Rolando is Senior Scientist in the Atmospheric Chemistry Observations and Modeling Laboratory (ACOM) of the NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research. Over the last several decades, he has led the study of the dynamics and chemistry of the middle atmosphere at NCAR; to help advance this work, he has established collaborations with research centers and universities in the U.S. and abroad, as well as with many colleagues and early career scientists.

Rolando’s research interests include observational, theoretical and numerical studies of ozone and other minor atmospheric constituents; modeling and observational studies of atmospheric waves; and numerical modeling of the global atmospheric circulation, transport of chemical constituents and chemistry-climate interactions. He co-developed the Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model (WACCM), the high-top atmospheric component of NCAR’s Community Earth System Model (CESM). He has served as chair of the CESM Whole Atmosphere Working Group and continues to be involved in the development of WACCM.

Rolando was chair of the Middle Atmosphere Committee of the American Meteorological Society and member of the Committee on Solar Terrestrial Research of the U.S. National Research Council. He served several terms as Editor of the Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences. He was named Haurwitz Memorial Lecturer for 2010 by the American Meteorological Society; and he is a Fellow of the American Meteorological Society and the American Geophysical Union. He has mentored many students and early career scientists and served on numerous dissertation committees.