Dambaru B. Kattel, a young Nepalese scientist having started his years as a Ph.D candidate at ITP since 2009, underwent his Ph.D. dissertation defense on November 30, 2012.

Titled “Characteristics and mechanisms of the surface-air-temperature lapse rate between northern and southern slopes of the Himalayas”, Dambaru reported his study of surface temperature data from 72 weather stations on both the northern and southern slopes of the Himalayas. After presenting the unique seasonality of the temperature lapse rates in the region, he associated this with local precipitation amount, relative humidity, cloud cover and actual pressure lapse rate.

Revolving around this research topic, Dambaru, under the supervision of Prof. YAO Tandong, has succeeded in publishing two peer-reviewed papers in international journals. His defense went on smoothly, and he is expected to receive his doctoral degree in December, as scheduled.

There are so far thirteen foreign postgraduates at ITP from various nations including Nepal, Pakistan, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Kygestan, and Iran. Their admission to ITP is largely attributable to the Third Pole Environment (TPE) program which emphasized the education of young researchers from the Third Pole regions. With the further development of the TPE program, more young scientists seeking opportunities for further studies in China will come to ITP to pursue their research interests.