Cluster of ExcellenceClimate, Climatic Change,
and Society (CLICCS)

Coastal cities have to face a unique set of challenges. Climate change means that sea and river levels are rising. In addition, hinterland floods and heavy rain are becoming more frequent, and the groundwater level is changing.

Prof. Heinke Schlünzen and her team are investigating how cities can sensibly adapt. “We have to...

For the first time, the Kelvin waves of the Earth’s atmosphere have been visualized in all three spatial dimensions, in contrast to the usual two-dimensional fashion. One major characteristic of the Kelvin waves is that in the atmosphere – unlike in the ocean – they only exist near the Equator, where they are virtually...

Crop fields release large amounts of climate-relevant CO2 into the atmosphere. In the process, they lose organic carbon, making them less fertile. Such losses can be reduced by putting crop residues and other agricultural organic matter back onto the fields. However, in the soil these materials are rapidly broken down into...