David Martin Belda

I graduated in Physics and Astrophysics in Spain, after which I moved to Germany to complete my PhD at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research in Göttingen. In my thesis I studied how certain plasma flow patterns on the Sun’s surface may affect the strength of the solar magnetic cycle. By the end of my PhD I started taking an interest in Climate Science and the relationship between the Climate system and human activities. Since then I have been working in the Global Land-Ecosystem modeling group at KIT/IMK-IFU in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. My work here has focused on expanding the Dynamic Global Vegetation Model LPJ-GUESS into a Land Surface Model suitable for coupled Land-Ecosystem-Atmosphere experiments. This involves implementing various constraints and new physics schemes into LPJ-GUESS, such as energy balance, heat and water transport in the soil or radiative transfer. When ready, this model will allow to study feedbacks between the atmosphere and the slower ecosystem processes, such as population dynamics and trends of the biomass production in the context of a warming climate.

Email: david.belda@kit.edu