University of Minnesota
Department of Geography
geog@umn.edu
612-625-6080


Department of Geography's home page.

Katherine Klink

612-625-3452
Geography 573 Soc Sci

Department Affiliations

Narrative

I have long had an interest in weather and climate, which probably is related to growing up on a dairy farm in southeastern Wisconsin. I completed my B.S. in Atmospheric Science in 1982, at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. In addition to meteorology, I took some climatology and physical geography courses offered by the Geography Department. Those classes piqued my interest in geography, especially Donn Haglund's Arctic Winter Field Course, which that year took us to Greenland and Iceland. I decided to do graduate work in a Geography department, opting to pursue climatology rather than meteorology. I completed my graduate work in the Geography Department at the University of Delaware, receiving an M.S. in Geography in 1987 and a Ph.D. in Climatology in 1992. I joined the faculty at the University of Minnesota in January of 1992.


Specialties

  • climate
  • climate variability
  • wind climatology
  • wind power
  • climate-biosphere interaction
  • environmental science

Educational Background

  • Ph.D.: Climatology, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, 1992.
  • M.S.: Geography, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, 1987.
  • B.S.: Atmospheric Science, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, 1982.

Publications

  • Residential- and commercial-scale distributed wind energy in North Dakota, USA: Klink, Katherine, Aaron Knoll, Renewable Energy, 34 2493-2500, 2009.
  • Low wind speed turbines and wind power potential in Minnesota, USA: Klink, Katherine, Corinne Wichser, Elsevier, Renewable Energy, 33 1749-1758, 2008.
  • Atmospheric circulation effects on wind speed variability at turbine height: Klink, Katherine, Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology, 46 445-456, 2007.
  • Trends and interannual variability of wind speed distributions in Minnesota. Klink, Katherine, Journal of Climate 15:3311-3317, 2002.
  • Climatological mean and interannual variance of United States surface wind speed, direction, and velocity. Klink, Katherine, International Journal of Climatology 19:471-488, 1999.
  • Surface aggregation and subgrid-scale climate. Klink, Katherine, International Journal of Climatology, 15, pp. 1219-1240, 1995.

Research Activities

  • Using historical yield data to determine the effect of climate change on productivity of spring wheat, barley, and oats in Minnesota: Co-PIs are Jochum Wiersma and Deon Stuthman, Dept. of Agronomy and Plant Genetics; funded by the Center for Urban and Regional Affairs, University of Minnesota, 2008 - 2009
  • Snow Effects on the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area Urban Heat Island: Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) project, November 2008 - June 2009
  • Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Wind Regimes in North Dakota Applied to a County-Focused Energy Supply System: Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) project, Winter 2008 - Spring 2008
  • Wind Speed Variability and Turbine Power Output: Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) project, Summer 2006 - Fall 2006

Professional Activities

  • Member: American Meteorological Society, Committee of Judges for Undergraduate Awards , 2006 - present
  • Co-chair, Graduate Fellowship Committee: University of Minnesota Graduate School , 2006 - present
  • Director of Graduate Studies: Graduate Program in Geography , 2008 - present
  • Editorial Board: Physical Geography , 2002 - present
  • Chair: College of Liberal Arts Curriculum, Instruction, and Advising Committee , 2006 - 2008
  • Member Representative: University Corporation for Atmospheric Research , 2002 - present
  • Secretary: Association of American Geographers , 2002 - 2003
  • Representative for the Association of American Geographers: AAAS Section on Education: 2002 - present
  • Regional Councillor: Association of American Geographers , 2000 - 2003

Outreach Activities

  • Volunteer with Curriculum Resources and Programs: Elementary school presentations, 2006 - present
  • Board of Directors: Eureka Recycling, 2006 - present

Courses Taught

  • Geog/ESPM 1425 - Introduction to Meteorology
  • Geog 3401/5401 - Geography of Environmental Systems and Global Change
  • Geog 5423 - Climate Models and Modeling
  • Geog 8001 - Problems in Geographic Thought
  • Geog 8270 - Seminar in Climatology
  • Geog 8260 - Seminar in Physical Geography
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