Yearly report for the Earth, Planetary and Space Sciences Institute, 2014-2015
The purpose of the Earth, Planetary and Space Sciences Institute (EPSSI) is to enable its members to
offer programs and to pursue research opportunities that are beyond the scope of individual
departments. The Renewal1 for the Earth, Planetary and Space Sciences Institute in 2014 states that the
Institute will:
•
Support and enable large, multi-PI proposals
•
Contribute to the University's research infrastructure enhancement efforts
•
Support and oversee the graduate program in Atmospheric Sciences
•
Recruit and support graduate students.
•
Continue its long-standing, successful seminar series
EPSSI's activities in fiscal year 2014-15 are aligned with those stated above as follows:
•
The Institute has spent $17,933 to support graduate students (tuition and stipend) in this fiscal
year. Another $2023 was used to support graduate student travel to national and international
conferences.
•
$24,934 was used to support postdoc and research personnel. $3018 of this was to support an
undergraduate working on a summer research project. The remaining funds were used to
support postdoctoral scholars and research technicians.
•
$29,648 was used for research infrastructure enhancement, primarily through cost share for the
REF-IE program. The ICP-MS, now in the GLRC, was upgraded, and two instruments were
acquired – a soot photometer and an ion chromatography system. In addition to the support for
instrumentation, EPSSI also supported ($15,062) a proof of concept experiment/collaboration
between investigators in GMES and Mechanical Engineering.
•
EPSSI coordinates one of the longest running, most successful seminar series on campus – the
Remote Sensing Seminar. In fiscal year 2014-15, the Institute spent $9,882 on the seminar
series. See Appendix A for a list of the seminar speakers and their affiliations.
Facts and Figures, Specific to Fiscal Year 2014-2015
The overhead generated by grants associated with EPSSI through the last four quarters (2014-2015)
totaled $573,586. [$196,901; $147,685; $117,391; $111,607]
There were 33 awarded grants (not counting REF grants) affiliated with EPSSI in this fiscal year. See
Appendix B for a complete list.
There are 10 graduate students in the Atmospheric Sciences program, which EPSSI oversees. Two have
graduated within the last year, and another two will defend in fall of 2015.
EPSSI committed $150,000 in support of MRI proposals in FY 14-15. One of those proposals has been
recommended for funding.
1 http://www.mtu.edu/epssi/about/reports/epssi-renewal-2014-march17.pdf
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Appendix A: Seminar Speakers, Fall 20142
Speaker
Affiliation
Michael Dutter and Matt Zika
NOAA / National Weather Service, Marquette MI
Richard C. Flagan
California Institute of Technology
Andrew Detwiler
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
Zhong Lu
Southern Methodist University
Hunter Carrick
Central Michigan University
Jeff Collett
Colorado State University
Noelle Selin
MIT Global Change Institute
Ezequiel Medici
Michigan Tech
Dale Griffin
US Geological Survey
2 See http://www.mtu.edu/epssi/about/seminar/2014/ for titles and abstracts.
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Appendix B: Awarded proposals affiliated with EPSSI, 2014-2015
Principal Investigator Funding Agency Project Title
Baltensperger/Rose
NSF
MITEP: A Model for Improving Earth Science Education
Nationwide
Cantrell
NSF
Measurement of Ice Nuclei in the Contact Mode
Carn
NASA
A-Train Volcano Observatory (ATVO)
Carn
U of Neb
A Combined EOS Data and GEOS Chem Modeling
Study of the Direct Radiative Forcing Volcanic Sulfate
Aerosols
Carn
US Dept. Ed.
International Geological Master in Volcanology and
Geotechniques
Carn
NSF
CDI-type II Proposal: Vhub: Collaborative Research:
Cyberinfrastructure for Volcano Eruption Hazards
Modeling and Simulation
Carn
U of Md
Continuation of Long-term Sulfur Dioxide EDR with the
NPP Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite Nadir Mapper
Carn
NASA
Multi-decadal Sulfur Dioxide Climatology from Satellite
Instruments
Carn
Carnegie Inst.
Improving Constraints on Volcanic Emissions from the
Vanuatu Arc
Carn
U of Md
Extending NASA's Long-term Satellite Data Records:
Advanced SO2 and NO2 Measurements from Suomi
NPP OMPS
Carn
NASA
Volcanic SO2 and Ash Products from EPIC Observations
Hüntemeyer
NSF
Studying Cosmic-ray Acceleration and Propagation, Gas
Content and Interstellar Radiation Fields in our Galaxy
with the HAWC Observatory
Kostinski
NSF
Stochastic Aspects of Physical and Radar Meteorology
Mazzoleni, C
Nev. Sys. Ed.
MRI: Development of a Photoacoustic Light Absorption
and Albedo spectrometer for the Characterization of
Aerosol Radiative Transfer in the Solar Spectrum
Mazzoleni, C.
DOE
The radiative role free tropospheric aerosols and marine
clouds over the Central North Atlantic
Mazzoleni, C.
DOE
Atmospheric Transport: Understanding results from the
DOE's 2010 CARES and 2012 ClearfLO campaigns
Mazzoleni, C.
Aerodyne
Research, Inc.
Laboratory Studies of Cloud Particle Formation, Mixing
State, and Physicochemical and Optical Properties of
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Carbonaceous Aerosols
Mazzoleni, L
NSF
Collaborative Research: Chemical, Physical and
Radiative Properties of North Atlantic Free Tropospheric
Aerosol after Long-range Transport
Nemiroff
NASA
Supporting Astronomy Picture of the Day
Nitz
DOE
Particle Astro Physics Years 1-2
Oommen
NSF
Crowdsourced Knowledge Base for the Damage
Assessment of Extreme Events
Shaw
DOE
Yrs 2-3 Laboratory Investigations of Contact Freezing
and the Aerosol to Ice Crystal Transformation Process
Shaw
NSF
MRI: Development of a Multiphase Turbulent Reaction
Chamber for Laboratory Studies of Atmospheric Aerosol
and Cloud Processes
Shaw
NSF
Laboratory and Field Studies of Cloud-turbulence
Interactions via Digital Holography
Shaw
NASA
Investigating the Effect of Solar Activity during a Grand
Minimum on Clouds
Shaw
DOE
Yrs 1-3 Influence of Nucleation on Ice Microphysical
Properties of Mixed-Phase Stratiform Clouds
Shaw
Leibnitz Inst.
TROPOS
Holographic Measurements for the Leipzig Aerosol
Cloud Turbulence Tunnel
Shaw
Thermoanalytics
Optical Testing in MTU Turbulent Cloud Chamber
Smirnov
NSF
Paleointensity, Morphology and Stability of the
Proterozoic Geomagnetic Field as Recorded by Mafic
Dikes in India
Smirnov
NSF
CAREER: Reading Magnetic Fingerprints from Deep
Time: An Insight into the Geodynamo and Early Earth
System Evolution
Smirnov
NSF
Early Career: Acquisition of a High Sensitivity
Superconducting Rock Magnetometer for Paleomagnetic
and Paleointensity Research
Waite
NSF
CAREER: Eruption Dynamics from Low-frequency
Volcano_Seismic Signals
Wu
EPA
Extreme Event Impacts- Ozone & Particulate Matter Air
Cantrell
MTU, REF-IE
Soot Photometer
Mazzoleni, L.
MTU, REF-IE
Organic Aerosol
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