After earning his PhD in atmospheric sciences from Seoul National University (SNU) in 2005, Sang Woo Kim pursued postdoctoral work at France's Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement (LSCE). He is currently a Professor in the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences at SNU. His research focuses on atmospheric aerosols and clouds, studying their optical, physical, and radiative properties, as well as their climate effects, using both in-situ and remote sensing measurements. He has co-authored approximately 160 publications (GS h-index ~43), and he serves on several global committees.

Kim is a member of various international activities, including the Aerosol Scientific Advisory Group (SAG) of the WMO Global Atmospheric Watch (GAW) Programme, a co-chair of the Pandora Asia Network (PAN), and a steering committee member of MIRA (Models, In Situ, and Remote Sensing of Aerosols). He is the recipient of several awards, including a Commendation from the Minister of Science and ICT in 2021, an Excellent Research Award from SNU (2019), the Wol-bong Academic Award from the Korea Meteorological Society (2018), the Prime Minister's Citation, awarded by the Prime Minister of Korea (2018), and the Science and Technology Excellent Paper Award from the Korean Federation of Science & Technology Societies (2016).