Rate My Professor Martin Todd

Professor Martin Todd is Professor in Climate Change in the Department of Geography, School of Global Studies, at the University of Sussex. A climate scientist with over 20 years of experience, he specializes in the climate of Africa, focusing on variability in Sahelian rainfall, heatwaves, mineral dust emissions from the Sahara, and the impacts of climate change on groundwater resources. Todd earned his PhD from the University of Bristol in 1992 and served as a Post-Doctoral Research Scientist at the same institution from 1992 to 1996 before joining the University of Sussex.

Todd has advanced understanding of Saharan meteorology and its global implications through projects such as the Fennec Automatic Weather Station Network, which provided critical data on Saharan weather systems. His research identifies key dust sources like the Bodélé Depression, which supplies much of the mineral dust to the Amazon forest, and examines meteorological controls on dust emission and transport. Notable contributions include studies on the dependence of East African groundwater on extreme rainfall and prediction skills for Sahelian heatwaves. With an h-index of 54 and more than 11,000 citations, his work has substantial impact in atmospheric science, earth-surface processes, and global environmental change. Key publications encompass 'Dust-Storm Source Areas Determined by the Total Ozone Monitoring Spectrometer and Surface Observations' (2003, 820 citations, with Richard Washington et al.), 'Precipitation measurements and trends in the twentieth century' (2001, 738 citations, with Mark New et al.), 'The Bodélé depression: a single spot in the Sahara that provides most of the mineral dust to the Amazon forest' (2006, 420 citations, with Ilan Koren et al.), and 'Uncertainty in the estimation of potential evapotranspiration under climate change' (2009, 303 citations, with Daniel G. Kingston et al.). Todd has led grants including the SHEAR-ForPAc project to enhance flood and drought forecasting in Africa. He convenes MSc programs in Climate Change, Development and Policy and supervises doctoral research.