Louis J. Battan

Louis J. Battan
Born	(1923-02-09)February 9, 1923 United States
Died	October 29, 1986(1986-10-29)(aged 63)
Nationality	American
Alma mater	New York University(B.S., 1946) University of Chicago(M.S.; Ph.D, 1953)
Known for	Clouds, precipitation and radar work; Thunderstorm Project; NCAR
Awards	Clarence Leroy Meisinger Award
Scientific career
Fields	Atmospheric sciences
Institutions	University of Chicago University of Arizona
Thesis	Observations on the Formation of Precipitation in Convective Clouds(1953)

Louis Joseph Battan(February 9, 1923 – October 29, 1986) was an American atmospheric scientist who received his doctorate from theUniversity of Chicagoin 1953, where he was hired to work in the field of thephysicsof clouds and precipitation. In 1958 he was appointed professor ofmeteorologyand associate director of theInstitute of Atmospheric Physicsat theUniversity of ArizonainTucson.He was a pioneer incloud physicsandradar meteorology.

Battan's parents, Anibale and Louise Battan, immigrated to the United States from northern Italy, a region known asTrentino-Alto Adige.

Career

Along with his colleague and close friend,David Atlas,Battan underwent rigorous training in radar engineering and meteorology in theU.S. Army Air Corps,atHarvard University,and theMassachusetts Institute of Technology(MIT) during World War II. He received his B.S. fromNew York University(NYU) in 1946 and then moved to theUniversity of Chicagowhere he obtained his M.S. and a Ph.D. in 1953. During theThunderstorm Project(1946–48), Dr. Battan used radar analysis to show precipitation initiation from coalescence inmidlatitudeconvective clouds. He, along with Dr.Roscoe Braham Jr.and Dr.Horace R. Byers,conducted one of the first randomized experiments on cloud modification by the artificialnucleationofcumulus clouds.

After obtaining his Ph.D., he remained at Chicago until 1958. Then he became a professor in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences and Institute for Atmospheric Physics,University of Arizona,and served as its director from 1973 to 1982. There he conducted research onclouds,precipitationprocesses,lightning,andradarrelationships. He led the development of the first 3-cmDoppler weather radarto measure vertical motion and particle sizes in thunderstorms in 1964.

He was theAmerican Meteorological Society(AMS) president from 1966 to 1967 and served on numerous national and international committees including the U.S. President'sNational Advisory Committee on Oceans and Atmospherein 1978. He was instrumental in the founding of theNational Center for Atmospheric Research(NCAR).He received many awards including the AMS Meisinger Award in 1962 and the AMS Half Century Award in 1975.

The Louis J. Battan Author's Award

Battan was a prolific writer whose repertoire includes one of the first textbooks on radar meteorology in 1959 andRadar Observation of the Atmospherein 1973, which became the reference text on the subject. He authored 16 books and more than 100 articles. His contribution to meteorological education, through publications written in an accessible and informative style, has been honored by the AMS with the establishment of two annual "Louis J. Battan Author's Awards".

Recipients of the Louis J. Battan Author's Award (Adult) include: James Rodger Fleming,Professor of Science, Technology, and Society,Colby College,Waterville, Maine (2012); Chris Mooney,Contributing Editor, Science Progress & Author, Washington, DC (2009); Kerry Emanuel(2007); Charles Wohlforth(2006); John M. Nese,Glenn Schwartz(2005); Robert C. Sheets(2004); Susan Solomon(2003); Erik Larson(2002); Howard B. Bluestein(2001); Richard C. J. Somerville(2000); Zbigniew Sorbjan(1998); Jack Fishman,Robert Kalish(1997); Thomas E. Graedel,Paul J. Crutzen(1996); Edward N. Lorenz(1995); Jack Williams(1994); Robert Marc Friedman(1993); John W. Firor(1992); Stephen H. Schneider(1990); Craig F. Bohren(1989).

Legacy

Dr. Battan's work and contributions to the world of meteorology:

• 1964.The nature of violent storms(La Naturaleza de las Tormentas,en español,EUDEBA). 158 pp.
• 1965.Física y siembra de nubes.Volumen 26 de Ciencia joven. EUDEBA. 159 pp.
• 1980.The unclean sky; a meteorologist looks at air pollution.153 pp.
• Cloud physics andcloud seeding
• Radar observes the weather(El radar explora la atmósfera,en español)
• 1969.Harvesting the Clouds: Advances in Weather Modification.148 pp.
• 1984.Fundamentals of Meteorology.
• 1983.Weather in Your Life.230 pp.ISBN0-7167-1437-X
• Radar meteorology
• Radar observation of the atmosphere
• Weather.Foundations of Earth Science Series. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall. 1974. pp.74.ISBN0139477624.
• The Thunderstorm
• 2003.Cloud Physics: A Popular Introduction to Applied Meteorology.160 pp.
• 1978. The Weather. Omega Ed. 144 pp..ISBN84-282-0436-5