Steve (Qi) Hu
Hi, I’m Steve Hu, and I’m a climatologist in the School of Natural Resources associated with the bio-atmospheric interactions graduate specialization.
My research interests involve: understanding precipitation variations in the central United States and the variability of summer monsoon rainfall in the southwestern United States; identifying physical mechanisms causing the inter-annual and multi-decadal variations (changes over decades) in precipitation in the central and western United States; understanding the effects of climate change on water resources, crop production and animal behavior in the central United States; studying the decision-making of Nebraska farmers regarding use of climate information and predictions; and identifying ways to improve both the decision-making and the climate information, particular predictions, so that they can be used effectively for the benefit of farmers and the larger society.
I’m also involved in studying the interactions of atmospheric convection and radiation and their role in global climate variations and analyzing the effects of regional climate change on streamflows and local water resources.
My extension programs are: developing educational programs to improve understanding and use of climate predictions and understanding and use of other climate information in decision-making; connecting climate forecasters and climate data users and identifying ways to improve predictions for easier use by the public. In general, I serve as a source of climate predictions and climate information for the general public and also assist in making decisions related to the management of utility markets.
I have been teaching Agricultural Climatology, a graduate-level course on the agricultural environment and development and change in such environments; and Global Climate Change, a senior- and graduate-level class focusing on evidence and mechanisms of climate variability and climate change from regional to global scales.
I received my bachelor’s in meteorology in 1982 from Lanzhou University, in China, my master’s in atmospheric science from Colorado State University in Ft. Collins in 1986 and my Ph.D. in atmospheric science from Colorado State in 1992.
Personnel Information
| Name | Qi Steven Hu |
| University Title | Associate Professor |
| Address | 707 Hardin Hall, Lincoln NE 68583-0987 |
| Phone | 402-472-6642 |
| Fax | 402-472-2946 |
| qhu2@unl.edu | |
| Related Websites | http://snrs.unl.edu/climate |
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Key Publications
- Hu, Q. and S. Feng, 2004: A role of the soil enthalpy in land memory. J. Climate, 17, 3632-3642.
- Hu, Q. and S. Feng, 2004: Why has the land memory changed? J. Climate, 17, 3236-3243.
- Chen, Xi, and Q. Hu, 2004: Groundwater influences on soil moisture and surface evaporation. J. Hydrology, 297, 285-300.
- Hu, Q., Y. Tawaye, and S. Feng, 2004: Variations of the Northern Hemisphere atmospheric energetics: 1948-2000. J. Climate, 17, 1975-1986.
- Hu, Q., 2004: U.S. soil temperature and its variation: A new dataset. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 85, 29-31.
- Hu, Q., and S. Feng, 2003: A daily soil temperature dataset and soil temperature climatology of the contiguous United States. J. Appl. Meteor. 42, 1139-1156.
- Hu, Q., 2003: A multidecadal variation in summer season diurnal rainfall in the central United States. J. Climate, 16, 174-178.
- Hu, Q., and S. Feng, 2002: Interannual rainfall variations in the North American summer monsoon region: 1900-1998. J. Climate, 15, 1189-1202.
- Hu, Q., and S. Feng, 2001: Climatic role of the Gulf of Mexico in interannual variations of summer rainfall in the central United States. J. Climate, 14, 3156-3170.
- Hu, Q., and S. Feng, 2001: Variation of teleconnection of ENSO and interannual variation of summer rainfall in the central United States. J. Climate, 14, 2469-2480.
