The author

Ernst Rauch studied from 1981 to 1986 at the Institute for General and Applied Geophysics at the University of Munich. He completed his diploma with a paper about ultrasonic velocity measures on core samples from the German Continental Deep Drilling Project (KTB) and then worked from 1986 to 1988 as a research assistant in the KTB's field laboratory and at the University of Munich.

In June 1988, Ernst Rauch joined the staff of Munich Re's Geo Risks Research Department. His work initially focused on earthquake risk analysis and the development of an earthquake simulation model.

Since the early 1990s — partly as a result of the high losses from the 1990 series of winter storms — his area of responsibility shifted increasingly to the analysis and modelling of meteorological risks. After becoming section leader in 2000, he was appointed head of the Meteorological Risks Department at Munich Re in April 2004.

Ernst Rauch is a member of the German Geophysical Society, the Wind Engineering Society (WTG, Germany), the Australian Earthquake Engineering Society, and the American Association for Wind Engineering.