When she was an undergraduate student studying English literature, Julie Lundquist added a physics major because she enjoyed math and solving physics problems— though she says they didn’t excite her the way certain kinds of poetry did. That is, until a seminar during an internship at the National Center for Atmospheric Research. There, she was introduced to Milton Van Dyke’s An Album of Fluid Motion, a book of photographs illustrating fluid dynamics, such as water tank simulations or smoke moving through a wind tunnel. Lundquist says she was “blown away” by how beautiful it was and pivoted her career to become an atmospheric scientist.
Lundquist, a national leader in research in sustainable energy generation from wind, joined Johns Hopkins University last July as a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Atmospheric Science and Wind Energy. She holds primary appointments in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences in the Krieger School and in the Department of Mechanical Engineering in the Whiting School of Engineering.
Studying how air flows
Lundquist studies atmospheric dynamics—the ways in which air flows. Her research uses observational and computational approaches to understand the atmospheric boundary layer, with an emphasis on atmosphere-wind energy interactions. The atmospheric boundary layer is the lowest part of the atmosphere closest to the Earth’s surface, where communication between the air and the ground occurs, and temperature changes on the ground can affect air movement in the atmosphere. The turbulent atmospheric boundary layer usually traps pollution so that upper layers of the atmosphere are effectively insulated from the ground. Lundquist is interested in both the atmospheric consequences of wind energy deployment and the atmospheric impacts on wind energy production.
“I want to solve these big-picture problems, and knowing the work that we’re doing can make an impact in the world inspires my research,” Lundquist says. “Our civilization is moving so fast, and the disparities are so dramatic. If I can do something that helps make electricity more accessible to more people, in a way that doesn’t cause harm, that’s one step toward addressing energy challenges and global climate change while reducing pollution. And I get to solve some really fun puzzles along the way.”
Working together for transformational results
Lundquist is part of the Sustainable Transformations and Energy Bloomberg Distinguished Professorships cluster. The BDP clusters are faculty-developed interdisciplinary groups that are recruiting new BDPs and junior faculty members to Hopkins to conduct transformational research in 10 crucial fields. The Sustainable Transformations and Energy cluster unites scientists, engineers, and market and policy experts with interests aligned toward solving critical technological and societal problems arising from the use of unsustainable chemicals and materials, fossil fuels, and other anthropogenic, environmentally harmful substances. The BDPs in this cluster will hold lead roles as part of the Ralph O’Connor Sustainable Energy Institute (ROSEI), a nexus for sustainable energy-related research and educational programs at Johns Hopkins University.
Lundquist comes to Johns Hopkins from the University of Colorado Boulder, where she was a professor in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences and affiliate faculty in the Department of Applied Mathematics. She also holds a joint appointment at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, which will continue at Hopkins.
