Eric Webb (MS, 2020) Wins Outstanding Master’s Thesis Award

Eric Webb, MS Earth Sciences in Fall 2020, is the winner of the 2023 Outstanding Master’s Thesis Award from the UNC Charlotte Graduate School in the “Mathematics, Physical Sciences, and Engineering” category. Eric joined UNC Charlotte after finishing his BS in Meteorology from NC State, and his Masters thesis was titled “Reanalysis of the Extended Multivariate ENSO Index”. Eric wrote in his application for the Award, “The El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is the most important component of coupled intraseasonal-interannual climate variability on the globe, significantly altering the global circulation pattern over period of months to years. These ENSO-induced changes to the global circulation pattern are communicated through persistent far-field teleconnections that impact the probability distribution of heat waves, droughts, floods, wildfires, tropical cyclones, winter storms, and other severe weather hazards in many parts of the globe. These natural disasters influenced by ENSO can dramatically affect agriculture, fisheries, public health, local and regional economies, transportation, and even biodiversity. Given ENSO’s far reaching impacts on the Earth system and society, it is paramount to be able to understand and forecast ENSO, so that we can be better prepared for the potential natural disasters that may come with it, especially in the context of climate change and climate injustice that make certain areas more vulnerable to the consequences of major weather and climate events.” His Masters research was assessed relative to the work of UNC Charlotte Masters graduates between Fall 2020 and Summer 2022 from across the physical sciences, engineering, and math. Eric is currently an operational meteorologist in New Mexico.