People

Education

• B.Sc. 1985, Civil Engineering, (First Class Honors) University of Khartoum
• M.Sc. 1988, Hydrology, (First Class Honors) National University of Ireland
• S.M. 1993, Meteorology, MIT
• Sc.D. 1993, Hydroclimatology, MIT

Research Interests

I am interested in understanding how global climate change as well as regional land use/ land cover change may impact society through changes in the patterns of water availability, extreme weather, and spread of vector-borne diseases. We address research questions at the intersection of evolving natural phenomena and vulnerable societal contexts. Together with my students, we develop sophisticated numerical models (MIT Regional Climate Model (MRCM); and the Hydrology, Entomology and Malaria Transmission Simulator (HYDREMATS)) that are used for projecting such impacts at regional scales. We test these models against satellite observations and archived data sets of hydrologic and atmospheric variables, as well as data collected in our own field campaigns.

Teaching Interests

• 1.071 Global Change Science
• 1.714 Surface Hydrology
• 1.073 Introduction to Environmental Data Analysis

Awards and Honors

• Elected member of National Academy of Engineering (2023), fellow of the World Academy of Sciences (2023), and member of the Sudanese National Academy of Sciences
• Elected Fellow of the American Geophysical Union (2008); Hydrologic Science Award (2017), American Geophysical Union
• Kuwait Prize in Applied Science (2000)
• US Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) (1997)

Selected Publications

To view publications, visit: https://eltahir.mit.edu/highlighted-papers/