Dr. Ankur Desai, PhD, CCM
Professor, Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences
In my Ecometeorology Lab, we study the interactions between Earth’s surface and atmosphere and how those interactions change across space and through time. We explore these interactions at all possible scales, from the genomic to the global. We are particularly interested in how plants respond to and modify weather and climate through their role in carbon and water cycles.
To do this work, we maintain a global network of flux towers organized by a global network of people. We share our data (and our models) freely and in near real-time because we believe that team science is our greatest hope for solutions to global environmental challenges, like climate change, biodiversity loss, and sustainable human development.
New members: Please read our Mentor-Mentee Compact and accompanying FAQ.
Research Associates and Visiting Scientists
Ph.D. Students
M.S. Students
Undergraduate and Pre-College Fellows and Interns
Click here for a complete list of past lab members and past collaborators
A partial list of fellowships and awards earned by Desai lab students and post-docs:
Fulbright Scholar International Travel Award, to Nikaan Koupaei-Abyazani, 2023
Department of Integrative Biology, Student Scholarship (Field travel), $2,250, to Jess Turner, 2021
Anna Grant Birge award, $1,650, to Jess Turner, 2021
UW-Madison Postdoc Association (UWPA) Postdoc Excellence in Mentoring, awarded to Brian Butterworth, 2021
NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (GRFP) awarded to Jess Turner, 9/1/20-8/31/23
UW Freshwater Marine Science (FMS) first-year scholarship, $1,000, awarded to Jess Turner, Jul 2020
METER Grant A Harris Fellowship, $10,000 instrumentation fellowship awarded to Ammara Talib, March 2019
Fulbright Fellowship for study in U.S., awarded to Andi Muttaqin, 9/1/19-8/31/22
UW L&S Community of Graduate Research Scholars, Advanced Opportunity Fellowship, Ph.D. fellowship awarded to Jess Turner, 9/1/18-8/31/19
UW L&S Community of Graduate Research Scholars, Advanced Opportunity Fellowship, Ph.D. fellowship awarded to Anthony Crespo, 9/1/18
NEON Internship, awarded to undergrad intern Gabriel Bromley, summer 2015
NSF AGS Postdoctoral Fellowship, awarded to post-doc David Reed, 2014-2016
Zoology Dept and GLEON international travel awards, $2,000 awarded to Ph.D. student Malgorzata Golub, 2014
Wisconsin Space Grant Fellowship, $5,000 award to M.S. student Sean DuBois, 2014
UW Limnology and Marine Science, Anna Grant Birge Award, $1,000 awarded to Ph.D. student Malgorzata Golub, 2013-2014, $1,000 in 2013-2014
Alexander Goetz Instrument Support Program, ASD instrument time awarded to M.S. student Sean Dubois, 2013
UW Limnology and Marine Science, Anna Grant Birge Award, $2,000 awarded to Ph.D. student Malgorzata Golub, 2012-2013, $1,000 in 2013-2014
UW L&S Community of Graduate Research Scholars, Advanced Opportunity Fellowship, Ph.D. fellowship awarded to Kristine Jimenez, 09/01/10-08/31/11
University of Michigan Biological Station, Biosphere-Atmosphere Research Traineeship (BART), NSF IGERT, Constraining and testing treatment of disturbance, succession, and biogeochemistry in a forest landscape model and understanding their effects on regional climate, Two-year Ph.D. fellowship awarded to Ben Sulman, 06/01/09-05/30/11
Department of Defense, Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) fellowship, two year M.S. fellowship awarded to Will Ahue, 09/01/08-08/31/10
