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ECHO Administration

photo of Menas Kafatos, Ph.D.

Menas Kafatos, Ph.D.

Director, Fletcher Jones Endowed Professor of Computational Physics
Areas of Research: Quantum mechanics and mind/brain dynamics, black holes and cosmology, interdisciplinary earth system science, climate change, natural hazards (including earthquakes, wildfires, and tropical cyclones), aerosols and pollution, remote sensing, big data, vegetation and climate change, and distributed data information system architecture
photo of Seung Hee Kim, Ph.D.

Seung Hee Kim, Ph.D.

Associate Director of Operations, Research Assistant Professor
Areas of Research: Mesoscale and regional climate modeling, climate change impact assessment, and remote sensing data application
photo of Kandy Reyes

Kandy Reyes

Operations Coordinator
714-289-3112
Operations Coordinator coordinates administrative activities for ECHO and is the institute's primary contact person.

ECHO Faculty

photo of Dimitar Ouzounov, Ph.D.

Dimitar Ouzounov, Ph.D.

Associate Professor, Research Faculty
Areas of Research: Geophysics, geospace applications for natural hazards risk management, lithosphere-atmosphere-ionosphere coupling, electromagnetic studies of earthquakes and volcanoes, and geocomputing
photo of Keun-Hang Susan Yang, Ph.D.

Keun-Hang Susan Yang, Ph.D.

Director of International Science Programs, Professor of Computational Neuroscience and Bioscience
Areas of Research: Modeling neuronal disorders, electrophysiology, and chemical impacts, and computational biology and bioinformatics
photo of Su-Bin Oh

Su-Bin Oh

Part Time Researcher
I am a dedicated atmospheric scientist with a strong academic foundation and over a decade of research experience. I earned my B.S. and M.S. in Atmospheric Sciences from Pukyong National University in Busan, South Korea. My professional journey includes significant roles at the Korea Meteorological Administration, where I contributed to developing and advancing numerical weather prediction and forecasting technologies. Currently, as a senior researcher at Bomin Science Consulting, I focus on developing a dynamic downscaling method to implement a short-range (< 100 km) atmospheric dispersion model. My expertise lies in weather modeling, data analysis, and the development of innovative forecasting techniques. Passionate about translating complex atmospheric phenomena into actionable insights, I aim to contribute to a safer and more informed society.

ECHO Affiliated Faculty

photo of Dr. Joshua Fisher

Dr. Joshua Fisher

Associate Professor
Keck Center for Science and Engineering 225
Dr. Joshua B. Fisher is a Climate Scientist focusing on terrestrial ecosystems, water, carbon, and nutrient cycling using a combination of remote sensing, supercomputer models, and field campaigns from the Amazon to the Arctic. He completed his undergraduate and graduate degrees from UC Berkeley and his postdoctoral work from the University of Oxford. Dr. Fisher was a NASA Scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for over a decade and the founding Science Lead for the ECOSTRESS mission on the International Space Station. Dr. Fisher is now the Science Lead for Hydrosat and Associate Professor of Environmental Science and Policy at Chapman University. With over 200 publications, Dr. Fisher has been named one of the world’s “most influential” researchers, in the top 0.1% of scientists with papers in the top 1% by citations for the past 5 years in a row.
photo of Dr. Hagop Atamian

Dr. Hagop Atamian

Assistant Professor
Keck Center for Science and Engineering 261
I am an Assistant Professor in the Biological Sciences program at Chapman University. I obtained my PhD in the Genetics, Genomics, and Bioinformatics program at the University of California, Riverside. My research interests revolve around the intricate molecular mechanisms underlying plant interactions with various biotic and abiotic factors and their interactions with daily environmental fluctuations. Within my laboratory, we employ cutting-edge Genomics and Bioinformatics tools to explore a wide range of biological processes in agricultural plants. Our ultimate goal is to make advancements in sustainable agriculture. Additionally, we leverage machine learning algorithms to design molecules that hold promise as potential therapeutics against both human and plant pathogens. For more information about our research, visit https://atamianlab.com/
no photo available for Francis Fujioka, Ph.D.

Francis Fujioka, Ph.D.

Affiliated Faculty
Areas of Research: Integrated weather/fire modeling, wildland fire risk assessment, fire behavior and fire danger analysis and prediction
photo of Thomas Piechota, Ph.D., PE

Thomas C. Piechota, Ph.D., PE

Professor
Dr. Piechota’s research interests center around the investigation of climate impacts on regional water resources and society using high resolution climate data/information, forecasting of water supply under changing climate conditions, drought and flood impacts in urban stormwater in urban environments, use of remote sensing data and geographic information systems for improved evaluation of hydrology and water systems.
no photo available for Yangwon Lee

Yangwon Lee

Visiting Faculty
no photo available for Jung-Hoon Kim

Jung-Hoon Kim

Visiting Faculty

ECHO Student Researcher

photo of Kaila Gudinas-Castrucci

Kaila Gudinas-Castrucci

Student Research Assistant
photo of Alexandra  Der Boghosian

Alexandra Der Boghosian

Student Research Assistant
photo of Elizabeth Ko

Elizabeth Ko

Student Research Assistant
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Adam Wang

Student Research Assistant
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Annie Pasmann

Student Research Assistant
photo of Jonathan Terbush

Jonathan Terbush

Student Research Assistant
no photo available for Aly Pickett

Aly Pickett

Student Research Assistant
photo of Sydney Chung

Sydney Chung

Student Research Assistant
photo of Joshua Harlev

Joshua Harlev

Student Research Assistant

ECHO Board Members

photo of Dr. Son Nghiem

Dr. Son V. Nghiem

Dr. Son V. Nghiem received the Ph.D. degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 1991, he joined the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), California Institute of Technology (CalTech), where he is currently a Senior Research Scientist, the Science and Applications Development Lead of the Radar Science and Engineering Section, and the JPL Discipline Program Manager of the Water and Energy Cycle Science Office in the Earth Science Research and Mission Formulation of the Earth Science and Technology Directorate. His research encompasses active and passive remote sensing, development of advanced satellite radars and radiometers, electromagnetic scattering and emission theories, and Earth sciences and applications from the tropics to polar regions. He holds a patent for his invention on high-resolution wind measurements with satellite data for offshore wind energy development. He has published over 130 peer-reviewed articles and over 480 conference articles.
no photo available for Dr. Kyunghee Choi

Dr. Kyunghee Choi

no photo available for Dr. Hee-Dong Yoo

Dr. Hee-Dong Yoo

no photo available for Dr. Seon Ki Park

Dr. Seon Ki Park

photo of Dr. Hui Su

Dr. Hui Su

Chair Professor
Hui Su is a Chair Professor and Global STEM Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and the Executive Director of the Space Science and Technology Institute at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Before joining HKUST in 2022, she was a principal scientist and weather discipline program manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Hui Su’s research interests primarily focus on extreme weather, climate change, and remote sensing. She has published over 140 peer-reviewed articles. In 2024, she received the Banner I. Miller Award from the American Meteorological Society, and she was awarded the NASA Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medal in both 2010 and 2022. Additionally, she is a recipient of the Edward Stone Award and the Lew Allen Award for excellence at JPL. Hui Su is a Fellow of the American Meteorological Society and serves as an Editor for Geophysical Research Letters.

ECHO Collaborators

Ghassem Asrar, Ph.D.
VPR-VP Research, University of Maryland

Eun-Chul Chang, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Kongju National University, South Korea

George Galanis, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Section of Mathematics, Greek Naval Academy, Greece and Researcher, Atmospheric Modeling and Weather Forecasting Group, Physics Department, University of Athens, Greece

Katsumi Hattori, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Earth Sciences, Chiba University, Chiba, Japan

George Kallos, Ph.D.
Professor, University of Athens, School of Physics and Director, Division of Environmental Physics, and Meteorology and Senior Research Associate, SUNY/ASRC, Albany, NY and Research Professor

Vassilis Karastathis, Ph.D.
Research Director, National Observatory of Athens, Athens, Greece

Hyungjun Kim, Ph.D.
Project Associate Professor, University of Tokyo, Japan

Woo-Kyun Lee, Ph.D.
Professor, Korea University, South Korea

Yungon Lee, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Chungnam National University, South Korea

Chul-Hee Lim, Ph.D.
Research Professor, Korea University, South Korea

Xue Liu, Ph.D.
CGA Fellow, Harvard University

David Medvigy, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, University of Notre Dame

Boksoon Myoung, Ph.D.
Researcher, APEC Climate Center (APCC), Busan, South Korea

Son Nghiem, Ph.D.
Senior Research Scientist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology

Murat Oz, Ph.D.
Faculty of Pharmacy, Kuwait University

Jeremy Pal, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Civil Engineering and Environmental Science, Loyola Marymount University

Seon K. Park, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering Director, Center for Climate/Environment Change Prediction Research (CCCPR) Director, Severe Storm Research Center (SSRC) Ewha Womans University

Michele Romolini, Ph.D.
Research Scientist, Departments of Biology and Environmental Studies Director of Research, Center for Urban Resilience Loyola Marymount University

José Sánchez, Ph.D.
Research Economist, US Forest Service

Henry P. Stapp, Ph.D.
Quantum Mechanics Collaborator, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Eric G. Strauss, Ph.D.
President's Professor of Biology, Executive Director, Loyola Marymount University Center For Urban Resilience, Seaver College of Science & Engineering

Patrick Taylor, Ph.D.
Geophysicist, NASA GSFC, Geodesy and Geophysics Laboratory, Greenbelt, MD, USA

Robert Walko, Ph.D.
Scientist, MAS, University of Miami