Overview
Paleoclimate research at Georgia Tech seeks to understand how and why climate has changed in the past. Looking back beyond the instrumental record can provide us with the context to better understand present-day climate change. Our work focuses on reconstructing past temperature, precipitation, and circulation patterns of key components of the global climate system such as the tropical Pacific El Nino-Southern
Oscillation and the North Atlantic thermohaline circulation. We apply a wide variety of geochemical paleoclimate proxies to carbonate archives such as corals, deepsea sediments, and cave stalagmites to reconstruct climate. We are actively involved in proxy calibration research, which takes us into the field on cruises and other expeditions, as well as paleoclimate modeling, which involves collaboration with other EAS faculty in the ocean/climate group.
Our analytical facilities include a
ThermoFisher Delta Plus/Kiel and a
ThermoFisher 235/Kiel (for the measurement of oxygen isotopes in carbonates), a JY-Horiba
ICP-OES (for the measurement of trace metals in solids and waters), and a Picarro water oxygen isotope analyzer.
EAS Paleoclimate Faculty & Research
Interests
• Dr. Annalisa Bracco
Ocean mesoscale dynamics and Climate variability and the role of the oceans at interannual and decadal scales
• Dr. Kim Cobb
Tropical Pacific climate variability on decadal to millennial timescales; Paleoclimate reconstruction and modeling; Water isotopes; Energy and climate policy
• Dr. Emanuele Di Lorenzo
Oceanography, Climate Dynamics, Inverse and Ocean
Modeling, Ecosystems and Climate Change
• Dr. Ellery Ingall
Geochemistry of natural waters and sediments, Cycling of phosphorus, nitrogen and carbon
• Dr. Taka Ito
Modeling large-scale ocean circulation an biogeochemical cycles
• Dr. Jean Lynch-Stieglitz
Reconstruction of past ocean circulation, and the tropical ocean/climate system; Focus on the last
100,000 years on millennial to multi-millennial time scales
• Dr. Peter Webster
Low frequency Atmospheric and Ocean Dynamics,
Ocean-Atmosphere Interactions, Monsoon Predictability
EAS Research Areas
• Atmospheric Chemistry, Aerosols &
Clouds
• Paleoclimate
• Planetary Science
• Geochemistry
• Dynamics of Weather and Climate
• Geophysics
• Oceanography and Climate
• Remote Sensing
Postdoctoral Students
Jess Conroy (NSF-EAR Fellow)
Graduate Students
James Belanger
Stacy Carolin (NSF Grad Fellow)
Yuley Cardona
Andrew Davis
Fernando Hirata
Peter Leech
Jessica Moerman (NSF Grad Fellow)
Hussein Sayani (NSF Grad Fellow)
Wei-Ching Hsu
Yohei Takano
Yisen Zhong
Past Students and Post-docs
Jud Partin (postdoc, UT-Austin)
Intan Suci Nurhati (postdoc, MIT-Smart)
Julien Emile-Geay (Asst. Prof, USC)
Matthew Schmidt (Asst. Prof, TAMU)
Caroline Cleroux (postdoc, LDEO)

Degree Requirements
M.S. Students
• Course: 30 Credit Hours
• Thesis or Non-Thesis
Ph.D. Students
• EAS Course: 15 Credit Hours
• Minor Course: 9 Credit Hours
• Academic Breadth
• Comprehensive Exam
• Doctoral Examination
Related Courses
• Paleoclimate
• Oceanography
• Biogeochemical Cycles
• Global Climate Change
• Isotope Geochemistry
• Environmental Data Analysis
• Ocean Dynamics
Application Requirements
• B.S. or M.S. in any science, math, or engineering field
• GPA: 3.0/4.0 & Higher
• Graduate record Exam (GRE)
• TOEFL (International Students)
Application Materials
• Application Form (Online)
• Personal Statement
• Recommendation Letters (3)
• Official Transcripts (each school)
• Test Scores (GRE and/or TOEFL)
Financial Assistance
• Graduate Assistantships (RA/TA)
• Full Tuition Payment
• National and Local Fellowships
• Professional Conference Support
EAS Opportunities
• Research field expeditions
• State-of-the-art laboratories
• Local environmental monitoring
• Broad range of computing resources
• Interdisciplinary seminar series
Admissions: Dr. Kim Cobb kim.cobb@eas.gatech.edu
Information: Kathy Plummer plummer@eas.gatech.edu