SOARS Summer Interns at ESRL


August 10, 2007

This week two students participating in the Significant Opportunities in Atmospheric Research and Science (SOARS) program at NOAA's Earth System Research Laboratory presented results of their summerŐs work at a Protégé Colloquium. Mack Jones, a first-year SOARS protégé entering his Junior year as a Meteorology major at Millersville University, spent the summer in the Physical Sciences Laboratory (PSL) working with science mentor Leslie Hartten (CIRES & PSL) on wind profiler data collected as part of the North American Monsoon Experiment (NAME). He presented a talk entitled "The Daily Cycle of Winds at Estación Obispo, Mexico, during the North American Monsoon". Karen Diaz, a third-year SOARS protégé who just finished an Environmental Engineering degree at Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico, spent the summer in the Global Monitoring Laboratory (GMD). Her ESRL science research mentors were Bryan Johnson and Michael Trudeau (CIRES & GMD). She presented a talk entitled "Investigation of the Global Atmospheric Oxidation Chemistry by Ozone – Non-Methane Hydrocarbon Correlation Analysis."

Background:
SOARS is a four-year, paid summer research internship for undergraduate science, math, engineering, and social science students interested in understanding the atmosphere and using that understanding to improve life on Earth. SOARS is designed to broaden participation in the atmospheric and related sciences. The program is equal parts research internship, learning community, and mentoring program. The SOARS Program is managed by the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) with support from participating universities. SOARS is funded by the National Science Foundation, the NOAA Climate Program Office, the NOAA Oceans and Human Health Initiative, the Center for Multi-Scale Modeling of Atmospheric Processes at Colorado State University, the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), and the National Center for Atmospheric Research.

Significance:
In addition to providing an educational work experience, internships at NOAA are an opportunity for students to interact with the scientific research community, learn research methods, and hopefully inspire students to work towards a career in the sciences.

Contact: Leslie Hartten More Information: