CAMEE PhD Student Abinayaa Dhanagopal Places 2nd in the Fall 2023 3MT Competition
September — Abinayaa, a graduate student in mechanical engineering, competed with 18 students in this fall’s 3MT (Three Minute Thesis) competition. Each winner receives a financial award and has their presentation recorded and uploaded to the Runner Research Press University Archive and Graduate School YouTube channel.

Stephen Ackley Elected Fellow of the American Geophysical Union
September — Stephen Ackley was selected because of his outstanding scientific achievements, contributions to furthering scientific advancement, and exemplary leadership.

CAMEE Researchers Received $2 Million in NASA Grants
September — CAMEE researchers recently got word that they received $2 million in NASA grants to continue research for the Artemis program through October 2024. They plan to use the funding to expand their research into robotic exploration of the moon.

CAMEE Receives $2 Million Renewal Grant
September — In addition to supporting graduate and undergraduate researchers, the newly awarded funds will allow for laboratory renovations that will expand CAMEE’s research on extreme landscapes.

Stephen Ackley Awarded the 2022 SCAR (Scientific Committe on Antarctic Research) Medal for International Coordination
August — An important SCAR activity is recognition of excellence in Antarctic and Southern Ocean research and outstanding service to the international Antarctic community.

CAMEE: UTSA Students Making STEM Accessible, One Student at a Time
June — As part of its ongoing effort to increase awareness and interest in STEM fields, CAMEE is organizing educational outreach programs to reach kids as early as possible, by focusing on elementary school children.

CAMEE PhD Student Karen Mendiondo Featured in San Antonio Woman's STEM Showcase
May — The May/June 2022 edition of San Antonio Woman included a Women in STEM special section.

CAMEE PhD Student Jullian Williams Receives Two Academic Awards
April — Jullian was selected for UTSA's highly competitive "Who's Who" award and the "Academic Meritocracy" award by Gamma Betta Phi.

CAMEE PhD Student Mansi Joshi Won First Place in the ¡Viva Science SA! Research Poster Competition
April — Hosted at the Witte Museum by UT Health San Antonio, the family-friendly event included interactive science booths, science themed art work, poster sessions, and science talks.

UTSA Sharpens Research Focus on Space Exploration, Seeks Out SpaceX
April — CAMEE featured on Express News front page. UTSA is one of the higher-education institutions that NASA and other federal agencies are turning to for assistance to return astronauts to the moon in 2025. See the front page image.

CAMEE Student Research Spring Showcase Highlights UTSA Student Research Supporting NASA Initiatives
March — Undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral students pursuing degrees in science and engineering present their research at the event.

#ThisIsWhatAScientistLooksLike: CAMEE MS Student Ashley Aguilar
February — Ashley is set to graduate this year with her master’s in Geosciences and plans to work towards a PhD at UTSA.

CAMEE MS Student Iyare Osaghae Part of First Place Team in Transdisciplinary Team Grand Challenge: Water
December — Project Title: The Spatial and Temporal Algorithms for Predictive Learning (STAPLE) Program
Project Team: Caden Povolish, Iyare Oseghae, Savannah Heath, and Tom Varner

CAMEE PhD Student Mansi Joshi Part of Second Place Team in Transdisciplinary Team Grand Challenge: Water
December — Project Title: A Method to Improve Water Quality Using Graphitic Structures
Project Team: Pratheek Gopalakrishnan, Mansi Joshi, Hebin Cherian, Veena Prasad, and China Whitby

UTSA's Hypersonics Research Brings New Opportunities for Innovation, Student Growth
October — Dr. Christopher Combs recently secured a two-year, $1.5 million grant to study modeling and experimental measurements of hypersonic separation events. The grant also provides for experiential learning opportunities at UTSA.

Dr. Neil Debbage Develops Model to Understand How a City’s Design Creates Congestion
September — Dr. Debbage is proposing a new way to analyze traffic congestion.

CAMEE MS Student Thanh Tran Won First Place at the 2021 ASME Fluids Engineering Division Summer Meeting
August — Thanh's presentation was "The Four Stage Development of Starting Turbulent Buoyant Plumes."

CAMEE MS Student Daniel Brun Won Third Place at the 2021 ASME Fluids Engineering Division Summer Meeting
August — Daniel's presentation was "Plume Chamber Studies to Characterize Turbulent Buoyant Plumes."

UTSA Team GEE-ISD (Google Earth Engine Iceberg & Ship Database) Placed Third in NSIN Polar Vortex Hackathon
August — CAMEE PhD student YoungHyun Koo was one of the three GEE-ISD team members.

CAMEE Students Ashley Aguilar and Karen Mendiondo Featured in MIRO Program Web Article
June — Ashley is a Geology MS student; Karen is an Environmental Science and Engineering PhD student.

CAMEE MS Student Ashley Aguilar Awarded Geological Society of America Graduate Student Research Grant
May — The primary role of the GSA research grants program is to provide partial support of master's and doctoral thesis research in the geological sciences for graduate students enrolled in universities in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Central America.

Dr. Alan Whittington's Research Could Help Develop the Moon’s First Construction Site
May — Dr. Whittington is leading a team of UTSA researchers to design an induction furnace-nozzle for forming and placing lunar regolith bricks for landing pad construction.

Dr. Christopher Combs' Hypersonic Wind Tunnel Featured in Several Articles
May — Dr. Combs talks about the hypersonic wind tunnel he has built in his lab:

CAMEE Expert Dr. Christopher Combs Comments on the Chinese Rocket Debris Entry
May — Chances are slim that debris from the 10-story-tall, 22-ton first-stage booster of the Long March CZ-5B spacecraft will hit land or even a populated area. Slim, but not zero.

CAMEE Student Samantha Pickell Part of Design Team Selected by NASA MINDS
March — Samantha is a member of the undergraduate design team mentored by Dr. Kiran Bhaganagar that was selected to the NASA's MUREP Innovative New Designs for Space (MINDS). The team received an award of $1500 for their senior design project.

Students Present Research Findings in CAMEE Spring Research Showcase
March — Five undergraduate and 13 graduate students participated in the event that took place via Zoom.

Winners of the CAMEE Student Research Spring Showcase
March — The Showcase was hosted by CAMEE postdocs Drs. Chang Hsin Chen and Grant Macdonald. The winners are:
Undergraduate: 1st Joshua Le • 2nd Zach Riddle • 3rd Elizabeth Hebel
Graduate: 1st Young Koo • 2nd Matt Garcia • 3rd Mansi Joshi

How Hypersonics Research at UTSA Will Propel Mars Missions and More
February — Under the direction of Dr. Christopher Combs, UTSA is nearing the completion of a state-of-the-art, multi-million-dollar wind tunnel funded by the university.

Accelerator: NASA’s Perseverance Lands, San Antonio Hypersonics Lab Rises
February — Dr. Christopher Combs hopes to contribute to the study of hypersonics at UTSA, and the university is putting the final touches on a multimillion-dollar wind tunnel that can generate speeds up to seven times that of sound.

Texas Scientists: Power Outages Show Why Texas Must Prepare for Climate Change
February — Stephen Ackley, Dr. Alberto Mestas-Nunez, and Dr. Hongjie Xie among those who signed the open letter from Texas climate scientists.

CAMEE PhD Student YoungHyun Koo Participated in an IPCC Group Review
February — YoungHyun Koo took an active part in the Early Career Scientists associations group review of the Second Order Draft of the Working Group II contribution to the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report Climate Change 2021: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. This group review took place from December 2020 to January 2021.

KSAT Video Featuring Dr. Saugata Datta
January — Dr. Datta talks about environmental regulation changes and studying the impacts to our ecosystem.

Dr. Neil Debbage Elected to Serve on the City of San Antonio's Technical & Community Advisory Committee
January — Dr. Debbage will help guide the implementation of the city's climate action and adaptation plan (CAAP).

CAMEE Part of a $3.3 Million Team Project Led by UT Austin
December — Funded by a NASA University Leadership Initiative (ULI) Award, the "Full Airframe Sensing Technology (FAST)" goal is to create a new paradigm in sensing for hypersonic vehicles, which could also be applied to lower-speed craft.

Dr. Christopher Combs' New High-Tech Video Camera Creating Unique Opportunities
December — Funded by the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Dr. Combs is a recipient of a $284,884 Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP) Award. He will use it to buy cameras for the UTSA Hypersonic Lab.

UTSA Today Class of 2020: Jahsiah Toby
December — Jahsiah credits CAMEE with expanding his thinking on how engineering can be applied to a career that impacts Earth and beyond.

Dr. Kiran Bhaganagar Is Leading the City-Based Alliance Effort to Prep for Local Aerospace Economy
November — Comprised of more than 35 area industry, federal research laboratories, government and education experts, the City-Based Alliance is working together on a NASA proposal to strengthen STEM curriculum in primary and secondary schools and attract more females and minority groups to reflect the diversity of South Texas.

CAMEE MS Student Ashley Aguilar Awarded Dwight David Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship Program (DDETFP) Grant
November — The DDETFP awards fellowships to students pursuing degrees in transportation-related disciplines.

NASA Visit to UTSA Highlights CAMEE’s First Anniversary
October — The NASA visit gave the CAMEE team an opportunity to share progress made over the past year on its growing presence at the university and community.

CAMEE Participates in NASA Student Launch
October — UTSA was one of 32 U.S. universities and colleges selected for the 2021 NASA Student Launch (NSL). The UTSA student team is supported by CAMEE, the College of Sciences Student Success Center, and the College of Engineering Student Success Center.

Dr. Kiran Bhaganagar's Case Study Finds Coronavirus Easily Transmitted in Ideal Outdoor Conditions
September — Dr. Bhaganagar's entire study was published in Environmental Research on September 17. UTSA Ph.D. student Sudheer Bhimireddy assisted on the project.

NASA Looks to UTSA To Help Expand Field of STEM Researchers
September — Dr. Kiran Bhaganagar is Co-PI of a $50,000 NASA grant to gather data and submit a concept paper.

UTSA’s NASA Advanced Measurements Center Hosts Inaugural Conference
September — Researchers from UTSA, external partners, and students presented their research in a virtual format.

New Space Act Agreement between NASA Langley Research Center, University of Tennessee Space Institute, and UTSA
August — CAMEE will be performing wind tunnel testing as part of their collaboration with NASA Langley Research Center for their research in hypersonics.

CAMEE PhD Students Jullian Williams and Younghyun Koo Among the COVID-19 Transdisciplinary Team Grand Challenge Winners
August — Their team's proposal was "Socio-economic and Environmental Impacts of COVID-19 Pandemic in Texas." Challenge winners came from five teams made up of 22 graduate students working across research disciplines.

CAMEE Hosts Virtual Teacher Workshop
August — Ten K–12 teachers participated in a two-day professional development workshop hosted by the NASA MIRO Center for Advanced Measurements in Extreme Environments (CAMEE) in collaboration with the Dee Howard Foundation.

Dr. Christopher Combs Receives CONNECT Research Seed Funding to Study Hypersonic Flight Environments
July — Connecting Researchers through Partnerships (CONNECT) is a joint funding opportunity with the Southwest Research Institute.

CAMEE MS Student Thomas Nordstrand Featured in Texoma News Network
June — Thomas will study the water and how it collects on the hailstone.

#ThisIsWhatAScientistLooksLike: CAMEE MS Student Karen Mendiondo
May — Karen earned her bachelor's degree in Geology from UTSA and is now a second-year student in the M.S. Geology program.

Dr. Hongjie Xie and CAMEE PhD Student YoungHyun Koo Develop Interactive Texas COVID-19 Mapping Tool
April — Updated daily, the map reflects the cases of COVID-19 diagnosed in Texas.

CAMEE Student Karen Mendiondo Selected to Receive AGU Outstanding Student Presentation Award
March — The Outstanding Student Presentation Awards promote, recognize and reward undergraduate, Master's, and PhD students for quality research in the Earth and space sciences.

Sombrilla Magazine: Going to Extremes
Winter/Spring — The article highlights the Center for Advanced Measurements in Extreme Environments.

Dr. Christopher Combs Receives USAF Grant To Study Effects of Hypersonic Shock Waves
January — The three-year $450,000 grant will support Dr. Combs investigation of the effects of hypersonic shock waves on future U.S. Air Force flight systems.

CAMEE PhD Students YoungHyun Koo and Jullian Williams Attended Snow Measurement Field School in New Hampshire
January — Hosted by the Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science (CUAHSI), the program offered an experiential learning opportunity for participants to dive into snow science.

CAMEE Has Its First Officially Noted Publication
November — "Tibetan Plateau's lake level and volume changes from NASA's ICESat/ICESat-2 and Landsat missions" is the first publication on Tibetan's Plateau from NASA's IceSat2.

CAMEE Student YoungHyun Koo Selected to Participate in CUAHSI's Snow Measurement Field School
November — CUAHSI partnered with NASA International Snow Working Group Remote Sensing to offer the 4-day field school on making and analyzing snow measurements.

Dr. Christopher Combs Awarded Air Force Young Investigator Research Program Grant
October — The Air Force's Young Investigator Research Program (YIP) rewards scientists and engineers at U.S. research institutions who received their Ph.D. or equivalent degrees in the last seven years and show exceptional ability and promise for conducting basic research of military interests.

At the Heart of Aerospace: San Antonio, TX
October — Dr. Christopher Combs discusses aviation in San Antonio and his research in high-speed aerodynamics and hypersonics.

Stephen Ackley Interviewed by KSAT12 About the Amazon Forest Fires
August — Twenty five percent of the world's forests are in the Amazon. The Amazon creates 20% of the Earth's oxygen and also takes in a lot of the world's carbon dioxide.

Stephen Ackley Discusses CAMEE in Texas Standard Interview
August — Among other things, the center will study rising temperatures in a growing number of highly populated areas.

UTSA Wins $3M NASA Award To Launch Extreme Environments Center
July — The new interdisciplinary center will include five UTSA members: Stephen Ackley, Dr. Alberto Mestas-Nuñez, and Dr. Hongjie Xie from Geological Sciences; Dr. Christopher Combs and Dr. Kiran Bhaganagar from Mechanical Engineering.

NASA Awards Universities Funding That May Support Moon to Mars
July — NASA's Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) Institutional Research Opportunity (MIRO), has awarded eight cooperative agreements to universities to perform research and education.