Quentin Dailaden

Quentin Dalaiden is a climate scientist who earned his PhD in climate science from the University catholic of Louvain in Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium) in 2021. His research primarily focuses on understanding climate variability in the high-latitude regions of the Southern Hemisphere, with a particular attention on atmospheric and oceanic drivers of the mass balance variability of the Antarctic Ice Sheet over the past several centuries.

Quentin is especially interested in distinguishing and quantifying the contributions of both natural and human-induced factors to observed climate changes. To achieve this, he uses a wide range of direct and indirect climate information, including paleoclimate records (such as ice cores, tree rings, and corals) and climate model simulations. He integrates these using a data assimilation method that maximizes the value of observations while incorporating the physics of the climate system, creating a dynamically coherent picture of the climate. These reconstructions are then used to investigate long-term climate variability, aiming to place recent observed changes in a broader historical context.

In September 2024, Quentin joined the team of François Counillon to explore the underlying physical drivers of long-term climate variability in the Pacific.