School of Earth and Environment
Untitled Document

John Hughes Dr John Hughes

Research Fellow

Telephone number: +44(0) 113 34 35612
Email address: J.K.Hughes@leeds.ac.uk
Room: 10.126

Biography

  • 2011 -          Research Fellow, University of Leeds
  • 2008 - 2011 Research Scientist, Met Office Hadley Centre
  • 2003 - 2008 Research Associate, University of Bristol, Geographical Sciences
  • 2000 - 2003 Research Student, University of Reading, Meteorology

(2011-     )  I am currently working on a collaborative project, COLPEX, with the Met Office to improve boundary layer parameterisation using high resolution simulations, focussing on cold air pooling events.


(2008-2011)  At the Met Office I developed a representation of land use change, initially in the land surface model JULES then implemented it in HadGEM2-ES.  Then I was configuration manager for the HadGEM2-ES CMIP5 simulations (for inclusion in the next IPCC report as the central future climate scenarios).

(2003-2008) At Bristol I was originally employed on a cross disciplinary project to combine climate model simulations with prehistoric archaeology to better understand the dispersal of homo erectus out of Africa circa 2 million years ago.  A key tool in this study was cellular automata.  Next I was involved in the GENIE project, which involved optimisation of an intermediate complexity climate model.

  (2000-2003).  My PhD studies at Reading investigated the implications of including dynamic vegetation into climate model simulations (HadCM3), including the underlying theory of climate-vegetation interactions.  

Qualifications

PhD: University of Reading, Department of Meteorology. 2000-2003.

Research Interests

I am interested in a range of topics, in particular:

  • Boundary layer Meteorology
  • Climate Change
  • Palaeoclimatology
  • Biofuels
  • Land use/crops
  • Dynamic Global Vegetation Modelling

Numerical Modelling skills

I am particularly experienced using and developing the Met Office Hadley Centre family of GCMs, e.g. HadGEM2-ES, HadGEM3, HadCM3.  Also, the community land surface model JULES (based on the land surface exchange scheme in HadGEM).

Publications:

Book Chapter:

 S. Smith, J.K. Hughes, S.J. Mithen (2009) Paleolithic Technology: Simulations of Hominin Dispersal and Cultural Transmission using Stepping Out.  In: Shennan, S., (eds). Pattern and Process in
 Cultural Evolution. University College London Press, London, UK. pp. 175-190. University of California Press, ISBN: 978-0520255999.
 
Peer reviewed Papers:

Jones, C. D., Hughes, J. K., et al : The HadGEM2-ES implementation of CMIP5 centennial simulations, Geosci. Model Dev. Discuss., 4, 689-763, doi:10.5194/gmdd-4-689-2011, 2011.

Collins, W. J.,  ... , Hughes, J., et al.: Development and evaluation of an Earth-system model ? HadGEM2, Geosci. Model Dev. Discuss., 4, 997-1062, doi:10.5194/gmdd-4-997-2011, 2011.

The HadGEM2 Development Team: .. Hughes, J., ... : The HadGEM2 family of Met Office Unified Model Climate configurations, Geosci. Model Dev. Discuss., 4, 765-841, doi:10.5194/gmdd-4-765-2011, 2011.
 
Hughes JK, Lloyd AJ, Huntingford C, Finch JW, Harding RJ (2010). The impact of extensive planting of Miscanthus as an energy crop on future CO2 atmospheric concentrations.GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY BIOENERGY 2(2),79-88
 
Churkina, G., Zaehle, S., Hughes, J., Viovy, N., Chen, Y., Jung, M., Heumann, B. W., Ramankutty, N., Rödenbeck, C., Heimann, M., and Jones, C. (2010):  Interactions between nitrogen deposition, land cover conversion, and climate change determine the contemporary carbon balance of Europe,   Biogeosciences Discuss., 7, 2227-2265, doi:10.5194/bgd-7-2227-2010.
 
Boris Tupek, Giuliana Zanchi, Pieter J. Verkerk, Galina Churkina, Nicolas Viovy, John K. Hughes and Marcus Lindner (2009). A comparison of alternative modelling approaches to evaluate the European forest carbon fluxes.  Forest Ecology and Management.  doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2010.01.045.


Peters, Wouter; ... ; Hughes, John; et al (2009) Seven years of recent European net terrestrial carbon dioxide exchange constrained by atmospheric observations.  Global Change Biology Volume 16
Issue 4, Pages 1317 - 1337.
 
R.G. Harrison, C.D. Jones, J.K. Hughes (2008) Competing roles of rising CO2 and climate change in the
 contemporary European carbon balance Biogeosciences Discuss., 5, 1-10.
 
J.K. Hughes, S. Smith (2008) Simulating hominin morphology.  J.
 Archaeological Science.  35(8), 2240-2249.

J.K. Hughes, A. Haywood, S.J. Mithen, B.W. Sellwood, P.J. Valdes (2007) Investigating early hominin dispersal patterns: developing a framework for climate data integration.  Journal of Human Evolution.  doi: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2006.12.011
 

J.K. Hughes, S. Elton, H.J. O'Regan (2008)  Theropithecus and 'Out of Africa' dispersal in the Plio-Pleistocene.  Journal of Human Evolution.  doi:
 10.1016/j.jhevol.2007.06.004.
 

J.K.Hughes, P.J. Valdes, R.A. Betts (2006)  Dynamics of a global-scale vegetation model.  Ecological Modelling.  doi: 10.1016/j.ecol.model.2006.05.020
 

Reports/misc
 
Betts, R., Gornall, J., Hughes, J., Kaye, N., McNeall, D., Wiltshire, A.
 (2008) Forests and Emissions: A contribution to the Eliasch Review.
 

Churkina, G., Heimann, M., Chen, Y., Hughes, J., Jones, C., Jung, M., Viovy, N., Zaehle, S. (2008)   Protocol for bottom-up model intercomparison (stage 3): Effect of Land Use Changes on European Carbon Balance.  Available online at:  http://www.bgc-jena.mpg.de/bgc-systems/projects/ce_i/protocols.shtml     J.K.Hughes, P.J. Valdes, R.A. Betts (2004) Dynamical properties of the TRIFFID dynamic global vegetation model.  Hadley Centre Technical Note, 56 J.K.Hughes (2003) The Dynamic Response of the Global Atmosphere-Vegetation coupled system.  PhD Thesis, University of Reading, Department of Meteorology.