He was born in Frankfurt, Germany, February 9, 1906, and died December 6, 1985, in Geneva, Switzerland while attending a meeting of the World Meteorological Organization.

Landsberg was an important figure in meteorology and atmospheric science in education, public service and administration.

He authored several notable works, particularly in the field of particulate matter and its influence on air pollution and human health.

He attended the city's Woehler Realgymnasium High School, and then went on to study at the University of Frankfurt, physics, mathematics, and geosciences.

[1] At Maryland, he served as first Director of the Graduate program in Meteorology (later named the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science), and of the Institute for Fluid Dynamics and Applied Mathematics.

During World War II, he headed a project for the United States Air Force that provided information on climate and weather statistics in areas undergoing military missions.

Landsberg's early publications dealt with earthquakes, the impact of weather on aviation, atmospheric suspensions and, most notably, cloud condensation nuclei.

Among his notable honors were the International Meteorological Organization Prize (1979), the William Bowie Medal of the American Geophysical Union (1978), the Outstanding Achievement in Bioclimatology Award (1983) and the Cleveland Abbey Award (1983) of the American Meteorological Society, and the National Medal of Science (1985), presented to him by US President Ronald Reagan.