Chen Zhang
Assistant Professor
Education
PhD, Atmospheric Sciences, Purdue University, 2023
MA, Geography, University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), 2017
MS, Meteorology, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, China, 2014
BS, Atmospheric Sciences, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology,
China, 2009
Research
Dr. Zhang’s research focuses on advancing our understanding and prediction of extreme weather and climate events, with a particular emphasis on atmospheric rivers and their impacts from the mid-latitudes to the polar regions. Her work examines atmospheric river activity, variability, and predictability, including their influence on extreme precipitation, Arctic climate change, and climate variability. By integrating atmospheric dynamics, numerical modeling, advanced statistical analysis, machine learning, data science, and high-performance computing, her research seeks to better understand the processes governing high-impact weather and climate events and quantify their associated climate and societal risks.
Selected Publications
Zhang, C., Cassano, J. J., Seefeldt, M., Tung, W., Mahesh, A., and Collins, W. (2026): Evaluating Atmospheric River Impacts on Energy and Moisture Transport in the Arctic Using Different Detection Algorithms, Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 131, e2025JD043335. https://doi.org/10.1029/2025JD043335
Serreze, M.C., Cassano, E., Crawford, A., Cassano, J.J., and Zhang, C. (2026): The Observed Evolution of Arctic Amplification over the Past 45 Years. The Cryosphere, 20, 411–425, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-411-2026, 2026.
Zhang, C., Cassano, J. J., Seefeldt, M., Wang, H., Ma, W., and Tung, W. (2025), Quantifying the Impacts of Atmospheric Rivers on the Surface Energy Budget of the Arctic Based on Reanalysis, The Cryosphere, 19, 4671–4699, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-4671-2025, 2025.
Wille, J. D., V. Favier, I. V. Gorodetskaya, C. Agosta, 1R. Baiman, J. Barrett, L. Barthelemy, B. Boza, D. Bozkurt, M. Casado, A. Chyhareva, K. Clem, F. Codron, R. Datta, C. Durán-Alarcón, D. Francis, A. Hoffman, M. Kolbe, S. Krakovska, G. Linscott, 1M. Maclennan, K. Mattingly, Y. Mu, B. Pohl, C. Santos, C. Shields, E. Toker, A. C. Winters, Z. Yin, X. Zou, C. Zhang, and Z. Zhang: Atmospheric rivers in Antarctica. Nature Reviews Earth and Environment 6, 178-192 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-024-00638-7
Zhang, C., W.-w. Tung, and W.S. Cleveland, (2023), Climatology and decadal changes of Arctic atmospheric rivers based on ERA5 and MERRA-2, Environ. Res.: Climate 2 035005. doi: 10.1088/2752-5295/acdf0f
Zhang, C., W.-w. Tung, and W.S. Cleveland, (2021), In Search of The Optimal Atmospheric River Index for US Precipitation: A Multifactorial Analysis, Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres., doi: 10.1029/2020JD033667
Student Opportunities
I anticipate recruiting one graduate student to join my research group in Fall 2027. Students interested in atmospheric science, extreme weather and climate, polar and Arctic climate, atmospheric dynamics, machine learning for Earth system science are encouraged to apply.
For information about graduate programs in the department and application requirements, please visit the LSU Department of Geography Graduate Programs. The application deadline is January 25, 2027.