Assistant professor Lei Zhao has been named to the 2025 Clarivate Analytics Highly Cited Researchers list. The list recognizes researchers and social scientists who have demonstrated exceptional influence, as reflected through their publication of multiple papers frequently cited by their peers during the last decade.
Zhao was 1 of 12 University of Illinois researchers named to the list.
“Highly Cited Researchers demonstrate significant and broad influence in their field(s) of research,” Clarivate Analytics reports. “Each researcher selected has authored multiple highly cited papers, which rank in the top 1% by citations for their field(s) and publication year in the Web of Science Core Collection over the past eleven years.” Other metrics and qualitative analyses are also used to compile the list. This year, 7,131 researchers are on the list.
Zhao’s research focuses on the physical and engineering processes in the atmospheric boundary layer, with a particular focus on built surfaces and urban environments. He combines theory, Earth system modeling, remote sensing and observation, using artificial intelligence/machine learning methods to study land-atmosphere interactions and environmental fluid mechanics that relate to urban climatology and hydrology, urban climate change, and climate impacts and adaptation. In addition to his role as an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering, Lei is an affiliate of climate, meteorology and atmospheric sciences and a professor in the Institute for Sustainability, Energy and the Environment and in the NCSA.