By David Murphy

KAUST Assistant Professor of Earth Science and Engineering Hylke Beck recently joined the University from his previous position as a senior scientist at the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) in Ispra, Italy.

Prior to his time at the JRC, Professor Beck—who obtained his B.Sc. ('06), M.Sc. ('08), and Ph.D. ('13) degrees in Hydrology from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, the Netherlands—was a postdoctoral research fellow at Princeton University, U.S., from 2016 to 2020.

Beck is a fierce advocate for open access, diversity and equality in science and has received the Web of Science's Highly Cited Researchers Award. He has written over 60 peer-reviewed papers in prestigious journals, including Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society and Nature Climate Change.

Beck lists three main reasons behind his decision to join KAUST. “First and foremost, the University offers unique research funding opportunities that allow me to turn ideas into results quickly,” he emphasized.

“Second, Saudi Arabia is facing many fascinating challenges related to climate and water, requiring creative and novel solutions. Lastly, no other university is as multicultural as KAUST. This not only lends itself to an increased ability to creatively and innovatively solve problems; it also makes it easier for my family and me to make friends and integrate into the community.”

Building for an uncertain global climate

Dr. Beck’s research expertise and interests include hydrological modeling, operational hydrometeorology, climate change impact assessment, flood and drought forecasting, satellite remote sensing, machine learning and big data analysis.

He has produced multiple innovative hydrometeorological data products, including the groundbreaking Multi-Source Weighted-Ensemble Precipitation (MSWEP) product. MSWEP has a three‑hourly 0.1° resolution available from the year 1979 to approximately three hours from real-time. It merges gauge, satellite and (re)analysis data to obtain the highest quality precipitation estimates at any location in the world.

Beck’s research at KAUST aims to quantify and understand the impacts of climate change in the Kingdom and to improve the country’s natural hazard monitoring and early warning capacity. The key to achieving these research goals lies in leveraging the latest developments in machine learning, remote sensing, and modeling to recognize, understand, and manage climate hazards such as floods, droughts and heat waves.

In the coming years and decades, climate change is projected to lead to more intense and prolonged storms, hot days and heatwaves and a continued rise of global sea levels. Consequently, helping to build a sustainable future in the Kingdom and beyond, where people and communities are better prepared and more resilient in the face of natural hazards, remains his ultimate research goal.

“These climate hazards will pose a threat to lives, property, and critical infrastructure. They will affect our health and productivity and increase demand for agricultural water, putting even more pressure on already scarce water resources. Not only that, but climate change will also adversely affect vulnerable coastal communities.

“I believe my research is extremely relevant to KAUST and the Kingdom. This is because while the country frequently faces natural hazards such as flash floods and dust storms, there is currently a lack of monitoring and early warning capacity.”

Beck’s advice to students and fellow early career researchers is to realize that failure happens to everyone and is not a step backward, but rather a stepping stone to success.

“While being a researcher has its ups and downs, like any job, I am grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow, to see different parts of the world, and to meet so many incredible people along the way,” he concluded.