Dr. Mukesh Kumar
Professor
Contact
- 1064 Cyber Hall
- phone (205) 348-0180
- fax (205) 348-0783
Education
Ph.D, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, 2009
B.Tech, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, 2002
Dr. Mukesh Kumar is an associate professor of hydrology and water resources at The University of Alabama.
His research is geared towards improving the understanding and prediction of hydrologic processes, in order to better assess the impacts of variations and changes in climate and land use/land cover on water quantity and quality. To this end, he works on hypothesis testing through data analysis and application of physically-based models.
He has co-developed several open-source models and interfaces including PIHM (Pennstate Integrated Hydrologic Model), PIHMgis, FIHM, FoRM (Forest Radiation Model), BPT (Barrier Prioritization Tool) and SPAC (Soil-Plant-Atmosphere Continuum Model), many of which are being widely used in academia and government.
Kumar has personally directed more than $1.25 million of funded research, published more than 35 peer-reviewed research papers and delivered 28 invited talks. His research recognitions include NSF CAREER Award, UCOWR Ph.D. Dissertation Award (2nd Prize) and Outstanding Student Paper Award at AGU. In recognition of his outstanding contributions, he received the Mahatma Gandhi Award in 2018.
Kumar did his B.Tech from IIT Kanpur and doctorate from Pennsylvania State University. Prior to joining The University of Alabama, he was a faculty member at Duke University.
Affiliated Areas
Center for Water Quality Research, Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering
Selected Publications
- Krapu, C., Kumar, M., and Borsuk, M., “Identifying Wetland Consolidation Using Remote Sensing in the American Prairie Pothole Region,” Water Resources Research, (2018)
- Wang, D., Liu, Y., and Kumar, M., “Using nested discretization for a detailed yet computationally efficient simulation of local hydrology in a distributed hydrologic model,” Nature Scientific Reports, (2018)
- Zhang, M., Chen, X., Kumar, M., Marani, M., and Goralczyk, M., “Hurricanes and Tropical Storms, a Necessary Evil to Ensure Water Supply?,” Hydrological Processes, (2017)
- Liu, Y., Parolari, A., Kumar, M., Huang, C.W.,Katul, G., and Porporato, A., “Increasing atmospheric humidity and CO2 concentration alleviate forest mortality risk,” Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences, (2017)
- Liu, Y., and Kumar, M., “Role of meteorological controls on the interannual variations in wet-period characteristics of wetlands,” Water Resour. Res., (2016)
Awards and Honors
- NSF CAREER Award, National Science Foundation, 2015
- Mahatma Gandhi Pravasai Bhartiya Samman (Non-resident Indian) Award, Non-Resident Indian Welfare Society of India, 2018
- Finalist, Barret Foundation Business Concept Challenge, 2014.
- UCOWR PhD Dissertation Award, Honorable Mention (2nd Prize), 2010.
- CUASHI-CMWR Fellow, 2008.
Dr. Kumar's Impact
UA To Train Needed Workforce for Water Operations and Forecasting
The University of Alabama has been awarded $3 million from the National Science Foundation to establish a unique hydrologic science research and training program for graduate students.
UA-Led Study of Southeastern Groundwater Assists Water Management
The University of Alabama is leading a 4-year, $6 million project to conduct groundwater research that will provide new scientific insights and make useful groundwater water predictions for the Southeast.
Predicting Plant Water Needs in a Warmer, Drier World
UA-involved study shows dry air drives overlooked changes in how plants drink and breathe.