Professor Ari Laaksonen from the Finnish Meteorological Institute is one of the most cited researchers in the world
Photo: Veikko SomerpuroGetting onto the list are researchers whose peer-reviewed scientific articles have been cited most by other researchers in the past ten years. Heavily referenced articles are of special importance in the world of science, as they help bring about large amounts of researched information.
This year a total of 21 researchers working in Finland made it onto the list of Highly Cited Researchers.
One of the most-cited geoscientists in the world
Professor Ari Laaksonen has been one of the most heavily cited geoscientists in the world since 2014. He currently has more than 250 peer-reviewed articles that have been cited more than 17,000 times.
“I have had the good fortune to work among high-level groups of researchers and networks. Atmospheric science is fundamentally very international, and Finland has some of the world's leading research in the field”, Laaksonen observes.
In his research Laaksonen has focused especially on fine particles and clouds, and the different ways that they affect the climate. He began researching the topic already as a student at the University of Helsinki. The research continues in the new concentration of atmospheric and climate research, which has recently been granted funding from the Flagship Programme of the Academy of Finland. The Atmosphere and Climate Competence Center (ACCC), which is jointly operated by the University of Helsinki the Finnish Meteorological Institute, the University of Eastern Finland, and the University of Tampere, focuses on matters including the understanding of how air quality and climate change interact.
Researcher on the cusp of great knowledge
In addition to serving as Executive Vice President of Strategic Research, at the Finnish Meteorological Institute, Laaksonen holds a part-time position as Professor of Environmental Physics at the University of Eastern Finland. Alongside his strategic tasks as a director of research, he also has time for active research.
“Conducting research keeps me alert, and I spend about half of my working hours on it. I am especially motivated in my research by the constant emergence of new things.”
Ari Laaksonen defended his doctoral thesis in the field of physics at the University of Helsinki in 1992. He has worked at the University of Eastern Finland from 1998 (then the University of Kuopio) and at the Finnish Meteorological Institute since 2008.