Becky Alexander named director of UW Program on Climate Change

The UW College of the Environment is pleased to announce that Becky Alexander has been named the director of the UW Program on Climate Change (PCC). Becky is an atmospheric chemist in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences who studies the feedbacks that arise between climate change and the chemical composition of the atmosphere. She also has a long-standing relationship with the program, as she was initially hired as new faculty spearheaded by the Program on Climate Change to promote interdisciplinary climate research and teaching.

Two UW ice researchers to participate in year-long drift across Arctic Ocean

The Polarstern in Antarctica in 2013, on a previous expedition.

When the German icebreaker Polarstern leaves Norway’s coast on Sept. 20, it will embark on a year-long drift across the Arctic Ocean. Two University of Washington researchers are among scientists from 17 nations who will study climate change from a unique floating research platform. The Arctic has warmed dramatically over recent decades, but observations are scarce during the ice-covered winter. The MOSAiC expedition, or Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate, will enclose the research icebreaker Polarstern in sea ice for a year, creating a drifting research platform that will pass near the North Pole.

Lightning ‘superbolts’ form over oceans from November to February

The lightning season in the Southeastern U.S. is almost finished for this year, but the peak season for the most powerful strokes of lightning won’t begin until November, according to a newly published global survey of these rare events. A University of Washington study maps the location and timing of “superbolts” — bolts that release electrical energy of more than 1 million Joules, or a thousand times more energy than the average lightning bolt, in the very low frequency range in which lightning is most active.

Seagrass in Australia help students prepare for the real world

In the real world, engineers and scientists work together to conduct research and solve problems, but that is typically not the case in classrooms. But a month-long study abroad program provided an opportunity for student scientists and engineers to collaborate. University of Washington students traveled to the Queensland University of Technology in Australia, where they studied why seagrass and coral reef ecosystems are important, how to measure changes within these ecosystems and how to use robots to collect data.

Catching up with Katie Keil, 2019 Marine and Environmental Affairs graduate

As the academic year is about to get underway, we sat down with recent School of Marine and Environmental Affairs graduate Katie Keil to see what advice she might have for incoming University of Washington graduate students. What advice would you have for incoming UW graduate students? First and foremost, my advice would be to say “yes” to new experiences because here at UW, there are so many interesting, life-changing opportunities that are available to you.