Department of Physics and Astronomy professor Dr. James Sherman received the Faculty Research Grant to support his project “Initial Closure Studies of Atmospheric Aerosol Hygroscopicity and Cloud Condensation Nuclei at the Appalachian Atmospheric Interdisciplinary Research Facilities (AppalAIR).” Established in 2009, AppalAIR is a research cluster of five faculty members from App State’s College of Arts and Sciences. Sherman serves as the cluster’s senior research scientist and leader of the Atmospheric Aerosols Group, studying the effects of atmospheric aerosols such as haze, smoke and dust on climate change in the Southeastern United States.

The AppalAIR facilities at App State are home to the only co-located National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Global Monitoring Division, NASA Aerosol Robotic Network and NASA Micro-Pulse Lidar Network aerosol monitoring sites in the U.S., housing a variety of NASA and NOAA instruments maintained by Sherman and his research students. In collaboration with researchers from Georgia Tech and New Mexico Tech, Sherman’s North Carolina Space Grant project will tackle climate uncertainties by exploring aerosol–cloud interactions using data collected at AppalAIR facilities.

Sherman collaborates with both undergraduate and graduate students, providing them with a holistic experience in cutting-edge climate science research — ranging from data acquisition, to instrument maintenance/calibration, to modeling and developing software for data analysis, to developing presentations based on project results.

This year, two students involved in Sherman’s project were awarded funds from the North Carolina Space Grant, including Ethan Barber, a senior physics major from Durham.

Barber’s research project, “Atmospheric Aerosol Hygroscopicity and CCN Number Concentrations Affect on Climate Model Uncertainty Used to Predict Future Temperatures,” aims to understand how atmospheric aerosol concentrations, measured by AppalAIR, impact future climate change models.

“My everyday tasks include making sure our instruments are up and running, performing daily or weekly maintenance and analyzing data. This can range from changing a filter, to writing code, to plotting histogram data of aerosol size distribution data,” explained Barber.

Barber became involved in research after attending an extra credit seminar by Sherman. Interested in what Sherman was researching, Barber asked to join his research group.

“I love working and learning with others. I have grown both as a student and a scientist because of the people I have worked with,” said Barber. “Everyone in our small but impactful group has taught me different things and has given me an insight into how a scientist operates in the real world.”

Barber, now a student in App State’s Accelerated Master’s program, plans to graduate with his Bachelor of Science in physics-applied physics and a minor in mathematics this academic year and then begin his second year in the university’s Master of Science in engineering physics program.

Pursuing the professional science master’s in instrumentation and automation, Barber regularly collaborates with Isaac Critcher and Patrick Richardson in the College of Arts and Sciences Machine Shop for assistance with the instruments located at the College Street Parking Deck next to Belk Library and Information Commons and App State’s future Innovation District on Bodenheimer Drive.

“I know that the research those before me have done, the research I am doing now and the work to be done will be vitally important to scientists, government leaders and everyday people when understanding our atmosphere and future climate,” said Barber.

Allen, a second-year graduate student from Chapel Hill pursuing a Master of Science in engineering physics, is also a student in Sherman’s lab. Allen became interested in research while enrolled in Sherman’s Environmental Physics course as an undergraduate student at App State.

Allen received a North Carolina Space Grant Graduate Research Fellowship award to support his project “Newest-generation Handheld Sunphotometer for Validation of Satellite-Measured Aerosol Optical Depth and Air Quality Studies by Citizen Scientists.” The goal of the project is to develop a reliable and inexpensive handheld sunphotometer instrument that could be used by both professional and amateur scientists to measure aerosols such as haze, smoke and dust.

“I really enjoy the process of working on a challenging project that I feel will have a positive impact on our environment,” said Allen.

Pursuing a Master of Science in engineering physics, with a professional science master’s in instrumentation and automation concentration, Samuel DeMay, a second-year graduate student from Charlotte, received a North Carolina Space Grant Graduate Research Fellowship award to support his project “Characterizing a Near-IR Spectrometer and Automating the Harvard-SAO Electron Beam Ion Trap for Laboratory Astrophysics.”

DeMay’s research is in the field of optical physics, or the study of light and its interaction with matter. Specifically, he is exploring the infrared emissions of highly charged heavy elements to improve understanding of the conditions within astral bodies.

Like Allen, DeMay enjoys the problem-solving aspect of research.

“In class, we solve problems that can sometimes be a bit abstract. Research has given me the opportunity to work on real-world problems on a regular basis, which allows me to feel more confident and knowledgeable about the field I am studying,” he said.

DeMay’s research is guided by Dr. Roshani Silwal, an assistant professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy. DeMay said he became interested in research at App State after learning about Silwal’s research as an undergraduate student in a Medical Physics course taught by Dr. Anthony Calamai, a professor in the Physics and Astronomy department.

“She and Dr. Calamai work closely, and after learning more about their research, I asked if she had any available positions,” he explained. Silwal’s research specialties include the trapping of highly charged ions using devices called ion traps, which DeMay is using for his study.