Alex Hall
Loughborough University
Project
Arctic dust from above and below: Constraining the unseen contributions of northern high latitude dust sources
Supervisors
- Dr Matthew Baddock
- Professor Joanna Bullard
PhD Summary
This research focuses on dust emissions from high latitude regions (≥50°N and ≥40°S) and their impact on the environment. Dust from these areas account for 5% of global dust emission and play an important role in cryospheric, climatic, and biological processes at a range of scales. However, ground monitoring of high latitude dust emissions are limited, and satellite observations may underestimate emissions due to the size, timing or dispersal characteristics of dust. Furthermore, issues such as cloud cover may obscure dust emission. Field measurements, such as vertical dust flux, will be collected and compared with satellite observations to identify gaps and improve monitoring accuracy. This research aims to understand how environmental factors influence dust emissions in high latitude regions, while addressing biases and errors in data sources to improve the accuracy of regional dust loading estimates.
Previous activity
Before starting my PhD, I completed a BSc in Geography at Loughborough University and a Research Master’s at Durham University, where I studied dissolution features in upland bedrock rivers.
Why did you choose doctoral research?
After my Master’s degree, I wanted to continue researching and decided to focus on High Latitude Dust (HLD) after working on a summer research project on this topic, which was funded by the European Space Agency/Future Earth.
Why did you choose CENTA?
I liked the idea of gaining training while doing a PhD, and I was really interested in the project and the supervisory team.
Future plans
I believe pursuing a PhD while gaining training will equip me with the skills and experience needed for many jobs in the future, however I have not decided yet exactly which path I would like to take.