Email: rick_luettich@unc.edu
Phone: 919-445-9609
Area of Expertise: coastal circulation, storm surge modeling
Rick Luettich is RENCI’s chief domain scientist for coastal programs. He develops strategies on coastal issues ranging from marine environmental science to coastal hazards. He is a principal developer of the ADCIRC coastal circulation and storm surge modeling system, which has comprised the back bone of multiple US Army Corps of Engineers and FEMA forensic and planning studies in the Gulf Coast following hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. RENCI uses ADCIRC as its disaster response storm surge model.
Luettich is also the director of the UNC Chapel Hill Institute of Marine Sciences, where he leads the Coastal Circulation and Transport (CCATS) Laboratory and conducts observational and modeling studies of coastal and estuarine circulation processes. He holds a joint appointment in UNC Chapel Hill’s Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering and an adjunct appointment in North Carolina State University’s Department of Civil Engineering. His research is supported by NSF, ONR, NOAA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
