize
in 2007, serving as a Lead Author on the Third and Fourth
Assessment reports. He is currently a Coordinating Lead Author of
the IPCC special report on Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and
Disasters to Advance Climate Adaptation. Oppenheimer has authored
more than 100 articles published in professional journals and is
co-author (with Robert H. Boyle) of a 1990 book, Dead Heat: The
Race Against The Greenhouse Effect. During 2009, he became
Editor-in-Chief of a new journal section, Climatic Change
Letters.
Oppenheimer has appeared with actor and
environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio on
The Oprah Winfrey Show, as well as
other television programs such as the 2006
Discovery Channel show entitled Global
Warming: What You Need to Know, with
Tom
Brokaw. He also appeared on the 12 February 2007 episode of
The Colbert Report.
Oppenheimer lives in New York City with his wife and two
children.
Selected Publications
Google Scholar search on author:M-Oppenheimer in
physical sciences
BA Bradley, M. Oppenheimer, and DS Wilcove (2009) Climate Change
and Plant Invasions: Restoration Opportunities Ahead?, Global
Change Biology, 15, 1511–1521, doi:
10.1111/j.1365-2486.2008.01824.x
J. Smith et al (2009) Assessing dangerous climate change through an
update of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
‘‘reasons for concern’’,PNAS
(www.pnas.org_cgi_doi_10.1073_pnas.0812355106)
D Morrow, R Kopp, M Oppenheimer (2009) Toward ethical norms and
institutions for geo-engineering research, Environ. Res. Lett. 4
(2009) doi:10.1088/1748-9326/4/4/045106
T. Searchinger et al (2009) Fixing a critical climate accounting
error, Science 326, 527–528, DOI: 10.1126/science.1178797
M.Oppenheimer, BC O’Neill and M Webster (2008), Negative learning,
Climatic Change 89, 155-172 DOI 10.1007/s10584-008-9405-1
Donner et al (2006) Global Assessment of Coral Bleaching and
Required Rates of Adaptation under Climate Change Global Change
Biology, 11, 1–15, doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2486.2005.01073.x
M Oppenheimer 1998. "Global warming and the stability of the West
Antarctic Ice Sheet"
Nature Vol. 393, pp. 325 - 332. 28
May 1998.
full text PDF
TW Hartquist, A Dalgarno, M Oppenheimer 1980. "Molecular
diagnostics of interstellar shocks"
Astrophysical Journal
v. 236, no. 1.
M Oppenheimer, A Dalgarno 1974. "The Fractional Ionization in Dense
Interstellar Clouds"
Astrophysical Journal v. 192, no. 1,
pp. 29-32.
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