OU School of Meteorology Graduate Student Awarded Research Grant

OU School of Meteorology Graduate Student Awarded Research Grant

Congratulations to Meteorology/ARRC Ph.D. candidate Noah Brauer on being awarded an FY2021 NASA Future Investigators in NASA Earth and Space Science and Technology (FINESST) research grant!  

The successor of the NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship, the FINESST program provides research grants to graduate students who are designing and performing research projects relevant to interests of the NASA Science Mission Directorate. The Earth Science Research Program contributes to NASA’s mission through the following key questions: 

  • How is the global Earth system changing?
  • What causes these changes in the Earth system?
  • How will the Earth system change in the future?
  • How can Earth system science provide societal benefit?

Noah’s proposed research focuses on improving the understanding of microphysics and rainfall processes in tropical cyclones. The analysis will leverage observations from the satellite-based Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission along with ground-based radar and disdrometer data. This project will improve the representation of precipitation of tropical cyclones from space, of global precipitation characteristics in extreme rainfall scenarios, and the understanding how to enhance hydrological modeling and prediction of tropical cyclone precipitation and microphysics. The work addresses aspects of the 2017-2027 Decadal Survey and it is applicable to the water cycle, climate variability, and weather/atmospheric dynamics foci by targeting improved understanding and representations of extreme rainfall events to fully understand the climate system. Mr. Brauer is advised by Dr. Pierre Kirstetter with Dr. Jeffrey Basara and will continue his Ph.D. studies at the University of Oklahoma. 

When asked how it felt to be selected for the FINESST research grant, Mr. Brauer was full of gratitude. 

“I am extremely thankful and honored to receive this award. I would like to thank my advisors, committee, colleagues, family, and friends for their unconditional support, encouragement, and guidance. This fellowship will allow me to continue improving our understanding of precipitation in tropical cyclones using radar, and complete my Ph.D. in meteorology.” 

Congratulations Noah!