About

Bruce leads the development of operational systems for data assimilation in high-resolution Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) and land surface models in the Met Office.

Areas of expertise:

• Limited-area data assimilation
• Assimilation of cloud, precipitation and visibility observations
• Land surface assimilation

Publications 

Current activities

Bruce manages the high-resolution and land surface data assimilation team which is part of Data Assimilation and Ensembles. The team focuses on improving the assimilation of observations into limited area models covering different regions of the globe. The aim is to improve analyses and forecasts out to two days ahead of key weather elements such as rain, cloud, visibility, screen temperature and 10-metre wind. The group also participates in an EU project EURO4M, the goal of which is to produce a new high-quality regional analysis for studying and monitoring European climate. The team is also responsible for the analysis of surface variables like soil moisture, soil temperature and snow in all operational NWP models.

Career background

Bruce has worked on data assimilation since starting at the Met Office in 1985. He began work on initialisation of global models and helped develop the Analysis Correction assimilation scheme used operationally from 1988-1999. Later he worked on assimilation of radar rainfall rates by Latent Heat Nudging and cloud data by moisture nudging, techniques which became operational in the mid-1990s. He moved on to help introduce the first operational scheme for variational assimilation of visibility observations. He was also involved in the introduction of a 4D-Var scheme into the North Atlantic and European Model.

Prior to joining the Met Office, Bruce graduated in Applied Maths and Theoretical Physics from the University of St Andrews. He then completed a PhD on flow and sediment transport over steep sand ripples at the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics in the University of Cambridge.

External Recognition

• Bruce is the current chair of the Expert Team on Data Assimilation and Use of Observations of the Short-Range Numerical Weather Prediction Programme of EUMETNET.
• From 1999-2004, Bruce was chair of Working Group 3 of European Action COST-717: 'Use of Radar Observations in Hydrological and NWP models'.