Hurricanes: Past, Present and Future

Speaker - Dr. D. James Baker, the longest-serving Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) (1993-2001), will recap the 2020 hurricane season and use examples of notable hurricanes from the past to explain what we know and don’t know now about predicting their path and strength. He will conclude with a discussion of what we can expect in the future as climate change provides a more energetic context for these disastrous events. Dr. Baker appeared on CNN during last hurricane season chastising President Trump for a baseless alteration of the predicted track of hurricane Dorian.

Dr. Baker trained as a physicist, practiced as an oceanographer, and over his long career has held leadership positions in academia, non-profits and foundations, and the U.S. government. Among these are as President of the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia’s Natural History Museum, and Dean of the College of Ocean and Fishery Sciences at the University of Washington in Seattle.  He has advised the United Nations through the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, World Meteorological Organization and Food and Agriculture Organization. He was awarded the Vikram Sarabhai Medal by the Government of India for “outstanding contributions to space research in developing countries,” and is a Fellow of the American Meteorological Society.  He is the author of the book Planet Earth: The View from Space, published by Harvard University Press.  He holds a B.S. in physics from Stanford University, a Ph.D. in physics from Cornell University, and three honorary degrees. He is currently helping developing countries monitor landscape use and protect their rainforests by providing technical assistance and access to satellite data.

Dr. Baker lives in Northwest Washington, DC with his wife, Emily.

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