Curriculum Vitae
Prof. Ola M. Johannessen
EU Descartes Laureate In Earth Science, 2005
Knight, First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav, 2008, awarded by His Majesty King Harald V of Norway
Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Center / Nansen Scientific Society
Bergen/Norway
Born: 02.07.38
Ola M. Johannessen (OMJ) is at present Nansen Fellow and Founding Director Emeritus of the Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Center (NERSC) in Bergen ( Professor Emeritus at the Geophysical Institute, University of Bergen (UoB), President of the Nansen Scientific Society, Chairman of the Guardian Board of the Nansen International Environmental and Remote Sensing Center (NIERSC) in St. Petersburg, Russia, Chairman of the Board of the Nansen Center in Cochin, India, Co-Chairman of the Board of the Nansen-Zhu Center at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP) of the Chinese Academy of Science (CAS) in Beijing, Vice-Chairman of the Board of the Nansen-Tutu Marin Center at University of Cape Town, South Africa, Leader of the Nansen Group, Visiting Professor at Institute of Atmospheric Physics in Beijing at Chinese Academy of Science and Guest Professor at Peking University, Beijing.
Since graduating from UoB in 1965 with the degree Cand. Real. in physical oceanography, after 7 years of studies with the thesis topics “Some current measurement in the Drøbak Sound, the narrow entrance to the Oslofjord, HvalrådetsSkrifter, Scientific Results of Marine Biological Research, no 50, the Norwegian Scientific Academy in Oslo 1968”, he has held different faculty and research positions at the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil (Visiting Scientist 1966), McGill University in Canada (Assistant/Associate Professor 1966-1970) and the NATO Research Center in Italy (Deputy Group Leader 1970-74), before returning to UoB in 1974 as a tenured Assistant Professor before he was promoted to a tenured Associate Professor in 1975 and to a tenured Professor in 1987 in ocean remote sensing, the first Chair in this field in Norway. He was an Adjunct Senior Scientist at the Christian Michelsens Institute in Bergen (1980-82) and held the Arctic Chair at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey in USA (1982). He was a guest scientist at MIT in Boston during the autumn of 1985.
OMJ is presently involved in the following scientific fields: Arctic climate system, including sea ice and Greenland ice sheet variability and the effect on warm subsurface fjord water on the calving of the outlet glaciers in the East Greenland fjords, climate teleconnection between low and high latitude and visa versa, oceanography in the Nordic Seas, Indian - Bay of Bengal and Southern Ocean circulation and sea level studies and socio-economic impact studies of global change in the Russian Arctic. At present he is the leader of the Research Council of Norway (RCN) “Arctic Sea Ice Variability: A comprehensive study using satellite and in-situ observations (ArcticSIV 2011-2013),”the RCN” Decadal to multidecadal variability in the Indian Monsoon Rainfall and teleconnection with Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (India-Clim 2012-2014), “the RCN” climate variability and changes in the Eurasian Arctic in the 21st century” (2013-2015) (co-funded by the Russian Research Council) and the Mohn-Sverdrup Norwegian Sea and Greenland Ice Sheet projects (completed 2014). He is also the Chairman of the steering committees of the EU “European – Russian Centre for cooperation in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic Environmental and Climate Research (EuRuCAS) project” (2012-2014) coordinated by the Nansen Centre in St. Petersburg and the EU “Indo-European Research Facilities for Studies on Marine Ecosystem and Climate in India (INDO-MARECLIM) project” (2012-2014) coordinated by the Nansen Centre in Cochin, India. He is also the supervisor for several PhD students.
Previously he performed studies of fjord and coastal circulation in Norway, sea level and shelf studies off the coast of Brazil and in the Caribbean, ice drift and forecasting in Gulf of St. Laurence and the fjord water influence on the growth of the Ward Hunt Ice Shelf in the Canadian Arctic, ocean frontal and ocean fine structure including acoustic propagation in the Mediterranean, deep water formation and acoustic tomography in the Greenland Sea, harmful algae blooms along the Norwegian Coast, global change studies of marine ecosystem in the White Sea, CO2 uptake and CO2 injection in the Nordic Seas, radioactive spreading in the Arctic and Nordic Seas from the Russian rivers and Sellafiled and the Fukushima accident in the Pacific and chlorofluorocarbons (CFC- II) simulations in the world ocean.
OMJ is the author and co-author of more than 500 publications of which 9 are books (8 Springer- 1 American Geophysical Union) and 148 are in referee journals and books (e.g. 8 in Science - 1 in Nature). The remaining publications are primarily Proceedings, Technical and Special Reports.
OMJ has been the supervisor for more than 40 Master and PhD students. He has received 10 awards for his research and leadership. He was the Laureate of the EU Descartes Prize in Earth Science in 2005 for leading the project: Climate and Environmental Change in the Arctic (CECA). He received the Nansen Foundation (founded in 1896 after F. Nansen with Fram returned to Norway) Fridtjof Nansen Medal for Outstanding Research in 2007 by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters. This medal is an official Norwegian decoration. Furthermore His Majesty King Harald V of Norway awarded OMJ the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav, Knight, First Class, 24 of November 2008. OMJ was awarded the Visiting Professor for Senior International Scientists of the Chinese Academy of Science in 2009 by its President. In 2010 he was awarded the Honorary Membership from the Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences, (NTVA) and received the “Certificate” from the Director-General of the European Space Agency for his contribution to the “High-Level Science Policy Advisory Committee from 2007-2010”. In 2011 he received “The Norwegian Space Center award for his scientific contribution to increase international awareness and understanding of space activities – in particular for Earth observations”.
OMJ has been the leader of large multidisciplinary international programs in different coastal regions and world oceans such as: the Norwegian Remote Sensing Experiment (NORSEX’79); the mega-science Marginal Ice Zone Experiment (MIZEX) 1980-88, with 250 scientists involved; the Seasonal Ice Zone Experiment (SIZEX) 1989-92; CO2 and Deep Water formation (CARDEEP) 1993-95, the INTAS project on Observation and modelling of transport and dilution of radioactive waste and dissolved pollutants in the Kara Sea 1994-1997; the ESA/Russian Space Agency "ICEWATCH" Program of the Northern Sea Route 1995-1998; The Ice Edge Ecology Study 1997-2000, the EU project on Acoustic Monitoring of the Arctic Ocean Climate (AMOC) 1998-2000, the EU project on Operational altimetry for the offshore industry (OPERALT) 1998-2000 and the INTAS projects on Detection and modelling of greenhouse warming in the Arctic and sub-Arctic 1999-2000, Study of influence of land-based sources of radio nuclides on radioactive contamination of Kara Sea through Ob and Yenisey river system, Developing methods for boreal forest mapping and monitoring by combined using SPOT and SAR satellite data; the EU Arctic ice cover simulation experiment (AICSEX), Simulation scenarios for potential radioactive spreading in the 21st century from rivers and external sources in the Russian arctic coastal zone (EU-RADARC), Sustainable management of the marine ecosystem and living resources of the White Sea (EU-WHITESEA), Estimation of primary production for fisheries management (EU-PROOF) and Wind energy mapping using synthetic aperture radar (EU-WEMSAR). Furthermore he has coordinated ESA, Norwegian Space Center and Research Council of Norway (RCN) projects, e.g., The Nansen Fellowship Program, a Scientific and Educational Program for Ecological Studies of North Western Russia, the Role of Arctic Sea Ice – Atmosphere processes (RCN-ROLARC a joint project with USA) the Marine Climate and Ecosystems in the Seasonal Ice Zone (RCN-MACESIZ), the EU-IPY Climate of the Arctic and its role for Europe (CARE) project and the Greenland Ice Sheet RCN project and RCN projects Arctic and sub-Arctic climate system and ecological response to the early 20th century warming (ARCWARM).
OMJ took the initiative to start the Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Center (NERSC) ( in Bergen in 1986, which is project funded from EU, Research Council of Norway, European Space Agency, Norwegian Space Center, industry and private donations including 10 % basic funding from the Ministry of Environment. The center employs a staff of 60 from 15 nations including PhD. students.
In 1992 OMJ started a Joint Venture with the Institute of Ecological Safety of the Russian Academy of Science in St. Petersburg by setting up the Nansen International Environmental and Remote Sensing Center (NIERSC) ( in St. Petersburg, Russia, including partners from the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, the Environmental Research Institute of Michigan US and in cooperation with the EU Joint Research Center in Ispra. NIERSC was converted to the Nansen Scientific Foundation in 2001. Partnership was expanded with the St. Petersburg State University, Bergen University Research Foundation and the Northern Water Problems Institute of Russian Academy of Science in Petrozavodsk, Karelia. In 1999 the Nansen Center in India was started with OMJ as Chairman ( In 2003 the Nansen-Zhu Center ( was opened after the initiative of OMJ as a joint venture with the Institute of Atmospheric Physic at the Chinese Academy of Science, the Peking University, Bergen University, the BjerknesCenter for Climate Research and the Nansen Center in Bergen. In 2010 the Nansen-Tutu Marine Centre at the University of Cape Town, South Africa was started. At present the Nansen Group with OMJ as the Leader consists of these five institutes, employing more than 200 persons including 60 PhD and Master candidates. In 2006 OMJ took the initiative to start the Nansen Scientific Society which is a foundation to give Nansen Fellowships to international PhD students and young scientists. Presently a new Nansen Centre in Bangladesh is under planning.
OMJ has served on different boards, committees and working groups such as the NASA NIMBUS-7 Team, the ESA EOPAG, EOSTAG, ESAC, DOSTAG Committees, the High-level Science Policy Advisory Committee (HISPAC) and the EU Remote Sensing Review Committee, the NATO Remote Sensing Working Group, chairman of the MIZEX Scientific Committee, Chairman of International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing´s Working Group on Ice, member of the Japanese MOS Team, the Norwegian WOCE Committee, the EU/ESF European Committees on Ocean and Polar Sciences (ECOPS), the Arctic Ocean Science Board, the US/French Topex Poseidon Team the Japanese JERS-1 Team, Chairman of the ESA International Space Year program “Ocean Variability and Climate”, member of INTAS Scientific Council, member of the Advisory Committee of the Ukrainian Centre of Environmental and Water projects in Kiev, Founding Member of the EUROGOOS and member of its Board, member of the Norwegian Advisory and Coordination Committee for Earth Observation, member of the Research Council of Norway Fellowship Committee, Norwegian National Polar Committee, member of the Polar Committee of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, member of the steering committee of the WMO Global Climate Observing System (GCOS), member of the editorial board of Earth Observation and Remote Sensing Journal of the Russian Academy of Science, member of the Scientific and Technical Council of the International Risk Governance Council (IRGC) Geneva, Board Member and Chairman of the Bjerknes Climate Center in Bergen, Board Member of the Center for Climate Dynamic at the Bjerkens Climate Center, member of the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Euromediterranean Center for Climate Change, Italy and Executive Chairman of the Board of the Nansen Center in Bergen (2010-2011). He served also on the review panel for the Austrian Research Programme in 2012 and on the ERC panel for start up grant in 2013.
At present OMJ is Council member of the Global Climate Forum, (GCF) in Berlin, member of the editorial board of PRAXIS Publishing Ltd UK, Co-Chief editor of the journal “Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letter” of the Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing ( and member of the Editorial Board of the American Journal of Climate Change (AJCC), published by Scientific Research Publications (
OMJ is elected full member of the International Academy of Astronautics, the European Academy of Science and Arts, Finnish Academy of Science and Letters, the Norwegian Academy of Technical Sciences, the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters and founding member of the Norwegian Scientific Academy for Polar Research, where he also was the Founding President from 2008-2012. (
Referee publications and books
180.Chen, L, Tan, B, Kvamstø, NG, Johannessen, OM: Wintertime cyclone/anticyclone activity over China andIts relation to upper troposphoric jets. Tellus A. Vol.66, no. 21889, 2014
DOI: 10.3402/tellusa.v66.21889
Chen14.pdf
179. Cui, Xuedong, Yongqi Gao, Jianqi Sun, Dong Guo, Shuanglin Li & Ola M. Johannessen: Role of natural external forcing factors in modulating the Indian summer monsoon rainfall, the winter North AtlanticOscillation and their relationship on inter-decadal timescale. Climate Dynamics, Online, 2014
DOI: 10.1007/s00382-014-2053-4
Cui14CD2.pdf
178.Yan, Q., H. Wang, O.M. Johannessen and Z. Zhang: Greenland Ice sheet contribution to future global sealevel rise based on CMIP5 models. In Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, a Science Index Journal published by Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Vol. 31 no.1, p. 8-16, 2014
DOI:10.1007/s00376-013-3002-6
Yan14.pdf
174.Guo, D., Y. Gao, I. Bethke, D. Gong, O.M. Johannessen, H. Wang: Mechanism on how the spring Arctic sea ice impacts the East Asian summer monsoon. Theoretical and Applied Climatology, vol. 115 no 1-2 pp 107-119, Springer 2014
Guo14.pdf
177. Yan, Qing; Zhang, Zhongshi; Gao, Y; Wang, H, Johannessen, OM: Sensitivity of the modeled present-day Greenland Ice Sheet to climatic forcing and spin-up methods and its influence on future sea level projections. Journal of Geophysical Research - Earth Surface, Vol. 118 no. 4, p. 2174–2189, 2013
DOI: 10.1002/jgrf.20156
Yan13.pdf
176. Suo, L, Otterå, OH, Bentsen, M, Gao, Y, Johannessen, OM:External forcing of the early 20th century Arctic warming. Tellus Series A, Vol. 65, 2013
Suo13TELLUS.pdf
175. O.M. Johannessen, M. Miles, M. Babiker:Unprecedented Retreatin a 50-Year Observational Record for Petermann Glacier, North Greenland. In Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences,Vol. 6 no 5, p. 259-265, 2013
DOI: 10.3878/j.issn.1674-2834.13.0021
Unprecedented Retreat.pdf
173.Zakhvatkina N.Y., V.Y. Alexandrov, O.M. Johannessen , S. Sandven, I. Frolov: Classification of Sea Ice Types in ENVISAT
Synthetic Aperture Radar Images. IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing Vol. 51, no. 5, p. 2587-2600, 2013
DOI: 10.1109/TGRS.2012.2212445
Classification of Sea Ice Types.pdf
172.Abish, B, Joseph, PV, Johannessen, OM:Weakening trend of the tropical easterly jetstream of the boreal summer monsoon season 1950 – 2009. Journal of ClimateVol. 26, p. 9408–9414, 2013
DOI: 10.1175/JCLI-D-13-00440.1
Abish13.pdf
171.Chen, L, Tan, B, Kvamstø, NG, Johannessen, OM: Wintertime Cyclone Activity and Its Relation to Precipitation over China. Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters, Vol. 6 no. 5, p. 387-393,2013
DOI: 10.3878/j.issn.1674-2834.13.0041
Wintertime Cyclone Activity.pdf
170.Wang, H., Johannessen, O.M.: Co-chief Editors, Special Issue of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters. Vol. 6 no 5, 2013
Preface.pdf
169. Alexandrov V.Y. and O.M. Johannessen: Changes of ice thickness in the Arctic since the end of 19th century. In Problems of Arctic and Antarctic No. 4 (94) published by Arctic and Antarctic Institute, St. Petersburg 2012
168.He, Yanchun, Y. Gao, M. Bentsen, B. Tan, O.M. Johannessen: North Atlantic ventilation using chlorofluorocarbons and idealised-tracer simulations.Tellus B. pp. 1-23, Vol. 64, 2012.
North Atlantic ventilation.pdf
167. He, Yanchun, Y. Gao, H-J Wang, O.M. Johannessen, Yu Lei: Transport of Nuclear Leakage from Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant
in the North Pacific. ActaOceanologicaSinica, Vol 34 (4),pp. 12-20, 2012
166.Book
Bengtsson L., S. Koumoutsaris, R.-M. Bonnet, E.-A. Herland, P. Huybrechts, O.M. Johannessen, G.Milne, J. Oerlemans, A.
Ohmura, G. Ramstein, P. Woodworth: The Earth´s Cryosphere and Sea Level Change, 343 p. Springer 2012
Available from: . Previously published in Surveys in Geophysics, Volume 32, Nos. 4-5, 2011
166.McClimans, Thomas; Alekseev, Genrikh; Johannessen, Ola M; Miles, Martin W.: Ch. 6 Interaction with the global climate system. In: Arctic Climate Change The ACSYS Decade and Beyond. Springer ISBN 978-94-007-2026-8 p. 247-275, 2012
McCli12.pdf
165. Johannessen, O.M., A. Korablev, V. Miles, M.W. Miles, K.E. Solberg: Interaction between the warm subsurface Atlantic water in the Sermilik Fjord and Helheim glacier in southeast Greenland. Surveys in Geophysics, Springer. Vol. 32, Issue 4, Page 387-396, 2011.
SurvGeophysicsOMJ2011_0.pdf
164. Chen, L.L, O.M. Johannessen, H.J. Wang, A. Ohmura: Accumulation over the Greenland Ice Sheet as prepresented in reanalysis data. Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, Vol. 28, No.5, pp.1-9, 2011.
AAS100150.pdf
163. Bobylev, L.P., O.M. Johannessen, E.V. Shalina, V.Yu. Alexandrov, S. Sandven: Sea ice cover change in the Arctic Ocean in the end of 20-th – beginning of 21-st centuries according to remote sensing and other observations – in the book: Oceanography and Sea Ice Series: Contribution of Russia to International Polar year 2007/2008, Editor-in-chief, I.Ye.Frolov, Paulsen Editions, Moscow – St. Petersburg 2011
162. Johannessen, O.M., M. W. Miles: Critical vulnerabilities of marine and sea ice-based ecosystems in the high Arctic. Regional Environmental Change, Vol.11 no. 1, DOI 10.1007/s10113-010-0186-5, 2011
Critical vulnerabilities.pdf
161. George, M.S., L.Bertino, O.M. Johannessen, A. Samuelsen: Validation of a hybrid coordinate ocean model for the Indian Ocean. Journal of Operational Oceanography, vol. 3, No.2, pp. 25-38, 2010
Swapna_paper1_JOO.pdf
160. Alexandrov, V., S. Sandven, J. Wahlin, O.M. Johannessen: The relation between sea ice thickness and freeboard in the Arctic. The Cryosphere, vol.4, pp. 373-380, 2010.
The relation between sea ice.pdf
159.Book
Johannessen,O.M., V.A.Volkov, L.H.Pettersson, V.S.Maderich, M.J.Zheleznyak, Y.Gao, L.P.Bobylev, A.V.Stepanov, I.A.Neelov, V.P.Tishkov, S.P. Nielsen:Radioactivity and Pollution in the Nordic Seas and Arctic Region: Observations, Modelling and Simulations .450p. Springer –Praxis Publishing 2010.
Available from:
158. Chen, L.L., O.M. Johannessen, K. Khvorostovsky, H.J. Wang: Greenland Ice Sheet Elevation Change in Winter and Influence ofAtmospheric Teleconnection in the Northern Hemisphere. Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters, Vol. 2 no 6, pp. 376-380, 2009