Carolyn Jordan (NIA)
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Title: Associate Research Fellow
Technical Focus Area: Atmospheric Composition, Chemistry & Dynamics, Air Quality & Weather Airborne Science
Study Topics: ambient atmospheric aerosol research
Mission/Project: LARGE
Email: Carolyn.Jordan@nasa.gov
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About:
Dr. Jordan began her research career studying the Earth’s magnetosphere as a contractor at the Air Force Geophysics Laboratory in Massachusetts. She went on from there to obtain her Ph.D. in Earth Sciences from the University of New Hampshire (UNH) studying atmospheric nitrogen deposition to the Gulf of Maine. Her post-doctoral work with Dr. Bruce Anderson at NASA Langley involved studying aerosol inorganic composition from measurements made during the airborne NASA field campaign TRACE-P. Returning to UNH to work with Dr. Rob Griffin on secondary organic aerosol modeling studies, she also undertook a variety of projects that included gas-phase ambient measurements as well as aerosol research topics. These various activities led to work that involved adapting her colleague Dr. Margaret Greenslade’s laboratory instrument to measure aerosol extinction spectra for ambient atmospheric measurements. In 2015 Dr. Jordan returned to NASA LaRC to work with Dr. Bruce Anderson’s Langley Aerosol Reasearch Group (LARGE) via a contract through the National Institute of Aerospace. In collaboration with the LARGE team, the new in situ spectral aerosol extinction instrument (SpEx) was extensively redesigned and deployed to make surface measurements during the recent KORUS-OC and FIREX-AQ field campaigns. SpEx and related hyperspectral aerosol optical measurement techniques form the current focus of her studies that seek to better link ambient atmospheric aerosol optical properties to commensurate measurements of their microphysical and chemical attributes.
Awards:
- National Research Council Post-doctoral Fellowship at NASA Langley Research Center, 2001-2003.
- NASA Earth System Science Fellowship recipient for graduate studies in atmospheric chemistry, 1996-1999.
- Space Grant Fellowship recipient for graduate studies in space physics, 1992-1993.
- Inducted into Sigma Pi Sigma, the National Physics Honor Society for undergraduates, 1984.
Professional Memberships:
- American Geophysical Union
- Association of Limnology & Oceanography
Education:
- Ph.D. in Earth Sciences, 1999. Thesis: Atmospheric transport and deposition of water soluble nitrogen to the Gulf of Maine Advisor: R. W. Talbot
- M.S. in Physics, 1994. Advisor: R. Arnoldy 1995-1999 Graduate studies in atmospheric chemistry at the University of New Hampshire – Durham, NH.
- M.S. in Astronomy, 1986. Advisor: R. Dickman 1992-1994 Graduate studies in physics at the University of New Hampshire Durham, NH.
- A.B. in Physics, 1984. Advisor: D. Zei 1984-1986 Graduate studies in astrophysics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA.
- 1980-1984 Undergraduate studies; physics major, math minor at Ripon College, Ripon, WI.
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