Research interest

My research mainly focuses on the impacts, life cycle, and track forecasting of tropical cyclones (TCs) over East Asia.


Atmospheric and Climatic Impacts of Tropical Cyclones

Rainfall
In addition to the East Asian Summer Monsoon, TCs are another major contributor to summer rainfall over East Asia, especially the coastal region. The variability of both TC-induced rainfall and monsoonal rainfall strongly modulates the hydrological cycle and related climate risk in the region. This study analyzes the contribution of TCs to the variability of summertime rainfall in the years of strong versus weak Changma/Baiu (the monsoon season in Korea/Japan). The possible large-scale driver of TC- and non-TC-induced rainfall variability is also examined.

Differences in TC and non-TC rainfall between strong and weak Changma/Baiu years

Air pollution
Numerous studies confirm that a TC near Luzon Strait or Taiwan can create favorable conditions for regional air pollutant episodes (light northerly for pollutant transport, subsidence unfavorable for pollutant dispersion, and increased insolation for enhanced photochemical reaction). These TC-induced episodes can cause higher pollutant concentrations than the others. Our study verifies the impact of TCs on local air quality in summer on a climate scale by investigating the influence of the change in the prevailing TC track over the western North Pacific.

How typhoon induce air pollution episode


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Extratropical Transition of Tropical Cyclones: Pathways and Future Projections

An example of tropical cyclone and extratropical cyclone

When TCs move into the mid‑latitudes, they often transform from compact, warm‑core systems into expansive, cold‑core extratropical cyclones that affect much larger areas and populations. In our latest study, we analyzed 445 western North Pacific TCs and identified three objectively defined ET pathways—pinpointing which transitions are most common and which drive the highest post‑transition destructiveness.

In a separate line of work, we used a state‑of‑the‑art Earth system model to assess how elevated atmospheric CO₂ concentrations will reshape global ET activity and the destructiveness of transitioned storms under future‑climate scenarios. Also read this blog post


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Machine Learning for Tropical Cyclone Track Forecast

My research develops machine learning frameworks to enhance the accuracy of medium-range tropical cyclone (TC) track forecasts (lead times > 5 days), supplementing traditional physical models. I have developed two distinct models:

Schematic of the track-pattern-based model and deep learning model


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