Wildfires are known for their destructive capacity towards ecosystems and devastating impacts to human life and property. Regions in the western United States are particularly prone to such events, including large crown fires. However, there is limited research on the potential for smoke from these wildfires to carry and redistribute nutrients in the form of aerosols. Here I show that higher levels of airborne nutrients, specifically iron, phosphorus, and potassium, can be associated both with the timing of active wildfires and a known smoke tracer, elemental carbon. Data from the Interagency Monitoring of Protected Visual Environments (IMPROVE) show a strong correlation with fire presence and local peaks in levels of potassium, with less strong associations with phosphorus and iron. Across a multi-year period, there is also a correlation between the number of acres burned in a particular year and the average concentration of iron and potassium in that region. Using data from the NASA DC-8 airborne laboratory corroborates this information, with calculated potassium concentrations matching those on the ground. These findings indicate the wildfire plumes have a potential to be significant sources of nutrients in the short term. This is especially relevant for areas impacted by wildfires, as these nutrients are key for plant growth and development. These elements may also be carried into the ocean and affect the aquatic biosphere. All of the information gathered will help improve our understanding of the complex networks that make up Earth’s biogeochemical cycles.

Internet of Things (IoT) devices are increasingly integrated into new construction and legacy buildings. However, the insertion of IoT into buildings increases their cybersecurity vulnerability. While IoT security issues are ubiquitous across devices, a foundational issue for cybersecurity in buildings is the organizational friction due to the increasing integration between Information Technology (IT) and Operational Technology (OT), called IT/OT convergence. These two technological systems are embedded in the siloed institutional histories and work practices that historically managed these technologies: Operations and Management (O&M) and IT. This siloed evolution generated different organizational structures and cultures that facilitate a responsibility vacuum in organizations around IoT cybersecurity. Industry stakeholders suggest that stronger collaboration between O&M and IT could mitigate these challenges. However, improving collaboration requires multi-disciplinary knowledge work and task coordination that fits the policy and organizational contexts of O&M and IT professionals. This project seeks to identify different interactions between macro-level legal policies and formal organizational policies and procedures, and how micro-level daily work practices support the knowledge work and task coordination needed to improve O&M and IT collaboration around IoT cybersecurity. To tackle this subject, our team is undertaking a multi-method qualitative study of three parts: (1) ethnographic study of IOT cybersecurity practices by IT and O&M departments at three small, medium, and large universities in Washington state: UW Bothell, Western Washington University, and UW; (2) 25 expert interviews with IT and O&M cybersecurity professionals working in universities across the United States; (3) 15 case studies of universities in the Pacific Northwest region. The data collection methods for these three parts are observations in the workplace, interviews, and document analysis.The research being presented here will consist of two master inventories of (1) policies addressing cybersecurity, IoT device security, data privacy; and (2) smart city initiatives in the United States.

The life and death of a galaxy is inextricably linked to the gaseous supply of its circumgalactic medium (CGM). Using the Hubble Space Telescope’s Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (HST/COS), we carry out quasar spectroscopy to probe this diffuse, extended gas. To characterize these galaxies, we supplement COS UV spectroscopy with optical spectroscopy from the Gemini North and South Telescopes. In total, 2,207 galaxy spectra were collected, all within 2.5 arcminutes of the quasar that have COS spectra. Of this initial group, 1,607 galaxies were classified as star-forming, elliptical, or some combination of the two based on the detected spectral lines. This study focuses on metal-line transitions in both galaxy and quasar spectra which track billions of years of supernova metal pollution. Absorption signatures from Ionized metals trace the physical conditions within the CGM of galaxies at the same redshift (+/- 500 km s-1) as the metal absorbers. We tie the metallicity of the CGM based on absorption-line measurements to the metal content of the host galaxies, as measured using strong emission lines. To date, no correlation exists between galactic metallicity and the metal content of the CGM. This finding indicates that the feedback processes within the CGM are complex and varied.

 Mid galaxy merger, a process called dynamical friction allows collided galaxies’ central massive black holes (MBHs) to spiral into the center of the system. Dynamical friction (DF) is a result of interactions between background material of small masses and one larger mass, such as a MBH. This creates a wake of particles behind the MBH, causing a gravitational pull opposite to its velocity, slowing it down. This process controls the orbit of non-central black holes in a galaxy and drives the creation of massive black hole binaries, prospective gravitational wave sources for current and future low-frequency detectors. The standard equation used to estimate DF, the Chandrasekhar DF formula, assumes that a galaxy has a uniform density profile, and all small particles have the same mass with Maxwellian velocity distribution. With this formula, many scenarios such as density fluctuations, large mass interactions, and perpendicular force are ignored. These conditions are not representative of realistic galactic environments and thus provide an incomplete look at dynamical friction. Taking a Monte-Carlo approach, we developed a numerical formula, to create an accurate and computationally efficient method to calculate the dynamical friction. Our method allows for density fluctuations and a range of particle masses and velocities to be accounted for.

Given that greater than 15% of the world’s population currently relies on snow melt for drinking water, hydrological modeling of landscapes subject to routine snowfall is becoming increasingly important. Up to 60% of snowfall in forested terrain is intercepted by the forest canopy. Therefore, tree interception parameters that quantify how much water or snow a tree collects during a precipitation event are critical for understanding temporal and spatial water fluxes, which most notably determine when and in what volume water is delivered to communities. This project is evaluating whether a new video processing technique can be used to reliably and accurately identify snow interception parameters for coniferous trees. In particular, this project seeks to learn whether the resonant frequency of swaying snow-loaded trees, as determined by processing time lapse videos, can be used to compute the mass of snow in a tree. Having shown that video processing can correctly infer the sway frequency of a tree, we are now deploying cameras on Snoqualmie Pass to observe tree sway events concurrent with snow loading events. To date, we have four cameras monitoring a tree and the snow levels around it. Pending further video data collection, we will begin applying the tree sway processing algorithm, which uses FFT processing to compute changes in tree sway frequency and corresponding changes in tree mass. If successful, this method may improve tree interception parameterization and therefore hydrological forecasting. 

Martian regolith is very different from Earth soil. In order to colonize, or have an extended stay on Mars, agriculture must be established. The purpose of this experiment was to investigate growing plants in Martian regolith in a manner that would be fuel-efficient, by using the existing soil of Mars with minimal interference and minimal materials brought from Earth. The regolith used was Mojave Mars Simulant-2 (MMS-2), developed by The Martian Garden. MMS-2 is more than a 90% match to the chemical composition of the regolith on Mars. Plant growth was compared between Earth soil (control), 50% Martian regolith MMS-2/50% Earth soil mixture (Mars Mix A), and 50% Mars regolith MMS-2/25% coffee grounds/12.5% Earth soil/12.5% vermiculite mixture (Mars Mix B). Plants were grown in all three mixtures and growth was measured during three month cycles. Although several plant species were planted, only kale produced any significant measurable data. Plant growth decreased with decreased percentages of Earth compost additive as measured by plant length and robustness. Efforts to reduce the mass of additives required to support plant growth include an exploration of acidifying Martian regolith MMS-2 prior to planting. Acids have been chosen for their ability to add critical nutrients of nitrogen and phosphorus. Nitric acid and phosphoric acid have both effectively lowered the pH to 6, similar to the optimal pH range for plant growth. The implications of this study indicate that Martian regolith and Earth soils on their own will not be sufficient to begin agriculture on Mars. Further research on chemical soil amendments will be needed for sustainable agricultural development on Mars.

Growing sustainable crops on Mars is an important aspect of developing a colony on the red planet. The goal of this research is to modify Martian regolith simulant to support plant growth. Results will be presented for the readjustment of the pH of Mars soil (pH 8) simulant to match that of typical fertile earth soil (pH 6) using nitric and phosphoric acid. The acids used were chosen based on their viability for transport to Mars and their ability to add crucial nutrients for plant growth in the unfertile soil. During the project, both acids effectively lowered the regolith pH, but in the hours and days following the pH increased significantly, which has motivated testing the buffer capacity of Mars soil simulant. The data collected was used to prepare three samples of Mars soil simulant; the first was modified with phosphoric acid, the second with nitric acid, and the third was also modified with nitric acid and had a buffer of dihydrogen phosphate added. The growth of kale was measured in the three modified soils, each mixed with equal parts potting soil. Kale growth was compared to trials performed without the acidification or buffering of Mars simulant soil.  Our research presents progress towards growing food in Mars regolith to sustain colonization efforts on the planet. This work can also be applied to the potential need to grow food in adverse conditions on Earth as the human population increases and the impacts of climate change advance.