Archived News
April 2019: Morales Physical Science Scholarship at Morton East High School
In 2018 I began a scholarship at my high school to support underrepresented students interested in physical science degrees. The recipients of the Morales Physical Science Scholarship have been: * Alyssa Berrios (Physics at Loyola University) - 2018 * Daisy Patino (Biology, Public Health minor at University of Illinois)- 2019
March 2019: ACCEPTED THE ASP POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP AT NCAR
I'm incredibly excited to start this new chapter of my life as a postdoctoral fellow in the Advanced Study Program (ASP) at NCAR. I have a joint appointment with the Research Application Lab and the Mesoscale and Microscale Meteorology Lab, working with Greg Thompson and Hugh Morrison. I haven't fully decided what my research will be, but it will continue to involve orographic precipitation. Possibly studying the snow line, stochastic parameterization, and more! Sky's the limit!
June-July 2018: Presented to HERS and Bridge to the Geosciences programs
I gave a seminar to the HERS program and Bridge to the Geosciences programs on Flooding in Colorado. I also helped mentor the students in the Bridge program during their project on the Boulder flood.
June 2018: Presented research at the Mountain Meteorology conference
I presented preliminary results of my research exploring the sensitivity of orographic precpitation to perturbations in microphysical and environmental parameters for moist neutral flow.
Apr 2018: Presented research at MMM Seminar
I presented my recently accepted manuscript to the Journal of Atmospheric Sciences at the Mesoscale and Microscale Meteorology Seminar. I discussed my research exploring the sensitivity of ororographic precipitation and cloud development to microphysical parameter perturbations and how these responses change in different environments. I also previewed my current research exploring microphysical sensitivities using a more robust statistical method called the Morris One-at-A-Time (MOAT) Screeening method.
Mar 2018: Awarded the Rackham Predoctoral Fellowship
I am incredibly happy to announce I have been awarded the Rackham Predoctoral Fellowship for 2018-2019. This fellowship will provide an additional year of funding, allowing me to continue my PhD research and giving me more time to further explore my research questions. The Rackham Predoctoral Fellowship is one of the most prestigious awards granted by the University of Michigan's Rackham Graduate School and is incredibly competitive. This year, 82 awards were available with over 200 nominations submitted.
Feb 2018: Awarded the Richard F. and Eleanor A. Towner Prize For Distinguished Academic Achievement
I had the honor of being awarded the Richard F. and Eleanor A. Towner Prize for Distinguished Academic Achievement . This award is presented to the outstanding graduate student (Master’s or Ph.D. students) in each degree program. Criteria considered by the department awards committee include student’s active participation in research, leadership and academic performance (GPA).
Jan 2018: Poster at Annual AMS Conference, Austin, TX
I gave a poster presentation at the AMS Annual Meeting held in Austin, TX. My poster was titled, Sensitivity of Orographic Precipitation to Microphysics Parameter and Process Perturbations . I had a great time networking and catching up with friends, as well as enjoying some decadent Voodoo donuts. .
July 2017: Talks at Conference on Mesoscale Processes and JPL
I gave an oral presentation at the AMS 17th Conference on Mesoscale Processes held in San Diego, CA. My presentation was titled, Sensitivity of Orographic Precipitation to Ice Microphysics Parameter Perturbations . In addition, I gave an Earth Science seminar at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA.
June 2017: Participated in ASP Summer Colloquium
This summer I was a participant in the ASP Summer Colloquium on Interaction of Precipitation with Orography held at NCAR. This was a two-week long colloquium with lectures from top scientists in the field and hands-on workshops using CESM and WRF.
May 2017: Moved to Boulder
I will be wrapping up my PhD work in Boulder, working remotely from NCAR. I will continue my research collaboration with NCAR scientists and enjoy my new mountainous environment. Stop on by and say hello!
March 2017: Featured in CLaSP Department Website
I was featured in a news story on the department website for Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering (CLaSP) at the University of Michigan. The story described my summer mentoring and outreach activities as a part of the Warner Internship for Scientific Enrichment through NCAR's ASP Graduate Visitor Program.
July 2016: Introduction to Bayesian Statistics Workshop, Boulder, CO
I was accepted to participate in a 3-day course providing introduction to the theory and methods of Bayesian Statistics at NCAR through the Computational Information Systems Laboratory. It was taught by Alix Gitelman, Professor of Statistics at Oregon State University.
June 2016: 17th Conference on Mountain Meteorology, Burlington, VT
I attended the Mountain Meteorology conference in Burlington, VT and presented a talk titled, "Evaluation the Influence of Microphysics on Orographic Precipitation" .
June 2016: SOARS 20th Anniversary Celebration, Boulder, CO
The Significant Opportunities in Atmospheric Research and Science (SOARS) program had their 20th Anniversary celebration at NCAR. It was a weekend reunion of past and current proteges as well as a career and networking workshop. It was wonderful to be around such passionate, talented, and dedicated people! "SOARS is Love, Love is Work"
May 2016: Summer at NCAR!
I arrived to Boulder and will be spending my summer working at the Mesoscale and Microscale Meteorology lab with Hugh Morrison and Rich Rotunno. I'll be working on my PhD research on orographic precipitation, as well as mentoring a high school student through the Pre-College Internship Program (PRECIP).
April 2016: Passed qualifying exams and can proceed into candidacy!
January 2016: Accepted to the Graduate Visitor Program at NCAR!
I will be spending my summer at NCAR working alongside Hugh Morrison and other scientists, furthering my dissertation research on orographic precipitation. I also received the Wagner Internship for Scientific Enrichment (WISE), which will give me the opportunity for outreach and service to the community.
December 2015: AGU Fall Meeting, San Francisco, CA
My first AGU meeting involved catching up with old friends, interacting with scientists, listening to great talks, standing in line for Star Wars Episode VII, and taking a boat ride to watch sea lions. I presented my poster, Evaluating the Influence of Ice Microphyscis on an Idealized Simulation of Orographic Precipitation.
September 2015: Succesfully passed my first PhD Qualifying Exam!
One exam down, one to go!
August 2015: 16th Conference on Mesoscale Processes, Boston, MA
This was my first time attending the Mesoscale conference and visiting Boston! I gave a talk , "Evaluating the influence of ice microphysics on an idealized simulation of orographic precipitation", and a poster, for which I received the 2nd Best Poster Award in the student competition.
May 2015: STATMOS Data Assimilation Summer School, Boulder, CO
I participated alongside students and faculty from various insitituions in a Data Assimilation Summer School held at NCAR in Boulder, CO. We heard talks from researches using data assimilation techniques to solve geophysical science problems and participated in a poster session with fellow students. It was beneficial to interact and have discussions with researchers in statistics and help each other understand the language each field contains. It was interesting to see how geophysical problems could be approached from a more statistical point of view. "Data assimilation refers to a class of methods that link physical and probability models with the goal of inference or prediction for often complex, nonlinear dynamical systems."
May 2015: Career Day at Morton Freshman Center, Cicero, IL
I had the pleasure of returning to my high school for their annual Career Day. I had the opportunity to discuss careers in Atmospheric Science and how I got where I am today. The freshman students and teachers I spoke to were wonderful and I had a great time. Although there had been many changes since I walked those halls, it still felt like home.
April 2015: Online article for Physics Today
An article based on my MS research was published online for Physics Today's "Down to Earth" column, where the research of atmospheric science graduate students from the country are featured monthly. Check out my post!: "Cyclonic circulation development during extreme precipitation"
April 2015: Annual MGU Student Research Symposium
Every spring the Michigan Geophysical Union (MGU) Student Research Symposium provides students the opportunity to share their research with others in the University of Michigan Earth and Space Science community. This was a great opportunity to present my MS work and hear about the current research performed around campus.
January 2015: AMS Annual Meeting, Phoenix, AZ
Phoenix was a wonderful break from the snowy and cold Michigan winter! I volunteered as a Session Chair during the AMS Student Conference and presented my MS work. I received a lot of feedback on my research, heard fantastic talks, and met great people. Always a great time!
December 2014: CSU Graduation!, Fort Collins, CO
I returned to CSU for commencement and to celebrate my MS graduation. I had a fantastic time catching up with friends and hanging out in lovely Fort Collins.
August 2014: Moved to Ann Arbor, MI
After completing my M.S. at CSU, I moved to Ann Arbor, MI to start my Ph.D. position at the Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Space Sciences at the University of Michigan. I will be working in Dr. Derek Posselt's research group, exploring the relative role that various environmental factors play in the development of precipitation using the Markov Chain Monte Carlo technique.
August 2014: SUCCESFULLY DEFENDED MY M.S. THESIS!!, Fort Collins, CO
On Aug. 1st, I succesfully defended my M.S. thesis titled, "Effect of Latent Heating on Mesoscale Vortex Development during Extreme Precipitation: Colorado, September 2013". My committee members were: Dr. Sonia M. Kreidenweis (Co-advisor), Dr. Russ S. Schumacher (Co-advisor), and Dr. Jorge A. Ramirez. This was the happiest day of my entire life (so far)!
August 2014: SPREAD Workshop, Boulder, CO
I participated in the second year of the Studies of Precipitation, flooding, and Rainfall Extremes Across Disciplines (SPREAD) workshop. This year the workshop was held in Boulder, CO, where they experienced severe flash flooding due to very heavy rainfall rates in September 2013. During the workshop, the participants presented a brief update on their research since the 2013 workshop. We also had invited speakers discuss the meteorology, hydrology, and societal impacts of the September Colorado Floods. In addition, we went on a hydrometeorological tour of various sites around Boulder, Rocky Mountain National Park, and the Big Thompson Canyon that were impacted by the floods. As a numerical modeler, I don't often get the opportunity to observe the environmental and societal impacts of the event I am studying. Observing the impact of the Colorado Floods helped put my research into perspective, and gave me that extra spark of motivation to complete my thesis!
February 2014: AMS Annual Meeting, Atlanta, GA
I gave my first conference talk "Concurrent sensitivities of an isolated deep convective storm to parameterization of microphysics, horizontal resolution, and environmental sounding" during the 94th annual AMS conference in Atlanta, GA. I was also part of the AMS Student Conference planning committee and was session chair for "The Weather Enterprise" panel, featuring Dr. Petty from Vaisala Inc., Dr. Bosart from UAlbany, and Dr. Uccellini, NWS Director. I had a great time during the conference, listening to great talks, talking to students, and meeting interesting people!
January 2014: ACCEPTED TO UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN!!, Ann Arbor, MI
I was extremely honored and excited to be accepted to the Ph.D. program at University of Michigan's Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Sciences (AOSS) Department! I will be working in Dr. Derek Posselt's Group. I am excited for this new chapter in my career and to be moving a bit closer to home. GO BLUE!
August 2013: CMMAP Student Colloquium, Fort Collins, CO
I was invited to participate during the 2013 Center for Multiscale Modeling of Atmospheric Processes (CMMAP) Student Colloquium and presented the on-going research I first began during my summer internship at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) through the Significant Opportunities in Atmospheric Research and Science (SOARS) in 2012.
June 2013: SPREAD Workshop, Fort Collins, CO
I had the honor to be part of the Studies of Precipitation, flooding, and Rainfall Extremes Across Disciplines (SPREAD) workshop. The goal of the workshop was to promote multidisciplinary research and colloboration when dealing with issues of extreme precipitation and flooding. During the workshop, we heard lectures from prominent scientists researching different aspects of floods and the local emergency manager who was on duty during the 1997 Fort Collins flood.
June 2013: UADY Short Course, Merida, Yucatan, MEX
Myself and two other CSU graduate students traveled to the Autonomous University of Yucatan (UADY) to teach a 2-week introductory course in meteorology and hurricanes. The course was offered to both undergraduate and graduate engineering students. I prepared lectures, homework assignments, daily weather discussions, and hands-on experiments in Spanish. The goal of the course was to raise interest and encourage students to obtain higher degrees in atmospheric science, either in Mexico or abroad, and depending upon their success have them return to UADY in the hopes of developing a graduate program, with a focus in hurricane research and forecasting. I had a great time there and although it was challenging, it was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life! We were also invited to present during the annual kick-off event for the Atlantic hurricane season. Having to speak and be interviewed by the press was an interesting and new experience for me, but it went well. The next day, our interviews were in the local newspaper and news website!
January 2013: AMS 93rd Annual Meeting, Austin, TX
I presented my SOARS research, "Sensitivity of a simulated deep convective storm to WRF microphysical schemes and horizontal resolution". I also volunteered during the CSU Alumni/Student Reception talking to potential students and introducing them to professors. I attended various symposia and took full advantage of all the networking opportunities.
October 2012: Young Scientist Symposium in Atmospheric Research, Fort Collins, CO
The Young Scientist Symposium in Atmospheric Research is sponsored by the CSU student chapter of AAAR. Graduate students and young scientists from the Front Range meet to learn about and discuss on-going research in atmospheric science. The event also provides the opportunity for networking and collaborations across universities. I presented my SOARS summer research, "Sensitivity of a simulated deep convective storm to WRF microphysical schemes and horizontal resolution".
July 2012: SPARK Blog
I wrote and submitted a blog through NCAR's Spark website related to a group trip to the Research Aviation Facility. To read this blog post, visit the Spark Blog website!
Summer 2012: SOARS Internship, Boulder, CO
I had the chance to return to the SOARS program and explore my research interests in cloud microphysics. I worked on the project "Sensitivity of a simulated deep convective storm to WRF microphysical schemes and horizontal resolution" under the guidance of Ph.D. Candidate Cecille Villanueva-Birriel from Purdue University and Dr. Hugh Morrison from the Mesoscale and Microscale Meteorology Division. Through this research I gained technical skills and research experience that helped focus my research interests when entering graduate school.
May 2012: School of Earth, Society, and Environment Convocation, Urbana, IL
I had the great honor to be selected to give the convocation speech during my graduation. I-L-L-I-N-I!
January 2012: 11th AMS Student Conference, New Orleans, LA
I presented my SOARS summer research, "Semi-empirical functions describing the response of short-lived radicals to driving forces in the WRF/Chem model". I also volunteered during WeatherFest.
October 2011: SACNAS National Conference, San Jose, CA
I presented my SOARS 2011 summer research, "Semi-empirical functions describing the response of short-lived radicals to driving forces in the WRF/Chem model". This was my first national conference and my first time in California. It was a great time and I got the opportunity to interact with prospective graduate schools.
Summer 2011: SOARS Internship, Boulder, CO
I partcipated in the Significant Opportunities in Atmospheric Research and Science (SOARS) program at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). I performed the research project "Semi-empirical functions describing the response of short-lived radicals to driving forces in the WRF/Chem model" under the guidance of Drs. Alma Hodzic and Sasha Madronich. I had a fantastic experience and gained techincal skills and research experience, as well as great support group. For program details, application requirements, and past proteges, please visit the SOARS website.
