Distinguished scholars and researchers from the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) visited the City College of the City University of New York from October 31-November 1st. Researchers included Dr. Jan-Peter Weiss Director, UCAR COSMIC Program, Dr. Ying-Hwa (Bill) Kuo Director, UCAR Community Program (UCP), and Dr. Jiahua Zhang Project Scientist, UCAR COSMIC Program.
During the first day of their visit, the UCAR UCP visitors participated in two crucial sessions followed by technical discussions and dialogues with CREST, NOAA CESSRST II and CCNY faculty and members. The initial session included an informational seminar on internship and fellowship opportunities at NSF NCAR, UCAR, & UCP. During this seminar, students learnt about the opportunities and gained insights into what the experience will entail if they choose to apply, and engaged in a Q&A and networked with the speakers to understand how they can make use of the resources available to them through UCAR, NSF NCAR communities.
The later session was part of the CREST Deliver, Dialogue, Discuss, and Discourse (D4) series where the visitors delivered a seminar on Global Navigation Satellite System Remote Sensing of the Earth’s Atmosphere, Ionosphere, and Surface. The goal of the D4 series is to engage with a community of researchers, educators, policy-makers, government officials and entrepreneurs and to D4 on topics relevant to Earth’s changing Environment & its impact on the society. D4 is facilitated through interactive seminars and workshops.
During the seminar, Drs. Weiss, Kuo, and Zhang talked about the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) radio occultation & reflectometry measurement techniques and example satellite missions. They also provided useful information on the application of radio occultation data to the prediction of tropical cyclones and convective systems and the retrieval of soil moisture & ground surface water mapping using GNSS reflectometry data. Participants including faculty, students, and professionals from CCNY were engaged throughout the seminar and asked constructive questions during Q&A with the speakers.
On the second day of the visit, Drs. Weiss, Kuo, and Zhang toured the CREST facilities at CCNY. They visited the Satellite Receiving Station (SRS) and LIDAR, Ocean and Coastal Monitoring facilities within the Optical Remote Sensing Labs, and rooftop instrument. These tours were facilitated by Dr. Fred Moshary (LIDAR lab), Mr. Paul Alabi (SRS), and Dr. Yonghua Wu in coordination with CREST’s Business Development and Entrepreneurship Pillar Director, Harry Cikanek.
This visit and collaboration strengthened CREST’s ties with leading institutions in atmospheric, earth and space sciences and the institute looks forward to the ongoing exchanges that emerged from it. Dr. Reza Khanbilvardi said, “The highly distinguished visitors from UCAR and NASA are expected to bring invaluable expertise and insights to our institution, thereby strengthening our academic network and accelerating progress toward innovative solutions for global challenges.”
