Dr. Maria J. Molina

Assistant Professor

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I am an Assistant Professor within the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science (AOSC) at the University of Maryland and an Affiliate Faculty with the Artificial Intelligence Interdisciplinary Institute at Maryland (AIM) and the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies (UMIACS). I am also affiliated with the US NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and am an Adjunct Assistant Professor within the Department of Marine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences at North Carolina State University. I serve on the WCRP Scientific Steering Group for the Earth System Modelling and Observations (ESMO) Core Project and the US CLIVAR Predictability, Predictions, and Applications Interface (PPAI) panel. I received the NASA Early Career Investigator Program in Earth Science Award in 2024.

Dr. Jhayron Steven Pérez-Carrasquilla

AOSC PhD Candidate

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I’m a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Maryland’s Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Department, originally from Colombia. My research focuses on Earth system dynamics and atmospheric predictability using machine learning and data-driven approaches. I work with Dr. Maria Molina and contribute to the WCRP Fresh Eyes on CMIP initiative and the AMS Committee on AI Applications to Environmental Science. As an ASP Graduate Visitor at US NSF NCAR (2024), I explored how global warming affects the mid-latitude large-scale circulation and surface extremes. My broader interests include extreme weather events, and climate variability and change. I use tools like tree-based models, deep learning, explainable AI, and causal discovery with Earth system models and reanalyses. I hold an engineering degree and a master’s in water resources from Universidad Nacional de Colombia. I enjoy sports, music, movies, and reading in my free time.

Emily Faith Wisinski

AOSC PhD Student, NSF GRFP

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I am an NSF Graduate Research Fellow in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science at The University of Maryland, where I work with Dr. Molina. I received a Bachelor of Science degree in Atmospheric Science and Meteorology, with a minor in Mathematics, from the University of Alabama in Huntsville in May 2023. I am largely interested in large-scale climate variability and change. My current work examines the El Niño-Southern Oscillation through the lens of machine learning, and specifically, generative AI. Outside of work, I enjoy drinking coffee, doing endurance sports (very, very slowly), thrifting, and reading!

Kyle J. C. Hall

AOSC PhD Student

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I am a first-year PhD student in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science at UMD. Previously, I worked as an associate scientist with the NOAA Physical Sciences Laboratory developing NOAA's Unified Forecast System Mid-range Weather and S2S applications. Prior to that, I served as a Data Engineer and Software Developer for Columbia University's International Research Institute for Climate & Society. I received my MA in Climate & Society from Columbia University in 2021, and my BS in Computer Science, Math and Economics from The College of William & Mary in 2018. I am the primary maintainer of XCast, an open-source climate forecasting library. At UMD, I hope to apply AI/ML methods to explore interannual-to-interdecadal coupled earth system dynamics like ENSO, NAO, and PDO and their impacts on global hydroclimate predictability. In my spare time I hike, camp, read and drink coffee!

Dean Calhoun

AOSC PhD Student, NSF GRFP

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I am a first year PhD student and Graduate Research Assistant in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences. I received my Bachelor of Science from Purdue University in May 2024, with a major in Applied Mathematics and a minor in Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences. My research interests include extreme weather events, large-scale dynamics and variability of the atmosphere, and social impacts of climate change. I am also interested in making science as equitable, open, and accessible as possible. In my free time, I enjoy biking, photography, and writing poetry.

Jonathan David Starfeldt

AOSC PhD Student, NSF GRFP

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I am starting the PhD track at the University of Maryland's Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science in the fall of 2024. I received my Bachelor of Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the spring of 2024 with a double major in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences and Data Science with a certificate in Computer Science. My undergraduate thesis, with Greg Tripoli, was on connections between Indian Monsoonal outflow and intensifying African Easterly Waves. During my PhD, I hope to build machine learning tools that give us information about how weather extremes, like urban heat and hurricanes, are being altered in our changing climate. I also want to focus on how we can better communicate this information to communities who need it most. Some of my hobbies are board games, hiking, and playing Spikeball.

Sunny Sharma

AOSC PhD Student, DOD NDSEG

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I am an NDSEG Fellow and PhD student in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science at the University of Maryland. My research interests lie at the intersection of tropical meteorology and machine learning. I previously earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Rice University and an MS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, followed by several years of professional experience before starting my PhD. Outside of research, I enjoy spending time outdoors, listening to music, cooking, and watching basketball (Go Knicks!).

Yamin Guo

AOSC PhD Student, Co-advisor: Prof. Zhanqing Li

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I am a Ph.D. student (entered in Fall 2024) in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science at the University of Maryland, co-advised by Prof. Zhanqing Li and Prof. Maria J. Molina. I earned my M.S. in Cartography and Geographic Information Systems from Beijing Normal University in China, where I worked on thermal infrared quantitative remote sensing. My PhD research focuses on understanding spatiotemporal variations in PM2.5 concentrations and their teleconnections with large-scale modes of climate variability. I aim to uncover the causal pathways linking climate modes of variability and air pollution. Outside of research, I enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking and running. I also like reading and watching documentaries about science, nature.

Ayman Sayed

Applied ML MS Student

He/Him

I am a Master’s student in Applied Machine Learning at University of Maryland, College Park. Before joining UMD, I worked at Samsung Research, where I was a founding member involved in developing Knox Matrix for Windows Security and SEAL (Smart Efficient App Lock) AI model to prevent unauthorized access to sensitive applications on smartphones. I earned my Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from National Institute of Technology Rourkela. My research interests focus on modeling climate patterns using machine learning to better understand and predict Earth system dynamics. Beyond school, I enjoy listening to music and am an avid runner, you can typically spot me at Parkrun College Park every Saturday :)

Shaheen Bhattacharya

CS & Math Undergraduate

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I am an undergraduate student at the University of Maryland doing a double major in Computer Science and Mathematics and a specialization in Machine Learning. Currently I am doing research with Dr. Molina on tracking Mesoscale Convective Systems and developing novel architectures. Outside of machine learning, I love music, riding my bike, and going on hikes on mountains during the summertime!

Clark Rohde O'Boyle

Physics & Math Undergraduate

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I am an undergraduate student at the University of Maryland double majoring in Physics and Mathematics. I am currently working with Dr. Molina to develop a spherical self-organizing map algorithm for better identifying North American weather regimes. More broadly, I am interested in understanding and simulating dynamical systems, and in exploring how quantum computing may also be used to better achieve these goals. In my spare time I like listening to music, playing volleyball, riding my bike, and reading.