People
Amala Mahadevan
My interests are in physical oceanography and climate, the oceanic carbon cycle, and biogeochemical distributions. I use modeling and analysis to investigate physical ocean processes and their implications on the productivity and distribution of phytoplankton, and the transport and mixing of properties. I have developed a non-hydrostatic ocean model suited to modeling limited domains in order to capture meso- and submesoscale phenomena. Read more
A brief CV:
- 2013-present Senior Scientist, Department of Physical Oceanography
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, MA - 2017-present Faculty Dean, Mather House, Harvard University
- 2011-2012 Associate Scientist with Tenure, Department of Physical Oceanography
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, MA - 2011-2011 Research Professor, Department of Earth Sciences
Boston University, Boston, MA - 2003-2011 Associate Research Professor, Department of Earth Sciences
Boston University, Boston, MA - 2007-present Adjunct Faculty
University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, MA - 2003-06 Visiting Associate Professor Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences
Harvard University, Cambridge, MA - 2001-03 Assistant Research Professor Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space
New Hampshire, NH - 2001-03 Senior Research Associate Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics
University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK - 1999-2001 Staff Scientist, Atmospheric and Environmental Research, Inc., Cambridge, MA
- 1997-1998 Research Associate Dept of Earth & Planetary Sciences Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
- 1994-97 Postdoctoral Research Associate Department of Geophysical Sciences University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
- 1994, Ph.D. Stanford University, Environmental Fluid Mechanics Laboratory and program in Scientific Computing and Computational Mathematics
- 1989, M.S. Stanford University
- 1987 B.E. Civil Engineering, VJTI University of Mumbai, India
Alex Kinsella
Research Associate
Alex is an observational oceanographer interested in air-sea interaction, cloud dynamics, and cloud microphysics over the ocean. His work at WHOI has centered on the role of ocean surface heat fluxes in the South Asian monsoon. Before becoming a research associate, he was a postdoctoral investigator in the lab from 2021-2024. Alex completed a Ph.D. in theoretical high energy physics in 2021 at UC Santa Barbara, with a dissertation on string theory and geometry. Before that, he graduated from Stanford University with a B.S. in physics and mathematics in 2015. He spends his free time wandering in nature, watching birds, plants, and bugs all over Cape Cod.
Nihar Paul
Postdoctoral Investigator
Kathleen Abbott
Ph.D. Student, MIT/WHOI Joint Program | 2020-present
Katy is a PhD candidate in the Joint Program interested in how physical processes in the ocean shape biology and chemistry, with a particular interest in the dynamics of coastal upwelling regions. Her doctoral research focuses on how submesoscale processes alter microbial communities and oxygen concentrations in the upper ocean, and she uses a combination of in-situ observations, modeling, satellite data and bioinformatics to explore these questions. She graduated from UC Berkeley with degrees in geophysics and applied mathematics in 2017. When not thinking about the ocean, she can be found hiking, biking or backcountry skiing in the Northeast.
Weiguang (Roger) Wu
Ph.D. Student, MIT/WHOI Joint Program | 2020-present
Roger is a PhD candidate in the MIT-WHOI Joint Program with interests in air-sea interactions, ocean mesoscale, and submesoscale processes. He graduated from UC San Diego with degrees in atmospheric and oceanic sciences in 2020. His doctoral research focuses on subduction processes driven by submesoscale interactions, with a particular emphasis on the effects of the curvature of ocean flows.
James Vincent Brice
Ph.D. Student, MIT/WHOI Joint Program | 2024-present
James is a PhD student in the MIT-WHOI Joint Program studying the interaction between physical and biogeochemical processes in the coastal ocean. His research interests include upwelling, submesoscale processes, wave mechanics and ocean modeling. Before the Joint Program, he received an MArch (Coastal Adaptation) and an SM in Civil and Environmental Engineering (Environmental Fluid Mechanics) from MIT in 2024, and a BS in Applied Physics from RPI in 2016. He's passionate about teaching, science communication and the application of research in physical oceanography to ocean policy/coastal management.
Alumni
Graduate students
Helena Randolph Cheslack
MIT/WHOI Joint Program
Navy Masters Program
Gualtiero Victor Spiro Jaeger
MIT/WHOI Joint Program
2013 – 2019
Currently: Engagement Manager at McKinsey & Company
Sebastian Essink
MIT/WHOI Joint Program
2013 – 2019
Formerly: P.I. at Applied Physics Laboratory, UW
Currently: Climate Team Member at Climate Drift
Postdocs
Leo Middleton
Postdoctoral Investigator
2022-2024
Mathieu Dever
Postdoctoral Investigator co-supervised with David Nicholson
2017 - 2019
Currently: Adjunct Scientist at WHOI; Research Scientist at RBR
Kate Lowry
Postdoctoral Scholar
2016 – 2018
Ph.D. Stanford University
Currently: Strategy Director at Science Philanthropy Alliance
Yue (Cynthia) Wu
Postdoctoral Investigator
2019-2021
Currently: Assistant Research Scientist at University of Michigan
Jim Thomas, Postdoc Scholar, OFI-Dal &Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution 2019 - 2019
Melissa Omand, Postdoc Investigator, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution 2011 – 2014
currently, Assistant Prof. U. Rhode Island
Mariona Claret, Postdoc Investigator, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution 2013 – 2014
currently scientist at JISAO, U. Washington
Jean-Baptiste Gilet, Postdoc Investigator, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution 2012 – 2013
Jinbo Wang, Postdoc Investigator, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution 2011 – 2012
currently scientist at JPL
Gualtiero Badin, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Boston University 2010 – 2011
currently Junior Professor, University of Hamburg
Jacqueline Tweddle, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Boston University 2009 – 2010
currently scientist at a UK lab
Bror Jonsson, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Boston University 2006 – 2008
currently, Research faculty at U. New Hampshire
Graduate Student advisees
B. Cael Barry, Ph.D. student, MIT/WHOI Joint Program, co-advised 2014 – 2016
Samantha Siedlecki, PhD, University of Chicago, Co-advised 2004 – 2010
currently Scientist at JISAO, U. Washington
Summer/ Guest Students
Yoana Guzman (Summer student fellow 2020), Guilherme Salvador(Guest student, summer 2019), Margaret Conley (Guest investigator,spring 2019), Daniel Tarry (Guest student, Fall 2018), Eugenio Cutolo(Guest student, Fall 2018) Yenchia Feng (Guest student, summer 2017), Kendra Lynn (Summer student fellow 2016), Qi Li (GFD Fellow, 2016), Sarah Brody (Guest 2014), Sebastian Essink (Guest 2012-13), LaurenDana (Guest 2013, 2014 summer), Lenna Quackenbush (Guest, Fall2013), Marcel du Plessis (Guest, Fall 2013, Spring 2015, Spring 2017), Mara Freilich (Summer student fellow 2014)