Colorado State University Distinguished Professor A.R. Ravishankara, professor in the Departments of Chemistry and Atmospheric Science, has been named a Foreign Member of the Royal Society, the independent scientific academy of the United Kingdom.

This year, the Royal Society elected 51 scientists, 10 Foreign Members and one Honorary Fellow to its ranks, in recognition of “exceptional contributions to science.”

Ozone and climate

Ravishankara is a widely respected expert in the study of ozone, air quality and climate change. Some of his recent research and policy-related work has focused on reducing atmospheric pollution from developing countries, including India, whose cities are among the most polluted in the world.

Formerly director of the Earth System Research Laboratory Chemical Sciences Division, part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Ravishankara joined the CSU faculty in 2014. He is chair of the Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate, an advisory body of the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine through the National Research Council. He is also a member of the Science Advisory Panel of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, a United Nations organization aimed at reducing atmospheric pollution.

Ravishankara is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, and a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Geophysical Union, and the Royal Society of Chemistry. He has served on many national and international committees and is an author or coauthor of more than 350 peer-reviewed publications.