Research Centers and VIPs
- Faculty research groups and centers
- VIPs - Vertically Integrated Projects: Undergraduate and graduate students engaged in long-term, large-scale, multi-disciplinary projects
Arizona Regional WRF Model Forecasts
Director: Patrick Bunn
The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model is a next-generation mesoscale numerical weather prediction system designed to serve both operational forecasting and atmospheric research needs.
AZStreamCAT (Arizona Streamgage Catalog) - VIP (Vertically Integrated Project)
Team Advisor: Martha P.L. Whitaker
Biospheric-Earth System Modeling (BIO-ESM)
Director: Yang Song
The SONG BIO-ESM Lab specializes in Biospheric-Earth System Modeling. We aim to advance our understanding and predictive power of the role of vegetation, microbial communities, and humans--the biotic components of the Earth system--in terrestrial-atmospheric interactions. To achieve this goal, we develop and employ a variety of state-of-the-art tools to address pressing issues of the world.
Center for Applied Hydroclimate Sciences
Director: Hsin-I Chang
The vision of the Center is to apply hydrometeorological science to provide reliable information for decision making to increase resilience to environmental stresses. To accomplish this, the center links hydrometeorological scientific knowledge and practice through modeling and by establishing paradigms for information generation and application.
Climate Dynamics and Hydrometeorology Center (CDHC)
Director: Xubin Zeng
The Climate Dynamics and Hydrometeorology Center was established to coordinate interdisciplinary research on hydrometeorology and climate among eleven units (seven in the College of Science, two in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and one each in the College of Optical Sciences and the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences).
Developing a Climate-Smart Practice Optimization Tool for Sustainable Agriculture in the US - VIP (Vertically Integrated Project)
Team Leader: Yang Song
Hydrobiogeochemistry Research Group
Director: Jennifer McIntosh
The Hydrobiogeochemistry Research Group's primary focus is the elemental and isotopic chemistry of surface waters, groundwater, saline fluids, and natural gas to constrain the sources of soltues, residence times and flowpaths of fluids and gas in the subsurface, and water-rock-microbial interactions. Activities include extensive field sampling, laboratory analysis, and geochemical and hydrologic modeling.
Integrated Climate Research: Ecology, Water, and Weather (ICREWW) - VIP (Vertically Integrated Project)
Team Leads: Martha P.L. Whitaker (Environmental Hydrology & Water Resources), Theresa Crimmins (Ecology & Phenology), Guo-Yue Niu (Hydrometeorology), and Christopher Castro and Hsin-I Chang (Weather & Climate)
Land-Atmosphere-Ocean Interaction (LAOI) Group
Director: Xubin Zeng
The Land-Atmosphere-Ocean Interaction Group's mission is to integrate global remote sensing and field survey data with global modeling and to act as a bridge among global data, parameterization, and climate modeling, as well as weather forecasting communities, on interface processes. The group's methodology in addressing a particular issue uses observation data from a variety of sources (in situ, aircraft, satellite) at time scales from hours to decades and at spatial scales from meters to global, and using a hierarchy of models (e.g. large-eddy turbulence model, cloud-resolvable model, mesoscale model, global model).
Modeling and Analysis of Atmospheric Composition (MAAC)
Director: Avelino Arellano
The overarching theme of my research is directed towards fully exploiting information from observations in steering numerical models and consequently improving model predictions on environmental quality.
Remote Sensing of Aerosol-Cloud-Precipitation-Radiation (ACPR) Group
Director: Xiquan Dong
The Remote Sensing of Aerosol-Cloud-Precipitation-Radiation Group's mission is to develop the cutting-edge aerosol, cloud and precipitation retrieval algorithms from ground-based and satellite remote sensing, to provide global radiation budget, and to investigate their interactions. The goal of ACPR's group is to provide reliable aerosol, cloud, precipitation and radiation products in order to improve model simulations and the feedback-processes of aerosol-cloud-radiation on Arctic sea ice change.
Remote Sensing of Water Cycle and Hydrometeorology (RSWatCH) Group
Director: Ali Behrangi
The Remote Sensing of Water Cycle and Hydrometeorology Group's mission is to develop and apply diverse global and regional remote sensing datasets to advance water and energy cycle studies, perform hydrometeorologic research at weather and climate scales, and help society through applied sciences. In addition to remote sensing, the RSWatCH group utilizes in situ observations, reanalyses, and model data for research and application. The group has a great focus on regional and global precipitation analysis and monitoring and prediction of extreme events through multidisciplinary approaches.
Director: Bo Guo
The Subsurface Flow Physics Group focuses on advancing our fundamental understanding of fluid flow in permeable earth materials and developing predictive computational models to address emerging problems in subsurface enery and environmental systems. These include shale gas/oil production, geological CO2 storage, subsurface energy (hydrogen/methane) storage, and their associated impact on groundwater.
Director: Peter Troch
The Surface Water Hydrology Group's mission is to provide cutting-edge solutions to problems in surface water hydrology. Research efforts focus on a wide range of topics related to hillslope, catchment, and river basin hydrology, especially hillslope to catchment-scale characteristics and water availability and management at the river basin scale.
Water Whys Group - VIP (Vertically Integrated Project)
Co-Director: Laura Condon, Co-Director: Sara Kobilka, Education Coordinator
The Water Whys project is a Vertically Integrated Project at the University of Arizona that was started in the spring of 2022. We are an interdisciplinary team of students, scientists and professionals working to create scientifically accurate, visually effective and accessible graphics that answer water-related questions.
Please check out our resources page to see our work, follow us on social media for the latest updates and feel free to reach out if you have a question that we can answer! If you are an undergraduate or graduate student at the University of Arizona, applications for new team members are open prior to the Fall and Spring semester. Read about the Application Process on the Water Whys webpage and click on the link to apply.