Research
ACINN is devoted to basic research in the areas of weather forecasting, mountain meteorology, earth atmosphere interactions and ice-climate relations. Our research activity is largely supported by third-party funding.
Studies
We offer a full degree programme in Atmospheric Sciences, from Bachelor to Master and PhD. Our teaching covers all the core subjects of the dynamics, physics, chemistry of the atmosphere-cryosphere-climate system and includes prerequisites from mathematics, statistics, physics and earth sciences.
Graduate Seminar
Time and location of the graduate seminar, a list of speakers, abstracts etc.
About Us
The Department of Atmospheric and Cryospheric Sciences (ACINN) is one of the few university departments worldwide where research and education in atmospheric science and glaciology are co-located. It is located in the heart of the Alps. Therefore, ACINN's research and teaching focus on mountain weather and forecasting, mountain climate, earth-atmosphere interaction – with an emphasis on snow- or ice-covered surfaces, exchange of gases, aerosols and other atmospheric properties over complex topography – and ice-climate relations. ACINN is embedded in the university's research areas Mountain Regions and Scientific Computing. It plays a key role in the research centre Climate - Cryosphere and Atmosphere.
Contact
Department of Atmospheric and Cryospheric Sciences
University of Innsbruck
Innrain 52f
6020 Innsbruck
Austria
News and Events
- Master Defensio: Michael Leiter
Title: Computation of the Glaciers Overshoot Day using Reanalysis Data and the Open Global Glacier Model;
Date/Time: March 31, 2026, 10:00 a.m.
Location: Computer room 60818 (8th floor of Bruno-Sander-Haus). If you want to join on-line e-mail us at atmosphaere@uibk.ac.at - Master Defensio: Jeannine Hieger
Title:When mountains shape the wind on the ocean: Identification, Classification, and Climatology of Mesoscale OrogrUsing the SUEWS model to investigate urban climate and climate sensitive urban design in Innsbruck; Date/Time: March 27, 2026, 09:00 a.m.
Location: Computer room 60818 (8th floor of Bruno-Sander-Haus). If you want to join on-line e-mail us at atmosphaere@uibk.ac.at - Graduate Seminar: Maximilian Meindl
Title: How much climate data do we need? Machine learning approaches for evaluating high-resolution climate models
Wednesday, March 25, 2026, 12:00; location: Seminar room 60819 on the 8th floor of Bruno-Sander-Haus, Innrain, 52f, and on-line.
If you want to join on-line e-mail us at atmosphaere@uibk.ac.at - Job announcement: PhD Position – Lightning Climatologies & Machine Learning (University of Innsbruck)
We invite applications for a fully funded PhD position in a collaborative research project between the Digital Science Center (DiSC) and the Department of Atmospheric and Cryospheric Sciences (ACINN). The project focuses on developing new methods to reconstruct long-term lightning climatologies from evolving measurement networks using meteorological data and machine learning. The project develops new methods to reconstruct reliable long-term lightning climatologies from evolving lightning detection networks. Using meteorological data and a newly developed machine-learning algorithm, the PhD researcher will identify and correct measurement artifacts caused by technological upgrades in Lightning Location Systems. We are looking for candidates with a Master’s degree in meteorology, statistics, data science, environmental science, lightning physics, or related fields, and strong programming skills in R or Python (with willingness to work in R)
- Public lecture Jim Steenburgh: Secrets of the greatest snow on earth
Title: "Secrets of the Greatest Snow on Earth: Mountain Weather, Climate Change, and Finding Deep Powder around the World." This public lecture will take place on 23 April 2026, 19:00 in the Kleiner Hörsaal (1. Untergeschoss) of the Ágnes-Heller-Haus.
Registration is required. Details and registration for the 23 April 2026 lecture are available here: https://www.uibk.ac.at/events/2026/04/23/secrets-of-the-greatest-snow-on-earth