Congratulations to Srikanth Toppaladoddi and Yiqi Zheng who were awarded NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowships.

NASA received a total of 712 applications in 2015 to the NASA Earth and Space Science (NESSF) Fellowship Program announced in November 2014 among Earth Science Research, Heliophysics Research, Planetary Science Research, and Astrophysics

Research – the four research programs of the Science Mission Directorate (SMD) at

NASA Headquarters.

These four SMD science divisions make respective selection of applications for award on a competitive basis. Criteria for evaluation included: (a) the scientific merit of the proposed research; (b) the relevance of the proposed research to NASA’s objectives in Earth or space science; and (c) academic excellence based upon an applicant’s transcripts, the letter of recommendation by the student’s academic advisor, and the degree to which

it supported the proposed research. Evaluation was conducted via either mail or panel review, or both, and by the relevant expertise in the science divisions of SMD.

The purpose of the NESSF is to ensure continued training of a highly qualified workforce in disciplines required to achieve NASA’s scientific goals. Awards resulting from the competitive selection are made in the form of training grants to the respective universities and educational institutions, with the faculty advisor serving as the principal investigator.

NESSF awards are made initially for one year and may be renewed for no more than two additional years, contingent upon satisfactory progress, as reflected in academic performance, research progress, and recommendation by the faculty advisor, and the availability of funds. An award is $30,000 per annum, including $24,000 student stipend and an allowance of up to $6,000, consisting of $3,000 for student expenses and $3,000 for university expenses.

The student allowance may be used for tuition; fees; travel in support of the research investigation to conferences, symposia, or collaborative meetings; books; expendable laboratory supplies; page charges for journal articles; printing of a thesis; health insurance; and other similar expenses related to the proposed research investigation. The university allowance may be used for tuition or research expenses, if agreed upon by the student and faculty advisor; it may also support research-related travel for the advisor (i.e. to accompany the student to a scientific meeting, oversee the student’s research,

etc.); or by the student. The budget in these two allowance categories may be exchanged, as long as the total sum for the two combined allowance categories does not exceed

$6,000.

An individual accepting this award may not concurrently receive other Federal fellowships or traineeships. However, NASA may allow an applicant to receive supplements from other U.S. Federal agencies to cover expenses not covered by NASA’s graduate fellowships; for example, the purchase of equipment, which is not permitted through a NASA fellowship.

The names of the students and their faculty advisors, institutions, and proposal titles of the 2015 NESSF selections are listed below by one of the four SMD science divisions.

The announcement for 2016 NESSF is anticipated in November 2015. The release will be posted at http://nspires.nasaprs.com/external/, and the deadline for submission of new applications to NASA will be February 1, 2016.

Inquiries about the program may be directed to:

Program Administrator for NESSF Earth Science Research – Claire Macaulay at 202/358

0151 or by E-mail at claire.i.macaulay@nasa.gov.

Program Administrator for NESSF Heliophysics Research, Planetary Science Research, and Astrophysics Research – Dolores Holland at (202) 358-0734 or by E-mail at hq- nessf- Space@nasa.gov.

Earth Science

NASA received a total of 391 applications in Earth Science Research and selected 64 for

award, pending acceptance by each applicant and their respective institution; they are:

James Allen (Student); David Siegel (Advisor); University of California, Santa Barbara

Retrieval of Phytoplankton Size Distribution from Satellite Imagery

Grayson Badgley (Student); Christopher Field (Advisor); Stanford University Improving Estimates of Terrestrial Gross Primary Productivity with Remote Sensing of Solar-Induced Chlorophyll Fluorescence

Sarah Bang (Student); Edward Zipser (Advisor); University of Utah

Seeking Reasons for the Differences in Structure, Evolution, and Lightning of Deep

Convective Systems Over Land and Ocean

William Battye (Student); Viney Aneja (Advisor); North Carolina State University

Use of Satellite Measurements to Validate and Improve Air Quality Predictions of

Ammonia and Fine Particulate Matter

Sarah Benjaram (Student); Jean Dixon (Advisor); Montana State University

Climate Controls on Weathering in a Post-Glacial Landscape

Saiprasanth Bhalachandran (Student); Dev Niyogi (Advisor); Purdue University Integrating Land Surface Processes for Improved Simulation of Landfalling Tropical Cyclones

Jonathan Bielli (Student); Tiruvalam Krishnamurti (Advisor); Florida State University Impacts on Hurricane and Monsoon Extreme Rainfall Forecasts From Inflowing Buoyancy Streams Using Physical Initialization and Downscaled GPM Rain Rates Within a Cloud Resolving Model

Ruth Branch (Student); Alexander Horner-Devine (Advisor); University of Washington River Discharge and Estuary Dynamics Inferred from Sea Surface Height Measurements: New Applications for SWOT

Matthew Brege (Student); Lynn Mazzoleni (Advisor); Michigan Technological

University

Aqueous Phase Oxidation of Biomass Combustion Emissions in Clouds

Matthew Brown (Student); Michael Behrenfeld (Advisor); Oregon State University Resolving Physiological Mechanisms of Photoacclimation for an Improved Interpretation of NASA’s Satellite Chlorophyll Data Record

Nick Carr (Student); Yang Hong (Advisor); University of Oklahoma Evaluating the Connection Between Surface Properties and Precipitation Characteristics: Bridging GPM and SMAP

Yi-Yin Chang (Student); Sundar Christopher (Advisor); University of Alabama in

Huntsville

A Novel Approach for Examining Radiative Effects of Absorbing Aerosols Above

Cloud Based on In Situ and Satellite Observations

Winnie Chu (Student); Robin Bell (Advisor); Columbia University

Investigating the Influence of Subglacial Hydrologic Conditions on Seasonal

Velocity in Northwest Greenland

David Coe (Student); Jianhua Qian (Advisor); University of Massachusetts Lowell Daily Weather Types in Four Seasons in the Northeast US and Climate Tele- Connection

Leila Cooper (Student); Ashley Ballantyne (Advisor); University of Montana Landsat-Driven Analysis of the Impacts of Climate Change on Carbon Release Resulting From Forest Disturbance

Kerstin Cullen (Student); Emily Shroyer (Advisor); Oregon State University

Air-Sea Interaction of the Sea Surface Salinity Anomaly in the Upwelling Sri Lanka

Dome

Caroline Curtis (Student); Bethany Bradley (Advisor); University of Massachusetts

Amherst

Using Time Series of Remotely Sensed Imagery to Understand Invasive Pine

Dispersal

Jennifer DeHart (Student); Robert Houze (Advisor); University of Washington

Analysis of the Interaction of Hurricane Karl (2010) with the Topography of Mexico

Tedward Erker (Student); Philip Townsend (Advisor); University of Wisconsin, Madison Linkage of Remote Sensing, Field Spectroscopy and Modeling to Characterize Ecosystem Function in Relation to the Heat Island and Carbon Budget of an Urban Area

Catherine Garcia (Student); Adam Martiny (Advisor); University of California, Irvine Global Distributional Patterns of Phytoplankton Communities and Their Elemental Stoichiometry Using MODIS Satellite Data

Allison Goodwell (Student); Praveen Kumar (Advisor); University of Illinois, Urbana- Champaign

A Complex Network Approach to Characterize and Predict Ecohydrologic Shifts

Heather Greaves (Student); Lee Vierling (Advisor); University of Idaho

Multisensor Fusion for Mapping of Low-Stature Arctic Vegetation Communities and Woody Biomass

Danielle Groenen (Student); Vasubandhu Misra (Advisor); Florida State University Mid-Summer Droughts Amidst Landfalling Tropical Cyclones and Atmospheric Rivers

Brice Grunert (Student); Colleen Mouw (Advisor); Michigan Technological University CDOM Variability and Its Influence on Phytoplankton Distribution in a Sub-Arctic Basin

Ryan Hardy (Student); Robert Nerem (Advisor); University of Colorado Improving Estimates of Antarctic Ice Mass Loss From GRACE by Reducing Atmospheric Modeling Errors

Souichiro Hioki (Student); Ping Yang (Advisor); Texas A&M University

Variability of Ice Cloud Particle Roughness Determined from Polarimetric Satellite

Observations

James Hite (Student); Athanasios Nenes (Advisor); Georgia Institute of Technology Quantifying Organic Aerosol Volatility and Its Relationship to Composition, Hygroscopicity, and Other Properties

Xie Hu (Student); Zhong Lu (Advisor); Southern Methodist University Quantifying Landslide Dynamics Using InSAR: Applications to Landslides in Northwestern USA

Alex Huth (Student); Benjamin Smith (Advisor); University of Washington

Triggers for the Collapse of Ice Shelves in Antarctica: Investigating Compressive

Arch Failure with Numerical Models

Kelsey Kremers (Student); Adrian Rocha (Advisor); University of Notre Dame

Is Arctic Greening Consistent with the Temperature Sensitivity of Coupled Carbon and Nitrogen Cycles?

Abdiel Laureano-Rosario (Student); Frank Muller-Karger (Advisor); University of South

Florida

Evaluating Water Quality and Tropical Vector-Borne Disease Risk by Satellite

Remote Sensing

Patricia Lawston (Student); Brian Hanson (Advisor); University of Delaware

Impacts of Irrigation and Wind Turbines on Land-Atmosphere Interactions and

Coupled Prediction

Xiang Li (Student); Albert Presto (Advisor); Carnegie Mellon University

Constraining Marcellus Shale Methane Emissions with Remote Sensing Data

Xiaoqiong Li (Student); Mingfang Ting (Advisor); Columbia University

Asian Monsoon Response to the Changing Climate: Role of Anthropogenic Forcing

David Lilien (Student); Ian Joughin (Advisor); University of Washington

Modeling Melt Sensitivity of Smith, Pope, and Kohler Glaciers, West Antarctica

Bernard Lipat (Student); Lorenzo Polvani (Advisor); Columbia University Quantifying and Understanding Linkages Between Clouds and the General Circulation

Rainer Luptowitz (Student); Bob Allen (Advisor); University of California, Riverside Investigation of Recent and Future Hydrological Changes in the Southwest United States

Grant Macdonald (Student); Douglas MacAyeal (Advisor); University of Chicago Investigating Supraglacial Lake Evolution and Hydrology on the Grounded and Floating Portions of Petermann Glacier, North Greenland

Margaret Marvin (Student); Ross Salawitch (Advisor); University of Maryland, College

Park

Connecting Emissions and Oxidation of Isoprene Through In Situ and Remote

Observations of Formaldehyde

Susan Meerdink (Student); Dar Roberts (Advisor); University of California, Santa

Barbara

Discriminating California Plant Species and Evaluating Temperature Relations

Across Seasons Within Drought Impacted Ecosystems

Vikalp Mishra (Student); John Mecikalski (Advisor); University of Alabama in

Huntsville

Downscaling Microwave/Thermal Infrared Coupled Soil Moisture Estimates and Its

Application to Crop Modeling

Bailey Morrison (Student); Jonathan Greenberg (Advisor); University of Illinois at

Urbana-Champaign

The Velocity of Tree Cover in California

David New (Student); Xin-Zhong Liang (Advisor); University of Maryland, College Park A Unified Representation of the Planetary Boundary Layer and Shallow Cumulus Convection

Lavanya Periasamy (Student); Albin Gasiewski (Advisor); University of Colorado at

Boulder

Calibration and Validation of the PolarCube 3U Temperature Sounding

Radiometer Mission

Michael Polen (Student); Ryan Sullivan (Advisor); Carnegie Mellon University Experimental Parameterization of the Emission and Properties of Ice Nuclei from Biomass Burning to Improve Interpretations of Satellite-Retrieved Cloud Properties

John Rollins (Student); Nadia Lapusta (Advisor); California Institute of Technology Geodesy-Based Estimates of Loading Rates on Faults Beneath the Los Angeles Basin with a New, Computationally Efficient Method to Model Dislocations in 3D Heterogeneous Media

Javier Sanchez (Student); Nga Lee Ng (Advisor); Georgia Institute of Technology Measurement of Atmospheric Peroxy Radicals for Constraining Aerosol Formation from Isoprene

Jessica Scheick (Student); Gordon Hamilton (Advisor); University of Maine

Remote Sensing of Icebergs in Greenland’s Fjords and Coastal Waters

Ryan Scott (Student); Dan Lubin (Advisor); University of California, San Diego

Cloud Radiative Forcing of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet Surface

Nader Shakibay Senobari (Student); Gareth Funning (Advisor); University of California, Riverside

Producing Robust Earthquake Source Models and Earth Models by Reconciling

Models from InSAR and Seismic Waveform Data

Stephanie Stevenson (Student); Kristen Corbosiero (Advisor); State University of New

York, Albany

Kinematic and Thermodynamic Analysis of Tropical Cyclone Intensity Changes

Signaled by Outer Rainband Lightning Activity During NASA’s GRIP and HS3

Missions

Jamie Sziklay (Student); Megan Donahue (Advisor); University of Hawaii

Predictive Models of Coral Disease in the Hawaiian Archipelago

Matthieu Talpe (Student); Robert Nerem (Advisor); University of Colorado

Extending the Record of Ice Sheet Melt in Greenland and Antarctica Using Satellite

Tracking Measurements

Yumeng Tao (Student); Soroosh Sorooshian (Advisor); University of California, Irvine Precipitation Estimation from Multi-Satellite Observations Using Advanced Machine Learning Methods

Jan-Erik Tesdal (Student); Joaquim Goes (Advisor); Columbia University Assessing the Impacts of Arctic Sea Ice Melting and Freshwater Flux on Phytoplankton Productivity and Carbon Export in the North Atlantic

Srikanth Toppaladoddi (Student); John Wettlaufer (Advisor); Yale University Oceanic Heat Flux and the Fate of Arctic Sea Ice: A Combined Theoretical and Observational Study

Stephen Tuozzolo (Student); Michael Durand (Advisor); Ohio State University Determining Controls of Global Runoff from the Upcoming Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) Satellite

Mollie Van Gordon (Student); Laurel Larsen (Advisor); University of California, Berkeley

Machine Learning and Information-Entropy Methods Using Remote Sensing Data for Understanding Hydrological Dynamics in a Coupled Human-Natural System: The Niger River Basin

Daniel Williams (Student); Michael Ramsey (Advisor); University of Pittsburgh

Analysis of Proximal Volcanic Emissions

Tiantian Xiang (Student); Enrique Vivoni (Advisor); Arizona State University Improvements in Modeling Regional Land-Atmosphere Interactions and Hydrologic Responses in Complex Terrain and Seasonal Ecosystems

Yuan Xue (Student); Barton Forman (Advisor); University of Maryland

Advancing Atmospheric and Forest Decoupling in Passive Microwave Observations over Snow Covered Land Using the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer (AMSR-E) and the NASA Catchment Land Surface Model