Gabriel Katul

NAE Member

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Paul M. Gross Distinguished Professor

Gabriel Katul Profile Photo
Gabriel Katul Profile Photo

Bio

Gabriel G. Katul received his B.E. degree in 1988 at the American University of Beirut (Beirut, Lebanon), his M.S. degree in 1990 at Oregon State University (Corvallis, OR) and his Ph.D degree in 1993 at the University of California in Davis (Davis, CA).  He currently holds the Paul M. Gross distinguished Professor of Hydrology and Micrometeorology at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Duke University (Durham, NC).   He was a visiting fellow at University of Virginia (USA) in 1997, the Commonwealth Science and Industrial Research Organization (Australia) in 2002, the University of Helsinki (Finland) in 2009,  the FulBright-Italy Distinguished Fellow at Politecnico di Torino (Italy) in 2010, the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (Switzerland) in 2013,  Nagoya University (Japan) in 2014, University of Helsinki (Finland) in 2017, the Karlsruher Institute for Technology (Germany) in 2017, and Princeton University (USA) in 2020. He received several honorary awards, including an honorary certificate by La Seccion de Agrofisica de la Sociedad Cubana de Fisica in Habana (in 1998), the Macelwane medal and became thereafter a fellow of the American Geophysical Union (in 2002), the editor’s citation for excellence in refereeing from the American Geophysical Union (in 2008), the Hydrologic Science Award from the American Geophysical Union (in 2012), the John Dalton medal from the European Geosciences Union (in 2018), and the Outstanding Achievements in Biometeorology Award from the American Meteorological Society (in 2021) and later became a fellow of the American Meteorological Society (in 2024).  Katul was elected to the National Academy of Engineering (in 2023) for his contributions in eco-hydrology and environmental fluid mechanics.  He served as the Secretary General for the Hydrologic Science Section at the American Geophysical Union (2006-2008).  His research focuses on micro-meteorology and near-surface hydrology with emphasis on heat, momentum, carbon dioxide, water vapor, ozone, particulate matter (including aerosols, pollen, and seeds) and water transport in the soil-plant-atmosphere system as well as their implications to a plethora of hydrological, ecological, atmospheric and climate change related problems.

Education

  • Ph.D. University of California - Davis, 1993

Positions

  • Paul M. Gross Distinguished Professor
  • Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
  • Professor in the Division of Earth and Ocean Sciences
  • Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Awards, Honors, and Distinctions

  • Fellow of the American Meteorological Society. American Meteorological Society. 2024
  • Membership (NAE). National Academy of Engineering. 2023
  • Award for Outstanding Achievement in Biometeorology. American Meteorological Society. 2021
  • John Dalton Medal. European Geosciences Union. 2018
  • Norbert Gerbier-Mumm International Award. World Meteorological Organization. 2012
  • Hydrologic Sciences Award. American Geophysical Union. 2012
  • Scientific and Technological Achievement Award. United States Environmental Protection Agency. 2012
  • Fulbright Distinguished Chair (Torino, Italy). Council for International Exchange of Scholars. 2010
  • Fellow of the American Geophysical Union. American Geophysical Union. 2002
  • James B. Macelwane Medalists. American Geophysical Union. 2002
  • Inspirational Teaching. The Students of the Nicholas School of the Environment. 1994

Courses Taught

  • CEE 393: Research Independent Study in Civil and Environmental Engineering
  • CEE 394: Research Independent Study in Civil and Environmental Engineering
  • CEE 463L: Water Resources Engineering
  • CEE 490: Special Topics in Civil and Environmental Engineering
  • CEE 690: Advanced Topics in Civil and Environmental Engineering
  • CEE 691: Independent Study: Advanced Topics in Civil and Environmental Engineering
  • CEE 692: Independent Study: Advanced Topics in Civil and Environmental Engineering
  • CEE 780: Internship
  • EGR 393: Research Projects in Engineering
  • ENVIRON 380: The Calculus of Sustainability - Lessons from Complex Societies
  • ENVIRON 391: Independent Study
  • ENVIRON 393: Research Independent Study
  • ENVIRON 593: Independent Studies and Projects
  • ENVIRON 734L: Watershed Hydrology
  • ENVIRON 899: Master's Project