Craig Ferguson

Dr. Ferguson’s research is focused on improving our understanding and modeling of multiscale land-atmosphere interactions especially in the context of extreme wind and precipitation predictability at short-to-seasonal time scales. In his research, he applies data from sparse observational networks (i.e., mesonets), satellite remote sensing, and atmospheric reanalyses to compliment in-house modeling experiments conducted with NASA-LIS and WRF/NU-WRF. Studies that span local-meso-synoptic scales and traditional hydrologic and atmospheric science disciplinary boundaries are of particular interest. For example, Dr. Ferguson has recently analyzed the impact of SMAP satellite soil moisture data assimilation on forecasts of the Great Plains low-level jet.

Within the Global Energy and Water Cycle Exchanges (GEWEX) project of the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP), Dr. Ferguson has served on the Global Hydroclimatology Panel (GHP; 2015-2020) and the Global Land-Atmosphere System Study Panel (GLASS; 2011-present). He is currently a member of the GEWEX Land Atmospheric Feedback Observatory (GLAFO) and U.S. Regional Hydroclimate Project workgroups. 

Since 2021, Dr. Ferguson has been a member of the NASA Sounder Discipline Team. Since 2022, he has served as Editor for AMS Journal of Hydrometeorology.

Observing, diagnosing and understanding land-atmosphere interactions; satellite remote sensing of atmospheric profiles, soil moisture, and evapotranspiration; understanding the hydrological response to climate change; constructing climate-quality reanalyses.

Enhanced Soundings for Local Coupling Studies

The Great Lakes Environment-Energy-Economy Nexus

Postdocs
Madhusmita Swain (present)  
Shubhi Agrawal (2018-2021)
D. Alex Burrows (2017-2020)
Geng Xia (2018-2019)
Jaison Ambadan Thomas (2017)
Hyo-Jong Song (2014-2015)

Graduate Students
Nabindra Gyawali, PhD student (2020-pres)
Matthew Campbell, MS (2019)
Wanhee Kim, (2015-2017)
Alex Gallagher (2014-2015)
Kritika Thapa, MS (2015)

Ferguson, C. R. (2022). Changes in Great Plains low-level jet structure and associated precipitation over the twentieth century. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 127, e2021JD035859. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021JD035859

Vergopolan, N., N. W. Chaney, M. Pan, C.R. Ferguson et al. SMAP-HydroBlocks, a 30-m satellite-based soil moisture dataset for the conterminous US. Sci Data 8, 264 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-021-01050-2

Xue, Y., … C.R. Ferguson et al. (2021), Impact of Initialized Land Surface Temperature and Snowpack on Subseasonal to Seasonal Prediction Project (LS4P), Phase I: Organization and Experimental Design, Geosci. Model Dev., 14, 4465–4494, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-14-4465-2021

*Agrawal, S., C.R. Ferguson, *D. A. Burrows and L. Bosart (2021), Teleconnections governing the interannual variability of Great Plains low-level jets in May, J. Climate, https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-20-0451.1

*Osei, M., L. Amekudzi, C.R. Ferguson and S. Danuor (2020), Intercomparison of AIRS temperature and relative humidity profiles with AMMA and DACCIWA radiosonde observations over West Africa, Remote Sensing, 12, 2631, https://doi.org/10.3390/rs12162631

Ferguson, C.R., *S. Agrawal, M. Beauharnois, *G. Xia, *D.A. Burrows and L. Bosart (2020), Assimilation of satellite-derived soil moisture for improved forecasts of the Great Plains low-level jet, Mon. Wea. Rev., 148, 4607- 4627, https://doi.org/10.1175/MWR-D-20-0185.1

*Burrows, D.A., C.R. Ferguson and L. Bosart (2020), The role of upper-level coupling on Great Plains low-level jet structure and variability, J. Atmos. Sci., 77, 4317-4335, https://doi.org/10.1175/JAS-D-20-0059.1

*Campbell, M., C.R. Ferguson, *D.A. Burrows, M. Beauharnois, G. Xia and L.F. Bosart (2019), Diurnal effects of regional soil moisture anomalies on the Great Plains low-level jet, Mon. Wea. Rev., 147, 4611-4631, https://doi.org/10.1175/MWR-D-19-0135.1

*Burrows, D.A., C.R. Ferguson, *M. Campbell, *G. Xia and L.F. Bosart (2019), An objective classification and analysis of upper-level coupling to the Great Plains low-level jet over the twentieth century, J. Climate, 32, 7127-7152, https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-18-0891.1

Wakefield, R.A., J.B. Basara; J.C. Furtado; B.G Illston, C.R. Ferguson and P.M. Klein (2019), A modified framework for quantifying land-atmosphere covariability during hydrometeorological and soil wetness extremes in Oklahoma, J. Appl. Meteor. Climatol., 58, 1465-1483, https://doi.org/10.1175/JAMC-D-18-0230.1

Ferguson, C.R., M. Pan, and T. Oki (2018), The effect of global warming on future water availability: CMIP5 synthesis, Water Resources Research, 54. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018WR022792

Perez, M., R. Perez, C.R. Ferguson, and J. Schlemmer (2018), Deploying effectively dispatchable PV on reservoirs: Comparing floating PV to other renewable technologies, Solar Energy, 174 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2018.08.088

Santanello, J.A., P.A. Dirmeyer, C.R. Ferguson, K. Findell, A. Tawfik, A. Berg, M. Ek, P. Gentine, B. Guillod, C. van Heerwaarden, J. Roundy, and V. Wulfmeyer (2018), Land-Atmosphere Interactions: The LoCo Perspective, Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 99, 1253–1272, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-17-0001.1

Thapa, K., T.Endreny, and C.R. Ferguson (2018), Atmospheric rivers carry nonmonsoon extreme precipitation into Nepal, JGR-Atmospheres, https://doi.org/10.1029/2017JD027626