Havala Olson Taylor Pye
Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Chemical Engineering

I am a Ph.D. candidate in the John Seinfeld research group at the California Institute of Technology. My current research focuses on the effect of climate change on aerosols. Aerosols (also called particulate matter or PM) are solid or liquid particles suspended in the atmosphere and consist of organic and inorganic materials. Aerosols themselves can affect climate by scattering incoming solar radiation or absorbing radiation. Aerosols can also negatively affect visibility and human health. Future changes in greenhouse gas levels (and aerosol concentrations) will influence global temperatures and precipitation patterns. Chemical transport models which use meteorological fields as input can be used to assess the effects of these climate changes on aerosol concentrations.

Photo: Vasquez Rocks Natural Area Park in Los Angeles County