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Research Projects for New Students

Many other faculty are interested in attracting students to study with them.  Several have proposals pending that may be funded by the time admissions decisions are made. Funding may also come from internal MIT-WHOI fellowship sources, or external Fellowship sources for which prospective students are encouraged to apply. See list at https://mit.whoi.edu/admissions/funding/graduate-fellowship-opportunities/

We are continuing to research opportunities for 2024-2025 and will post them as they become available. Many additional faculty are interested in advising students but choose not to post project opportunities. As described above, we encourage you to contact faculty directly.

2024-2025 Research Projects:

We are still collecting research opportunities for 2024-2025. We will post these as soon as they are available. Many faculty are interested in advising students but choose not to post project opportunities. As described above, we encourage you to contact faculty directly.

Applied Ocean Science and Engineering

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Biological Oceanography

Dr. Marine (Yaqin) Liu (lab website) is seeking one graduate student, for fall 2024 enrollment in the WHOI-MIT joint program, to work on a research project entitled, “The Future of Fishing in the High Seas under Climate Change”. Fishing in the high seas (64% of the global ocean beyond national jurisdiction) has expanded with advanced technologies. Concerns on overfished species, fragile habitats, and biodiversity have led to the signing of the High Seas Treaty. The successful implementation of the treaty comes with the challenge of understanding the complex dynamics of ocean-human interactions affected by climate change. High-seas fisheries are an important economic resource, amounting to around 6% of global catch and 8% of the global fishing revenue in 2014. We will build a boosted regression tree (BRT) hurdle model to relate physical oceanographic variables with fishing effort distributions. We will estimate and validate the model with data from 2012-2020 of longline vessels in the Indian Ocean and forecast fishing grounds of longline vessels up to 2100. This work is in collaboration with Dr. Steph Brodie at CSIRO (Australia). The project is seeking funding from private foundations. You will learn about handling geo-temporal physical oceanographic and fishing data, machine learning models, statistical analysis, and graphic presentation of results. Coding in R or Python is required. Previous knowledge in statistics is preferred.

Chemical Oceanography

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Marine Geology and Geophysics

Dr. Catherine Rychert is seeking one or more graduate students to work on a funded NSF project entitled, "Mantle Dynamics and Plate Tectonics Constrained by Converted and Reflected Seismic Wave Imaging Beneath Hotspots,” for summer or fall 2025 enrolment in the Woods Hole - MIT joint program. The student will use novel techniques to image mantle seismic discontinuities beneath a classic continental hotspot - Yellowstone, a classic oceanic hotspot -Hawaii, and a non-hotspot, beneath the Atlantic. Discontinuities of particular interest include the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary and the mantle transition zone. Imaging results will be compared with experimental predictions for material properties to achieve a better understanding of Earth’s interior dynamics in these exciting places. This work is in collaboration with Prof. Peter Shearer at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Dr. Catherine Rychert and Dr. Nicholas Harmon are seeking a graduate student to work on a funded NSF project entitled, "Geophysical and geochemical investigation of links between Earth’s deep and shallow volatile cycles,” for summer or fall 2025 enrolment in the Woods Hole - MIT joint program. The student will use a new SS precursor imaging approach to image mantle transition zone, the gatekeeper of the mantle, to determine mantle flow patterns. Links with geochemistry will provide a holistic and interdisciplinary view of the volatile cycles of the Earth. This in turn has broad implications for our understanding of climate and hazard. The project is in collaboration with Prof. Katie Kelley at University of Rhode Island.

Dr. Catherine Rychert and Dr. Nicholas Harmon are seeking a graduate student to work on an NSF project entitled, “Disentangling oceanographic and solid Earth signals for a better understanding of tectonics, hazard, and climate”, for summer or fall 2025 enrollment in the Woods Hole – MIT joint program. This is a novel, impactful, joint solid Earth-oceanographic experiment to perform seafloor geodesy and constrain earthquake hazards in addition to determining ocean current changes representing the “pulse” of climate change. The student will use a comprehensive suite of tall mooring oceanographic data from the RAPID/MOCA and MOVE mooring arrays with complimentary, newly collected high precision ocean bottom pressure data. This project involves the potential for field work in key Caribbean locations near the Bahamas and the Lesser Antilles, and it is in conjunction with Dr. Matthias Lankhorst and Prof. Uwe Send at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and international partners at the National Oceanography Center, UK and University of Hamburg, Germany.

Dr. Catherine Rychert and Dr. Nicholas Harmon are seeking a graduate student to work on a project entitled, "Origin and Evolution of the Oceanic Lithosphere at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge,” for summer or fall 2025 enrolment in the Woods Hole - MIT joint program. The student will use novel techniques to image the mantle using a unique broadband ocean bottom seismic dataset. The student will perform joint inversions of different types of seismic and/or magnetotelluric datasets to achieve a synoptic view of mantle and crustal dynamics in the region. Full waveform imaging is also a possibility. A step increase in our understanding of the lithosphere-asthenosphere system will be achieved via comparisons to other oceanic datasets. There are also broad implications for climate and hazard. This work is in collaboration with Prof. Steve Constable at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Prof. Mike Kendall at U. Oxford, UK, and Prof. Satish Singh at IGPP Paris, France.

Dr. Weifu Guo, Department of Geology and Geophysics (https://www.whoi.edu/staff/wguo/)

Deciphering Microscale Elemental Variations in Coral Skeletons: Towards Robust Paleoclimate Reconstruction and Beyond

Reconstructing Earth’s climate history provides the context for the ongoing climate change. It is essential for advancing our understanding of the climate system and for validating climate model predictions. Many of these reconstructions rely on analyses of the chemical composition of various climate archives such as coral skeletons. However, the interpretation of these records is often complicated by non-climatic factors that can also influence the chemical composition of these archives. This project will directly address this challenge by developing a mechanistic understanding of the key factors affecting the elemental composition of coral skeletons and thus providing a new method for robust climate reconstruction. In addition, this project will yield new insights about how corals build their skeletons and their responses to environmental changes such as thermal stress. Such knowledge is much needed for predicting the future of coral reefs in this changing climate. Specifically, the project aims to develop a quantitative framework to accurately interpret elemental variations in coral skeletons, especially on microscale. It will involve (a) constructing a physicochemical model to simulate micrometer-scale elemental variations, including magnesium, lithium, strontium, boron, and uranium, in coral skeletons, and (b) developing a multi-element Bayesian method to robustly reconstruct changes in seawater temperature, carbonate chemistry, and coral physiological regulation from coral elemental records across a range of temporal resolutions.

Physical Oceanography

Alleviating climate model double ITCZ biases through improved understanding of low cloud processes
Alex Gonzalez, Dept. of Physical Oceanography

For over three decades, coupled climate models have suffered from too much precipitation in the southern hemisphere branch of the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ), often called the double ITCZ bias. This project seeks to better understand cloud structures in and surrounding the southern hemisphere branch of the ITCZ over the east Pacific Ocean with a long-term goal of alleviating the double ITCZ bias. The project will focus on low cloud distributions in observations and model simulations, quantifying the influence of processes in the atmospheric boundary layer (fast), upper ocean (slow), and at the air-sea interface. Support for this project is currently pending at a federal agency.

Investigating Abyssal Changes and Vertical Mixing in the Southwest Indian Ocean Using Deep Profiling Floats
Viviane Menezes, Physical Oceanography

Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW), a critical component of the global overturning circulation, is formed around Antarctica through air-sea-ice interaction processes. Changes in its properties, which we are currently observing, have the potential to significantly impact the general circulation, ocean heat content, sea level, and climate over long timescales. The detailed pathways of the AABW toward the north and its transformation along the way by mixing remain largely unknown, given the minimal knowledge of the abyssal circulation on a global scale. Here, we focus on the Southwest Indian Ocean sector, a region characterized by a vigorous bottom-intensified mixing, one of the highest in the world, associated with the rough topography of the Southwest Indian Ridge. In this region, the AABW passes through a strong transformation, becoming less dense. To investigate AABW variability in the Southwest Indian Ocean and build a detailed picture of the mixing geography, we will implement 15 deep profiling floats (Deep SOLOs) that can reach down to 6000 m depth. These floats will join the three floats we have been operating in the region since 2023. Deep SOLOs are cutting-edge autonomous robotic devices that are transforming our ability to measure temperature and salinity from the sea surface to the abyss at a much higher frequency (days) than shipboard measurements (year-to-decades), our historical primary tool for observing the deep ocean. No global array exists yet, but regional arrays. Notably absent from these regional arrays is the Southwest Indian Ocean, which is the focus of this research. The proposed work will provide a benchmark for interpreting the complex long-term change patterns observed in decadal repeat hydrography sections and significantly enhance our understanding of the transformation of AABW when exported from the Southern Ocean to the subtropics, thereby contributing to a more comprehensive knowledge of abyssal dynamics. Support for this project is currently pending at a federal agency.

2023-2024 Research Projects:

  • The Biogeochemical Ocean Observing and Model lab boom.science, led by Dr. David (Roo) Nicholson is seeking a Ph.D. student to join a newly funded NOAA project on carbon dioxide uptake associated with ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE). OAE is a carbon dioxide removal approach that enhances the ocean’s natural ability to remove carbon from the atmosphere, which is a critical part of Earth’s carbon cycle and a moderating influence on climate change. The project is a collaboration with Drs. Robert Todd (WHOI), Adam Subhas (WHOI), Yui Takeshita (MBARI) and Kasia Zaba (Marine Robotic Vehicles - Systems LLC) and will be closely coordinated with the LOC-NESS project led by Dr. Subhas (locness.whoi.edu). The team will use five ocean gliders to track alkalinity released by a field trial in the Gulf of Maine. The gliders will track a patch of seawater with elevated alkalinity and ‘tagged’ with an inert dye and monitor changes in pH. Ultimately, the project seeks to develop robust methodologies for quantifying ocean carbon uptake and ecological feedbacks using autonomous underwater systems and sensors. Applicants from a wide range disciplinary and demographic backgrounds are encouraged to apply. Strong quantitative skills and training in chemical, physical or earth science and/or engineering are desired.

 

  • Drs. Malcolm Scully, Anna Michel and David (Roo) Nicholson are seeking a doctoral student to be part of an NSF-funded study entitled “Physical Control of Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide Flux in Estuaries.” This highly interdisciplinary project seeks to develop a comprehensive understanding of how physical and biogeochemical processes interact in estuaries to modulate atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) exchange. We will make unprecedented measurements of the spatial and temporal variations in pCO2 and dissolved oxygen (DO) in the Hudson River estuary from a moored array and from ship-based surveys, to resolve variability in the along- and across-estuary directions. These measurements will include both the surface and sub-surface distribution of dissolved gases, and their distribution will be related to variations in vertical density stratification and estuarine circulation. Direct covariance atmospheric CO2 flux and water column turbulence measurements will be made from a fixed tower that spans the air-sea interface at a location where near surface turbulence is likely impacted by wind, waves, and tides, and is significantly modified by variations in vertical density stratification. These data will provide a quantitative model for the gas transfer velocity, which will be used to estimate atmospheric fluxes from the spatially resolved measurements of surface pCO2. The proposed measurements will address two long-standing research needs that contribute to the large uncertainties in estuarine CO2 emissions: 1) spatial and temporal heterogeneity in surface pCO2 values, and 2) poorly constrained gas transfer velocities. The proposed research addresses these two fundamental uncertainties, both of which are strongly modulated by physical processes, and a new conceptual model for gas exchange that is hypothesized to be applicable to a wide range of estuaries will be tested. This project will include extensive field work on the Hudson River in both 2024 and 2025.  We welcome students from physical oceanography, chemical oceanography, applied ocean physics, and engineering.

 

  • Arctic coastal zones are experiencing especially rapid changes due to the loss of sea ice cover, which has increased the duration of wave exposure and strength of wave energy reaching the coast. Dr. Maddie Smith is seeking a doctoral student to participate in research to understand the impact of waves on new ice formation in the fall, which plays a critical role in the coupled Arctic coastal system and coastline buffering. This work would include a research cruise in the Alaskan Arctic with collaborators at Oregon State University and the University of Washington. Previous field experience is not necessary; students from diverse background are encouraged to apply.

 

  • Drs. Julia Guimond, Christopher Piecuch, and Catherine Walker are seeking a doctoral student to start in the Summer or Fall of 2023 and work on a project entitled “Global High-Resolution Estimates and Projections of Vertical Land Motion Using Observation-Informed Statistical Model”. The project will involve collaboration with NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (in collaboration with Dr. Benjamin Hamlington) and NOAA National Ocean Service (in collaboration with Dr. William Sweet). The goal of the project is to use observations and models to better constrain past and future coastal subsidence and land loss, which worsen the effects of sea-level rise. The student will have the opportunity to gain experience with Bayesian methods as well as remote sensing, in-situ data, proxy records in the context of sea level and coastal impacts.

 

  • Dr. Catherine Rychert is seeking a graduate student to work on a funded NSF project entitled, "Mantle Dynamics and Plate Tectonics Constrained by Converted and Reflected Seismic Wave Imaging Beneath Hotspots,” for summer or fall 2024 enrolment in the Woods Hole - MIT joint program. The student will use novel techniques to image mantle seismic discontinuities beneath a classic continental hotspot - Yellowstone, a classic oceanic hotspot -Hawaii, and a non-hotspot, beneath the Atlantic. Discontinuities of particular interest include the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary and the mantle transition zone. Imaging results will be compared with experimental predictions for material properties to achieve a better understanding of Earth’s interior dynamics in these exciting places. This work is in collaboration with Peter Shearer at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

 

  • Dr. Catherine Rychert and Dr. Nicholas Harmon are seeking a graduate student to work on an NSF project entitled, "Origin and Evolution of the Oceanic Lithosphere at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge,” for summer or fall 2024 enrolment in the Woods Hole - MIT joint program. The student will use novel techniques to image the mantle using a unique broadband ocean bottom seismic dataset. The student will perform joint inversions of different types of seismic and/or magnetotelluric datasets to achieve a synoptic view of mantle and crustal dynamics in the region. A step increase in our understanding of the lithosphere-asthenosphere system will be achieved via comparisons to other oceanic datasets. There are also broad implications for climate and hazard.

 

  • Dr. Catherine Rychert and Dr. Nicholas Harmon are seeking a graduate student to work on an NSF project entitled, "Geophysical and geochemical investigation of links between Earth’s deep and shallow volatile cycles,” for summer or fall 2024 enrolment in the Woods Hole - MIT joint program. The student will use a new SS precursor imaging approach to image mantle transition zone, the gatekeeper of the mantle, to determine mantle flow patterns. Links with geochemistry will provide a wholistic and interdisciplinary view of the volatile cycles of the Earth. This in turn has broad implications for our understanding of climate and hazard. The project is in collaboration with Katie Kelley at University of Rhode Island.

 

  • Dr Catherine Rychert and Dr. Nicholas Harmon are seeking a graduate student to work on an NSF project entitled, “Disentangling oceanographic and solid Earth signals for a better understanding of tectonics, hazard, and climate”, for summer or fall 2024 enrollment in the Woods Hole – MIT joint program. The oceans and the solid-Earth are intricately linked, but typically studied separately. The student will use a comprehensive suite of mooring full water depth oceanographic data and high precision ocean bottom pressure data from the RAPID/MOCA and MOVE mooring arrays to study geodetic seafloor motions and their influence on observational constraints of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) slow-down. This project provides a better understanding of the “pulse” of climate change and vertical tectonic motions associated with active plate tectonics and earthquake hazard at the MOVE array in the Lesser Antilles. This project is in conjunction with Matthias Lankhorst and Uwe Send at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and international partners at the National Oceanography Center, UK and University of Hamburg, Germany.