Kovács, István János

Publications:

• Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=8tS-Ku0AAAAJ
• Researchgate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Istvan-Kovacs-12
• ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3488-3716
• MTMT: https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/author/10022886?&labelLang=eng
• MTA EK Lendület Pannon LitH₂Oscope Research group: http://MTA EK Lendület Pannon LitH₂Oscope Kutatócsoport

CV

#Lithosphere_hydration #Carpathian–Pannonian_geodynamics #Magnetotelluric_deep_sounding

Career:

Dr. István János Kovács is a geologist and Director General of the HUN-REN Institute of Earth Physics and Space Science. His research focuses on the concentration, incorporation mechanisms, and physical role of trace amounts of "water" in minerals. Even in such small quantities, water plays a fundamental role in the operation of global plate tectonics. The Carpathian–Pannonian region provides an excellent natural laboratory for studying these processes. He also has extensive experience in the geological interpretation of deep geophysical data — particularly magnetotelluric (MT) and seismological measurements — in the Carpathian–Pannonian region. In addition, he serves as the Hungarian coordinator of the international Topo-Transylvania collaboration investigating the geodynamics of the Carpathian Bend area, one of the most seismically active regions in Europe. He is the author of more than 150 publications in international journals with impact factors, which have received more than 2,500 independent citations; his h-index exceeds 30. He has served on the editorial boards of several prestigious international journals, including American Mineralogist, Central European Geology, European Journal of Mineralogy, and Acta Geodaetica et Geophysica. He was an elected member of the Geochemical, Mineralogical and Petrological Committee of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and also served as chair of the Committee's Petrological Subcommittee. He has also served as President of the Hungarian National Committee of the International Lithosphere Program. He has supervised or co-supervised five PhD students, as well as numerous MSc and BSc students. His scientific work has been recognised with numerous national and international awards. He received the Outstanding Young Scientist Award of the Geochemistry, Mineralogy, Petrology and Volcanology Division of the European Geosciences Union (2011), and the Research Excellence Medal of the European Mineralogical Union (2015). His domestic awards include the Junior Prima Prize in the Hungarian Science category (2011), the Bolyai Plaque (2017), and the Vendl Mária Memorial Medal of the Hungarian Geological Society (2018). In 2025, he was elected Honorary Citizen of Szihalom. He is married and the father of two children: Emese (born 2012) and István Kovács Jr. (born 2014).

Research projects and Grants:

In summary 1 400 904 kHUF/3 502 kEUR retrieved from different funding resources

• National Research, Development and Innovation Office, (RHG_L 151351), ‘Multi-scale modelling and monitoring of Earth System Dynamics and its impact on geoenergy, geo-hazards and climate.’, 2025-2029, (1,000,000 kHUF), Co-PI
• National Research, Development and Innovation Office, (MEC_SZ 149113), ‘TOPOEUROPE’, 2024, (9,104 kHUF), PI
• Hungarian Academy of Sciences Visiting Researcher Program, invitation of Prof. Sierd Cloetingh, 2023, (10,000 kHUF), PI
• ELKH Infrastructure Grant SA-47/2021, ‘Topo-Transylvania’, 2021-2023, (40,000 kHUF), accepted, PI
• Hungarian Academy of Sciences Visiting Researcher Program, invitation of Prof. Sierd Cloetingh, 2019-2020, (6,000 kHUF), PI
• National Research, Development and Innovation Office, (NN141956), ‘TopoTransylvania’, 2018-2024, (41,500 kHUF), PI
• Hungarian Academy of Sciences Momentum program, 2018-2024, 'Pargasosphere: or the new role of 'water' in the dynamics of the lithosphere-asthenosphere system based on the Pannonian basin?!', (190,000 kHUF), PI
• Bolyai Scholarship of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, ‘Water distribution in the lithosphere of the Carpathian-Pannon region’, 2017-2018, (~3,200 kHUF), PI
• National Research, Development and Innovation Office (K128122), ‘Water in the fire: what does the water content and geochemistry of volcanic rocks and their phenocrysts reveal?’, 2016-2021, (27,000 kHUF), PI
• Bolyai Scholarship of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, ‘Application of Infrared Spectrometry in Earth and Environmental Sciences’, 2013-2016, (10,000 kHUF), PI
• National Research, Development and Innovation Office (PD101683), ‘Quantitative infrared spectrometry and isotope geochemical investigation of "water" built into the structure of minerals’, 2011-2014, (18,100 kHUF), PI
• Marie Curie International Reintegration Grant (NAMSs-230937) ‘Water and its bearing on geophysical properties’; 2009-2013, (100 kEUR), PI
• Mervyn and Katalin Paterson grant (ANU RSES, Australia), ‘Hydrogen measurements by SIMS in nominally anhydrous minerals’, 2007, (1,500 EUR), PI

Memberships/ Proffessional communities:

• Director General of HUN-REN Institute of Earth Physics and Space Science (Sopron) – 2024–
• Head of the Earth Physics Department, HUN-REN Institute of Earth Physics and Space Science – 2021–2024
• Director of MTA CSFK Geodetic and Geophysical Institute – 2019–2020
• Head of MTA CSFK Lendület Pannon LitH2Oscope Research Group (more than 10 members) – 2018–2024
• Head of Department, Geological and Geophysical Institute of Hungary (11 employees) – 2012–2013
• Supervisor of BSc, MSc and PhD students at Eötvös Loránd University – 2004–

Awards/Recognition: