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Ana P. Barros

Edmund T. Pratt, Jr. School Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Civil and Environmental Engineering
121 Hudson Hall, Box 90287, Durham, NC 27708-0287
2453 CIEMAS, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708

Research Interests


Physics of water cycle processes in mountainous regions with a focus on cloud formation and precipitation; remote sensing of the environment using microwave and infrared sensors; long– range predictability and risk analysis of natural hazards; computational environmental fluid mechanics and nonlinear dynamics; and the development and application of information technology as a research tool and in the operation of complex engineering systems.

Selected Grants


Mapping and Elucidating the Microwave Signatures of Transient and Heterogeneous Snowpack Structure and Their Space-Time Scaling Behavior

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2017 - 2023

Physically-Based Correction of Orographic Precipitation Estimates Using Inverse Modeling and Big Data Analytics

FellowshipPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2018 - 2022

Evaluation and Elucidation of SCaMPR Performance in Complex Terrain Leveraging GOES-R observations and Ground-based Precipitation Measurements

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Cooperative Institute for Climate and Satellites - North Carolina · 2019 - 2022

Microphysics, Vertical Structure, and Scaling of Orographic Precipitation Across the Global Tropics - PMM Category 1

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2019 - 2022

Quantifying and Elucidating the Physical Basis of Uncertainty in GPM Precipitation in Mountain Regions Using Multifrequency Radar Observations and Models

FellowshipPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2016 - 2019

CNH-Ex: Balancing Water Needs and Water Uses for Humans and Nature

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Science Foundation · 2013 - 2017

4D Integrated IPHEx2014 Observations in the inner Mountain Region Data Analysis and Consolidation of IPHEx Observations

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2016 - 2017

GPM-GV Integrated Precipitation and Hydrology Experiment 2014: IPHEX2014 Phase 1

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2013 - 2015

Understanding the role of landcover and landform in the spatial organization of orographic clouds and rainfall

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Science Foundation · 2007 - 2013

GPM- Ground Validation - Large-Scale Field Experiment Activities

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2011 - 2013

Using Satellite Data to Characterize the Role of Tropical Cyclones in the Ecohydrology of the Southeast US

FellowshipPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2009 - 2013

Mapping the terrestrial tracks of hurricanes and tropical cyclones toward water resource and ecosystem impacts and recovery

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration · 2008 - 2012

2009 JAMEX-RAJO-MEGHA Field Campaign in the Himalayas -Central Nepal Transects-

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2009 - 2010

Characterization of Aerosol-Cloud Rainfall Interactions and Water Cycle Impacts in the Himalayas

FellowshipPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2007 - 2010

Measuring, Modeling and Understanding Precipitation Regimes and Hydrology in Mid-Latitude Mountain Ranges

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2007 - 2010

Predictability and Attribution: Metrics to Characterize Land Control in the Dynamical Evolution of Cloud and Precipitation Patterns in Models and Observation

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2005 - 2009

Linking Cumulus Formation to the Diurnal Cycle of Surface Fluxes Across Surface Wetness Contrasts

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2007 - 2008

Understanding and Quantifying the Spatial and Temporal Variability of Precipitation in Tropical Mountainous Regions

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration · 2004 - 2007

External Relationships


  • University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

This faculty member (or a member of their immediate family) has reported outside activities with the companies, institutions, or organizations listed above. This information is available to institutional leadership and, when appropriate, management plans are in place to address potential conflicts of interest.