2025 Outstanding Alum

December 11, 2025

Charlotte Demott

Hosted by Department

Abstract

I am deeply honored to have been selected as the 2025 CSU Department of Atmospheric Science Distinguished Alumnus. In reflecting upon what might have led to my career being deemed distinguished, I find it hard to separate my own contributions from the support of funding agencies, mentors, and colleagues who challenged me in my thinking and befriended me at meetings. Thank you all.

I became interested in the role of the ocean in the atmosphere, and especially atmospheric convection, as an undergraduate student at Texas A&M University and have never really quit thinking about it. In this talk, I provide an overview of the events, ideas, and people that have shaped a career focused on improving our understanding of how the tropical ocean and atmosphere interact, especially regarding the role of the ocean in the Madden-Julian oscillation and the representation of these feedbacks in models. Many of these advances have followed the traditional approach of data analysis and paper publication. Other advances, however, have required creative communication strategies to facilitate improved understanding of how the ocean and atmosphere communicate with each other across the air-sea interface and across scales. This talk will conclude with some examples of these strategies.