Eric B. Kraus
American Meteorological Society Oral History Project
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On October 28 and November 6, 1987, Chester Newton interviewed Professor Eric B. Kraus for the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research and the American Meteorological Society's oral history project. Kraus discusses his early life, including his birth in Liberec, Czechoslovakia, in 1912, and his education in Switzerland and Vienna before pivoting from business to meteorology. Influenced by travel experiences and interactions with figures in science, Kraus pursued studies in meteorology, eventually assisting prominent meteorologists in Bergen, Norway, just before World War II. During the war, Kraus served as a meteorologist and pilot officer with the Royal Air Force, achieving notable contributions to meteorological reconnaissance, especially the development of the Met flights, which collected critical weather data over the Atlantic. His service earned him multiple honors, including the British Air Force Cross. Kraus recounts his postwar career as a researcher at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) in Australia, where he conducted influential experiments in cloud seeding and explored weather modification's potential. He details subsequent roles, including his work with the Snowy Mountains Authority, focusing on meteorology in hydrology and the unique environmental challenges of Australia. The interview also captures Kraus's reflections on his wife Heather’s career and family heritage, as well as the academic and professional challenges he faced in postwar Europe and Australia.
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