PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Christopher Bretherton

Also known as Chris Bretherton, Christopher S. Bretherton

Christopher Bretherton is an atmospheric scientist whose research uses machine learning to improve climate modeling. He earned a mathematics doctorate at MIT in 1984 and joined the University of Washington in 1985; his group's code for subgrid cumulus cloud formation is used in two leading US climate models. He directed UW's Program on Climate Change from 2006 to 2011, received the AMS Jule G. Charney Award in 2012, and served as a lead author of the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report in 2013. His AI work includes ClimSim, which received a NeurIPS 2023 Outstanding Datasets and Benchmarks award, plus ACE2 and HiRO-ACE; he is Senior Director of Climate Modeling at AI2 and an emeritus professor at UW.

Works
475
Citations
39,046
h-index
96

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 15 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. 1984–1985

    Doctorate and UW appointment

    He completes a doctorate in mathematics at MIT in 1984 and joins the University of Washington's Department of Applied Mathematics in 1985.

  2. Since 1988

    Cloud modeling at UW

    From 1988, he holds a joint appointment in UW's Atmospheric Sciences Department and studies cloud formation and turbulence; his group's code for subgrid cumulus cloud formation is used in two leading US climate models.

  3. 2006–2011

    Directing UW climate program

    At UW, he directs the Program on Climate Change from 2006 to 2011.

  4. 2012

    A Charney Award

    The American Meteorological Society gives him the Jule G. Charney Award in 2012.

  5. 2013

    Lead author of IPCC AR5

    He serves as a lead author of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report in 2013.

  6. 2019

    A Vulcan climate initiative

    At Vulcan, his climate-modeling initiative begins in 2019, using machine learning trained on global cloud-resolving model output to improve simulations of regional precipitation trends and extremes.

  7. 2023

    The ClimSim dataset

    The ClimSim paper earns a NeurIPS 2023 Outstanding Datasets and Benchmarks award. He is among its authors, and the dataset supports hybrid ML-physics climate research.

  8. As of October 2026

    Senior Director at AI2

    He is Senior Director of Climate Modeling at AI2 and an emeritus professor at UW. In 2025, he writes about external ACE2 applications; in 2026, he coauthors AI2's HiRO-ACE announcement for kilometer-scale climate simulation.

Sources and credits

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  1. Christopher S. Bretherton | Department of Applied Mathematics | University of Washington amath.washington.edu. Checked 15 October 2026.
  2. Chris Bretherton UW Activities atmos.washington.edu. Checked 15 October 2026.
  3. Chris Bretherton atmos.washington.edu. Checked 15 October 2026.
  4. Announcing the NeurIPS 2023 Paper Awards – NeurIPS Blog blog.neurips.cc. Checked 15 October 2026.
  5. New applications of the Ai2 Climate Emulator (ACE) by the international climate modeling community | Ai2 allenai.org. Checked 15 October 2026.
  6. HiRO-ACE: An accessible solution for kilometer-scale climate simulation | Ai2 allenai.org. Checked 15 October 2026.