Photograph of Dr Jeff Polton
Group
Ocean-Shelf Processes
Site
Liverpool
Email
jelt at noc.ac.uk
Biography
  • since 2025: Long-Term Visiting Scientist at Climate Centre Research Singapore (Apr 25 - May 28)
  • since 2007: National Oceanography Centre, Liverpool, UK.
  • 2004 – 2007: Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego.
  • 2002 – 2004: Research Fellow, University of Reading Met. Dept.
  • 1998 – 2002: PhD, University of Reading Met. Dept., (Advisor: Prof. Marshall).
  • 1995 – 1998: University of Cambridge, MA, Mathematics.

Research Themes include:

High Resolution Regional Modelling: Advances in simulation of macrotidal shelf seas for operational models.
Wave processes and turbulence: Turbulence modelling, observation and parameterisation development to improve simulation of the ocean.
Shelf Sea response to changing seas: Impact of changing climate on shelf seas.
Dynamical Ecology: Using state-of-the-art hydrodynamic models to investigate the dispersal of commercially or ecologically significant.

Research Interest Keywords include:

Tides; internal tides; ocean dynamics; shelf sea dynamics; tidal boundary layer;Wave induced mixing; Langmuir processes; Large Eddy Simulation techniques;
Regional modelling; regional model configuration; regional model assessment 

Electronic Profiles:

  • Group Head of Ocean-Shelf Processes at the National Oceanography Centre
  • Coastal Ocean theme Lead for the UK Joint Marine Modelling Programme (JMMP), a collaboration between the Met Office, British Antarctic Survey, National Oceanography Centre and Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling.
  • Long-Term Visiting Scientist at Climate Centre Research Singapore (Apr 25 - May 28)
  • National Tidal and Sea Level Facility (NTSLF) - co-chair since Mar 2021
  • Honorary Sen. Lecturer, School of Environmental Sciences, University of Liverpool.
  • Visiting Academic at University of Southampton, School of Ocean and Earth Science, Faculty of Natural and Environmental Sciences (2025 – Sept 2030)

External Committees

Active
  • Copernicus Marine: Strategic and Technical Advisory Committee member (since Dec 2024)
  • NEMO Community Engagement Working Group - since Oct 2021
  • Member of Tides Working Group in NEMO consortium (since July 2021)
  • Joint Marine Modelling Programme (JMMP, a Met Office / NERC partnership): Management group member since Dec 13 and NOC project lead Dec 14-Aug17 (as JCOMP). Since Aug 17 JMMP coastal lead.
Previously
  • Exec board member for Oceans Pillar of NOC, Liverpool, Manchester Doctoral Training Partnership, and formerly NOC-Liverpool postgraduate admissions and affairs tutor (since Nov 13 and Jun 10, respectively - Jun 18).
  • Working group management board between the School of Earth Science, University Liverpool & NOC (Mar 16 - Feb 20).
 
Links to UKRI projects

Active projects

CANARI. (Climate Change in the Arctic and North Atlantic Region and Impacts on the UK).
SEA-COAST. (Understanding and Prediction of Compound Ocean-Atmosphere Storms in the Tropics). WCSSP-Southeast Asia
  • 1 May 2025 - 31 Mar 2028
MISSING LINK. NERC Pushing the Frontiers.
  • 3 Apr 2023 - 2 Apr 2026
Huracan. (HUrricane Risk Amplification and Changing North Atlantic Natural disasters).
Surge model maintenance.
  • 1 Apr 2023 - 31 Mar 2027
 

As Principal Investigator (Highlights from last ~5 years):

  • 2024 - 2026: Development of Arctic regional ocean-sea ice model configurations (multiple projects with Met Office): PI: £336k
  • 2023: NOC contribution to UK Marine and Climate Advisory Service (UKMCAS). PI: £360k
  • 2022: PISCES. (Processes drIving Submarine Canyon fluxES). NE/W00528X/1. NOC PI: £191k
  • 2021: NOWMAPSIII. Delivery partner for NorthWest Shelf element of the Copernicus Marine Service (Subcontract to the Met Office). PI: £181k
  • 2020: Diagnostic and Assessment toolbox for kilometric scale regional models. Newton Fund: WCSSP-India. PI: £200k

As Co-Investigator (Highlights from last ~5 years):

  • 2024: Marine Autonomous Systems Digital Twin (MAS-DT) - A Digital Twin to maximise the value of ocean glider observations. NERC/Met Office: Twinning Capability for the Natural Environment (TWINE) call. co-I: £600k
  • 2024: WCSSP IND24 NOC 1.9 Relocatable Regional Ocean Model Support. co-I: £50k
  • 2023: MISSING LINK. NERC Pushing the Frontiers. NE/X014975/1. co-I: £880k

Historic projects include:

  • 2018: BoBEAS (Bay of Bengal and East Arabian Sea). Newton Fund: WCSSP-India. PI: £73k
  • 2018: anyTide-global. Commonwealth Marine Economy NOC subproject. PI: £38k
  • 2018: Machine Learning for Marine Energy Resource Assessment. NERC Pathfinder (NE/S005811/1). PI: £10.9k
  • 2017: ACCORD (Addressing Challenges of Coastal Communities through Ocean Research for Developing Economies). NERC directed RP: NC ODA. (NE/R000123/1). co-I £3.6M
  • 2017: CAMPUS (Combining Autonomous observations and Models for Predicting and Understanding Shelf seas). NERC directed RP: Autonomous Observing. (NE/R006822/1). co-I £371k(£501k)
  • 2017: C-RISC. (Madagascar storm surge modelling). NE/R009406/1: co-I: £101k
  • 2017: anyTide for Solomon Islands. Commonwealth Marine Economy NOC subproject. £81.7k
  • ORCHESTRA (Ocean Regulation of Climate by Heat and Carbon Sequestration and Transports) Directed RP (NE/N018095/1). £2.6M(£7.1M).
  • anyTide: Tidal predictions anywhere along the UK coast that can also be used offline via the use of bookmarks (formerly available via the App Store)
  • North Sea Interactive: A decision-support tool to guide environmental monitoring by the oil and gas industry
  • OSMOSIS: Ocean Surface Mixing, Ocean Submesoscale Interaction Study
  • FASTNEt: Fluxes Across Sloping Topography of the North East Atlantic. Consortium funded from the NERC Ocean Shelf Edge Exchange Research Programme.
  • PycnMix: Pycnocline Mixing in Shelf Seas
  • QICS: Quantifying and Monitoring Potential Ecosystem Impacts of Geological Carbon Storage
  • SSB: Shelf Sea Biogeochemistry