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| 2024 | 2023 | 2019 |
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Shuyi S. Chen, Professor My research focuses on the dynamics and air-sea interactions in tropical convection, tropical cyclones/hurricanes, and Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO). I have served as a lead scientist on several global tropical cyclone research programs, among them: The Coupled Boundary Layer Air-Sea Transfer (CBLAST) experiment; the Hurricane Rainband And INtensity Change EXperiment (RAINEX) using three Doppler radar aircraft collecting unprecedented in-situ data in Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Ophelia in 2005; and Impact of Typhoons on Ocean in the Pacific (ITOP) in 2010--the largest international program to study typhoons in the West Pacific. I was also a lead aircraft scientist in the DYNamics of the Madden-Julian Oscillation (DYNAMO) field campaign in 2011 collecting data over the Indian Ocean to improve our knowledge of the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) and its impacts on global weather. |
Research Staff
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Brandon Kerns, Senior Research Scientist/Engineer My name is Brandon Kerns. I am a research scientist in Shuyi Chen's group. I obtained my PhD from the University of Utah in 2008. My research interest is in tropical meteorology, especially tropical cyclogenesis, air-sea exchanges, and the Madden-Julian Oscillation, as well as extreme precipitation. I utilize a combination of observations, global/climate models, machine learning techniques, and high-resolution coupled modeling to enhance our understanding of the physical processes driving tropical meteorology and extreme precipitation. |
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Yakelyn Ramos, Postdoctoral Researcher I am Yakelyn Ramos Jauregui. I earned my Ph.D. in Atmospheric Science – Data Science option from the University of Washington (UW) in 2024, where I investigated the complex interactions between the Madden-Julian Oscillation and El Niño onset, with a particular focus on how large-scale freshwater fluxes influence ocean currents in the equatorial western Pacific warm pool. Currently, I am a postdoctoral researcher at CICOES, working with Dr. Chidong Zhang at NOAA PMEL’s Ocean Climate Research Division and Professor Shuyi Chen at UW. My research aims to enhance atmospheric river (AR) prediction capabilities by integrating GPS retrievals with satellite observations and Numerical Weather Prediction datasets, helping to reduce biases associated with AR events. Additionally, I am developing software solutions to optimize buoy placement in regions prone to AR activity. Beyond my research on ARs, I am involved in the planning of the upcoming TPOS Equatorial Pacific Experiment (TEPEX) field campaign, scheduled for 2026-2027, contributing to efforts that will improve our understanding of tropical ocean-atmosphere interactions. |
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Edoardo Mazza, Research Scientist My research revolves around tropical cyclones. I am interested in understanding their formation in marginally favorable environments, in particular during the early and late part of the Atlantic Hurricane Season. Along with it, I study their impact once they make landfall using a fully coupled atmosphere-wave-ocean model. I was born in Crevacuore (Italy) where I spent the first 19 years of my life. In my childhood, I have developed a deep interest for weather phenomena, snowstorms in particular. To purse my passion, I moved to Scotland where I received my B.Sc. with Honors in Geophysics and Meteorology from the University of Edinburgh. I later moved to Berlin, where I spent two years as a GeoSim fellow at the Freie Universität Berlin working on the development of Medicanes. In 2016, I moved to Seattle as a visiting student at the UW Department of Atmospheric Science. I finally joined the department and the Prof. Chen's research group in 2017. When I am not studying tropical cyclones, I am most likely watching sports or fishing. |
Graduate Students
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Alton Daley, PhD Student I am a 3rd year PhD student, and my advisor is Shuyi Chen. My research interests include Sustainable Energy, Tropical Cyclones, Air-Sea Interactions, Coupled Atmosphere-Wave-Ocean Modeling of Coastal Environment and Climate Change. I am currently working on understanding how explicit stress exchange at the air-sea interface in tropical cyclones influences wind, wave, currents, and impacts at the coast. I am a Jamaican National who enjoys problem-solving, reading, meeting new people, and soccer. I wish for my science to aid with decision making and impact the lives of Caribbean Nationals. |
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Chad Small, PhD Student My name is Chad Small, and I am a third-year PhD Student in Atmospheric and Climate Science working with Prof. Shuyi Chen. My research focuses broadly on understanding extreme rainfall and flood risk in lowland areas in the U.S. and globally. Currently I am investigating the influence of large-scale drivers such as the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) and atmospheric rivers on extreme rainfall over the western US. My research interests broadly investigate severity and frequency of precipitation extremes – notably, severe rainfall – and its effects on the biosphere. I was born and raised in New York City, but have familial roots in the Caribbean. Witnessing how rainfall extremes affect both places has been an influential motivator in my research endeavors. |
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Richard Zhuang, PhD Student My name is Haoyu (Richard) Zhuang, a second-year graduate student studying tropical weather at the University of Washington under the advisory of Shuyi Chen. I am broadly interested in tropical weather and climate, weather-climate continuum, and machine learning. I am currently working on the multiscale variability of the Atlantic ITCZ. |
Alumni
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Dalton Kai Sasaki My name is Dalton Kai Sasaki, and I was a visiting scientist with Shuyi Chen's group. This research was focused on wave modeling. It resulted in significant improvements to the UWIN-CM model. |
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Ajda Savarin My name is Ajda (pronounced as 'Ida') Savarin, and I am from Slovenia, a small but beautiful country on the sunny side of the European Alps. Growing up, I had the opportunity to travel and explore the world, and I developed a wide range of interests, but my interest in Meteorology and Atmospheric Science didn't develop until I took a related course as an elective during my first year as an undergraduate student. As I learned about the atmosphere and ocean through further classes, I also had the opportunity to work as an undergraduate researcher with Professor Shuyi Chen. My initial project was related to the data collected during the Dynamics of the Madden-Julian Oscillation (DYNAMO) field campaign in the equatorial Indian Ocean. My research resulted in the writing of my Honors program thesis on the topic of 'Convective Cold Pools and Boundary Layer Recovery Time During DYNAMO'. My PhD research focused on the MJO's initiation ove the Indian Ocean and its propagation over the MC, determining the effect of topography and the diurnal cycle of precipitation the MC barrier effect. In June 2017, I also had the opportunity to participate in the Convective Processes (NASA CPEX) field campaign, during which the DC-8 aircraft was flown into tropical convection in the Gulf of Mexico, West Atlantic, and the Caribbean. In my spare time, I enjoy traveling and exploring new places, spending time outdoors in the wonderful Seattle, playing the piano, and curling up with a good book and my two wonderfully fluffy cats, Rossby and Kelvin. |
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Benjamin Barr I grew up in Austin, Texas and received my B.S. and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. While at UT, I became fascinated with thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat and mass transfer, working on topics such as ablative heat shields for spacecraft atmospheric reentry and firebrand breakage and transport in wildland fires. After graduating from UT, I worked for five years at Stress Engineering Services (SES) in Houston, Texas performing structural, dynamic, and thermal/fluid analysis for a variety of oil and gas applications. While working at SES on the analysis team for the top-tensioned production/drilling risers for Shell's Malikai tension leg platform in Malaysia, I became interested in the storms and marine environments that drive the design of floating offshore structures. I realized that my background in thermal/fluid systems could be applied to the study of these environments, and I decided to return to school to become an atmospheric scientist. During my PhD research, I applied my engineering experience to the study of physics at the air-sea interface in high winds, focusing on understanding how small-scale thermal and fluid processes affect overall rates of energy and moisture transfer in atmospheric systems. |
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Yuanwen Zhang I'm a visiting student at the university of Washington, working with Prof. Shuyi Chen and Prof. Chidong Zhang. I am currently working on the predictability and prediction skills of the MJO in the S2S ECMWF Reforecast. |
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Guiwan Chen My name is Guiwan Chen and I was born in JiangXi Province, a place located south of China with humid climate. I received my B.S. in Atmospheric Science and Computer Science at University of Science and Techonology of China in 2015. After that I became a graduate student at Institute of Atmospheric Physcis in Beijing, working on MJO propgation with Prof. Chonyin Li and Jian Ling. I came to visit Department of Atmospheric Sceices at University of Washington since 2018.03. My research interest is on the barrier effect of the Maritime Continent on MJO propagation over the Maritime Continent with a focus on its simulation and connection with interannual variabilities such as ENSO and QBO. |