Breadcrumb
Research Interests
- Understanding the interaction of precipitation with topography, the resulting hydrologic responses, and effects on water resources; especially interested in precipitation resulting from atmospheric rivers that reach mountainous regions of the Western U.S.
- Identifying and investigating drivers of differences in precipitation from one year to the next (i.e. interannual variability of precipitation) such as ocean-atmosphere teleconnection patterns like ENSO and MJO
- Examining sudden changes in the rain-snow transition elevation and the partitioning of rain and snow surrounding atmospheric river events
Degrees
- B.S., Meteorology, Saint Cloud State University, Saint Cloud, Minnesota, USA
- B.S., Hydrology, Saint Cloud State University
- M.S., Oceanography, Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Ph.D., Oceanography, Scripps Institution of Oceanography (in progress)
Bio
Throughout my experiences, I have been eager to grow in and contribute to hydrometeorological and climate sciences.
Currently, I am in a doctoral program at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California San Diego, co-advised by Dr. F. Marty Ralph and Dr. Art J. Miller. My research is conducted in part within the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes (CW3E) under a San Diego Fellowship I received in 2015, and a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship received in 2016.
My current interests lie in extreme weather and water events, namely flood and drought events resulting from the presence or absence of West Coast U.S. atmospheric rivers. Extreme events can affect safety and health, water resources, the economy, fisheries, and other factors of human and ecosystem vitality.
I work to understand the precipitation associated with atmospheric rivers and how streamflow, runoff, and other components of hydrology respond to rain versus to snow. This includes examining the unique interaction of precipitation with mountainous regions and investigating teleconnection patterns that may influence differences in precipitation from one region to another, and from one year to another.
Complementary to physical science ventures, in 2018, I was named an American Geophysical Union (AGU) Voices for Science Advocate, and, in 2017, began serving as a UC Revelle Delegate for the United Nations Climate Change Convention. It is important to me to advocate for responsible science and science-informed policy relating to water resilience and security, and to share possibilities through STEM with disadvantaged and marginalized communities.
Publications
Shields, C. A., Rutz, J. J., Leung, L.-Y., Ralph, F. M., Wehner, M., Kawzenuk, B., Lora,
J. M., McClenny, E., Osborne, T., Payne, A. E., Ullrich, P., Gershunov, A., Goldenson, N., Guan, B., Qian, Y., Ramos, A. M., Sarangi, C., Sellars, S., Gorodetskaya, I., Kashinath, K., Kurlin, V., Mahoney, K., Muszynski, G., Pierce, R., Subramanian, A. C., Tome, R., Waliser, D., Walton, D., Wick, G., Wilson, A., Lavers, D., Prabhat, Collow, A., Krishnan, H., Magnusdottir, G., and Nguyen, P., (2018). Atmospheric river tracking method intercomparison project (ARTMIP): project goals and experimental design, Geosci. Model Dev., 11, 2455-2474, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-11-2455-2018
Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes: http://cw3e.ucsd.edu/