It is with profound sadness that we share the news that Professor Robert E. Dickinson passed away on 11 September 2026.
One of the most influential Earth system scientists of our time, Dr. Dickinson’s remarkable career spanned more than six decades, helping shape modern understanding of the climate system through pioneering contributions to atmospheric dynamics, climate modeling, climate change, land-atmosphere interactions, the terrestrial carbon cycle, remote sensing, and Earth system science.
Dr. Dickinson served as AGU President from 2002 to 2004 and was recognized with one of AGU’s highest honors, the AGU Roger Revelle Medal for outstanding contributions in atmospheric sciences, atmosphere-ocean coupling, atmosphere-land coupling, biogeochemical cycles, climate or related aspects of the Earth system.
His research transformed how we represent the interactions among the atmosphere, land surface, and biosphere in climate models, laying a foundation for much of the work being carried out today.
This work resulted in numerous honors over the course of his career, including Columbia University’s Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory’s Vetlesen Prize, the American Meteorological Society’s Rossby Medal, election to the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering, and membership in numerous scientific academies and societies around the world.
Fellow AGU Past President Lisa Graumlich remembers Dr. Dickinson’s legacy in creating community: “His deepest contribution wasn’t a model; it was a way of working. Coupling the land surface to the atmosphere meant putting ecologists, hydrologists, and atmospheric physicists on the same problem — and then making it normal for them to stay there. A generation of us learned to work that way without noticing what we were being taught. The Earth system models we have now are what that habit built.”
Indeed, Dr. Dickinson often spoke of his collaborations with community as being the most critical part of his work. “Perhaps my most profound personal insight is that this has all been a response to the dynamics of exchanging ideas with the large number of people with whom I have interacted over the course of my career,” he offered in his citation response to receiving the Revelle Medal. “These convictions also gave me my appreciation of how important AGU is.”
After earning his undergraduate degree from Harvard University and graduate degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dr. Dickinson joined the National Center for Atmospheric Research, where he became a leader in climate and global dynamics research. He later served on the faculties of the University of Arizona, the Georgia Institute of Technology, and The University of Texas at Austin, mentoring generations of students and researchers who have gone on to become leaders in the field.
Since 2016, he served as Distinguished Professor in Residence in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he continued to inspire colleagues and students through his scientific vision and service to the broader climate community.
Beyond his scientific achievements, Dr. Dickinson was deeply respected for his intellectual curiosity, his generosity toward his colleagues, and tireless dedication to advancing science for the benefit of society. His influence extended far beyond his own research through his mentorship, leadership, and unwavering commitment to the scientific community.
AGU extends heartfelt condolences to his wife, Rong Fu, Distinguished Professor at UCLA and Director of the UCLA-JPL Joint Institute for Regional Earth System Science and Engineering, and to his family, friends, former students, colleagues, and the many people whose lives and careers he touched through his mentorship, leadership, and friendship. Dr. Dickinson’s scientific legacy will endure through the generations of researchers he inspired and the foundational advances he made to our understanding of the Earth system. He will be greatly missed and long remembered.
AGU offers its gratitude to Jonathan H. Jiang, President of AGU’s Global Environmental Change Section for his contributions to this remembrance.