Curriculum Vitae

Research scientist advancing understanding and prediction of the global methane cycle through atmospheric observations, stable isotopes, remote sensing, inverse modeling, process-based models, and artificial intelligence.

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Last updated: July 2026

Research Interests

  • Global carbon budget and trends, in particular methane
  • Atmospheric multi-tracer inverse modeling using multi-source observations
  • Process-based terrestrial ecosystem modeling
  • Knowledge-guided machine learning and artificial intelligence
  • Earth system modeling and carbon–climate feedbacks

Research Leadership and Highlights

  • Research Scientist II at CIRES, the University of Colorado Boulder, and NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory
  • Developer for NOAA CarbonTracker-CH₄
  • Principal Investigator of the AI4Methane Working Group
  • Principal Investigator on projects supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, NSF ESIIL, and Spark Climate Solutions
  • Research spanning stable isotopes, remote sensing, process modeling, atmospheric inversion, and knowledge-guided machine learning
  • Publications in Nature Communications, Nature Climate Change, Global Change Biology, PNAS, and other leading journals
  • Mentor to postdoctoral researchers and undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral students

Professional Experience

Research Scientist II

Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences,
University of Colorado Boulder and NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory
May 2025–present

  • Advance NOAA’s atmospheric methane data-assimilation system, CarbonTracker-CH₄
  • Lead research on global methane sources, sinks, trends, and uncertainties
  • Develop next-generation methane modeling frameworks using artificial intelligence

Research Scientist I

Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences,
University of Colorado Boulder and NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory
March 2023–April 2025

  • Advanced the CarbonTracker-CH₄ atmospheric methane assimilation system
  • Integrate atmospheric CH₄ observations, stable isotopes, satellite data, transport modeling, and prior emission estimates
  • Led research connecting atmospheric constraints with natural methane processes

Postdoctoral Associate

University of Colorado Boulder and NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory
September 2021–February 2023

Advisor: Lori Bruhwiler

  • Conducted joint CH₄ and δ¹³C-CH₄ atmospheric inversion modeling
  • Investigated global methane sources and sinks using the TM5 transport model
  • Improved natural-source representations in CarbonTracker-CH₄

National Research Council Postdoctoral Fellow

NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory
October 2020–August 2021

Advisor: Lori Bruhwiler

  • Estimated methane fluxes and associated isotopic signatures from natural sources and sinks
  • Improved biogeochemical model representations for atmospheric inversion studies

Visiting Scholar

NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory
November 2018–August 2019

Advisors: Edward J. Dlugokencky and Lori Bruhwiler

  • Modeled spatial and temporal variability in carbon-isotopic signatures of methane emitted from wetlands

NASA Earth and Space Science Fellow

Purdue University
September 2017–July 2020

Advisors: Qianlai Zhuang and Lisa Welp

  • Investigated the role of high-affinity methanotrophs in the Arctic methane budget
  • Integrated microbial, biogeochemical, and atmospheric modeling approaches

Graduate Research Assistant

Purdue Isotope Laboratory
July 2016–July 2020

Advisor: Lisa Welp

  • Studied seasonal stable-carbon-isotope variability in temperate deciduous leaves
  • Conducted elemental analyzer–isotope ratio mass spectrometry analyses

Graduate Research Assistant

Princeton University
August 2013–April 2016

Advisor: David Medvigy

  • Developed a methane microbial-dynamics model for Arctic upland soils
  • Investigated high-affinity microbial methane oxidation

Education

Ph.D. in Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences

Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana
2016–2020

Research areas included stable isotopes, biogeochemistry, ecosystem ecology, geospatial data science, Earth system modeling, and terrestrial ecosystem modeling.

M.A. in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences

Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey
2013–2015

Research areas included atmospheric science, boundary-layer meteorology, physical hydrology, climate–biosphere interactions, geomicrobiology, and inverse methods.

Global Exchange Student

University of California, Davis, Davis, California
2010–2011

B.S. in Environmental Science and Engineering

Ewha Womans University, Seoul, South Korea
2009–2013

  • Magna cum laude
  • Double major in Biological Sciences
  • Certification in the ABEEK Advanced Engineering Program

Honors and Awards

  • Biogeosciences Leaders of Tomorrow, AGU Biogeosciences, 2025
  • Global Monitoring Annual Conference Early Career Award, NOAA GML, 2022
  • National Research Council Postdoctoral Fellowship, 2020–2021
  • NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship, 2017–2020
  • Henry Silver Graduate Scholarship, Purdue University, 2018
  • CESM Polar Modeling Workshop Scholarship, NCAR, 2018
  • Ross Fellowship in Natural Sciences and Engineering, Purdue University, 2016–2017
  • Purdue Climate Change Research Center Award, 2016
  • Research Fellowship in Natural Science and Engineering, Princeton University, 2013–2016

Research Funding

Principal Investigator

  • AI for Natural Methane Working Group: Advancing Methane Science with Data Harmonization and Knowledge-Guided Machine Learning
    Spark Climate Solutions, 2025
    Total award: $40,000

  • AI for Natural Methane Working Group: Harmonizing Natural Methane Datasets Using Knowledge-Guided Machine Learning
    NSF Environmental Data Science Innovation and Inclusion Lab, 2024
    Total support: $65,000 plus logistical and computing resources

  • Estimation of Global Methane Soil Sink Using Synthesized Datasets and Knowledge-Guided Machine Learning
    U.S. Department of Energy, 2023
    Total award: $400,000

  • Joint CH₄ and δ¹³C-CH₄ Inversion Modeling of the Global Methane Budget
    National Research Council Postdoctoral Fellowship, 2020
    Total award: $60,000

  • Bottom-Up and Top-Down Modeling of the Arctic Methane Budget by Considering Novel Microbes
    NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship, 2017
    Total award: $150,000

Pending

  • AI-Enabled Earth System Digital Twin for Methane Variability and Predictability
    Google Impact Challenge: AI for Science
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Requested amount: $700,000

  • The WeM5 Science and Technology Center: Building a Unified Framework for Wetland Monitoring, Modeling, and Management of Methane and Microbes
    National Science Foundation
    Role: Co-Investigator

  • The 2028 AI4Methane Workshop: Bridging Methane Science and AI with Knowledge-Guided Machine Learning and Harmonized Datasets
    Heising-Simons Foundation
    Role: Co-Investigator

Additional Collaborative Projects

  • Advancing NOAA’s CarbonTracker-CH₄ budget
  • Role of atmospheric chemistry in monitoring changes in the methane budget
  • Monitoring and prediction of climate-induced permafrost degradation across Alaska

Selected Publications

Lead-Author Publications

  1. Oh, Y., Bruhwiler, L., Lan, X., Halder, S., Riddell-Young, B., Basu, S., Miller, J., Michel, S., and coauthors.
    “Isotopic constraints in methane inversions reveal larger wetland emissions with improved linkage to terrestrial water storage.”
    Nature Communications, 2026.
    DOI

  2. Oh, Y., Liu, L., Lee, J., Bruhwiler, L., Lan, X., Michel, S., Basu, S., Miller, J., Zhu, Q., Malone, S., McNicol, G., and Zhuang, Q.
    “Revising the magnitude and trends of the global methane soil sink with process-based, machine-learning, and atmospheric inversion modeling approaches.”
    Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences, 2026.
    Invited Article.
    DOI

  3. Oh, Y., Zhuang, Q., Welp, L., Liu, L., Lan, X., Basu, S., Dlugokencky, E., Bruhwiler, L., Miller, J., Michel, S., and coauthors.
    “Improved global wetland carbon isotopic signatures support post-2006 microbial methane emission increase.”
    Communications Earth & Environment, 2022.
    DOI

  4. Oh, Y., Zhuang, Q., Liu, L., Welp, L., Lau, M., Onstott, T., Medvigy, D., Bruhwiler, L., Dlugokencky, E., and coauthors.
    “Reduced net methane emissions due to microbial methane oxidation in a warmer Arctic.”
    Nature Climate Change, 2020.
    DOI

  5. Oh, Y., Stackhouse, B., Lau, M., Xu, X., Trugman, A., Moch, J., Onstott, T., Jørgensen, C., D’Imperio, L., Elberling, B., Emmerton, C., St. Louis, V., and Medvigy, D.
    “A scalable model for methane consumption in Arctic mineral soils.”
    Geophysical Research Letters, 2016.
    DOI

Additional Recent Publications

  • Zhu, Q., Arndt, K. A., Yuan, K., and coauthors, including Oh, Y.
    “Multi-Decadal Dynamics of Wetland Methane Emissions Revealed by Knowledge-Guided Machine Learning.”
    Global Change Biology, 2026.

  • Sun, Y., Chen, S., Qiu, C., Liu, L., Oh, Y., and coauthors.
    “X-MethaneWet: A Cross-Scale Global Wetland Methane Emission Benchmark Dataset for Advancing Science Discovery with AI.”
    KDD Datasets and Benchmark Track, 2026.

  • Riddell-Young, B., Michel, S., Lan, X., and coauthors, including Oh, Y.
    “Microbial driver of 2006–2023 CH₄ growth indicated by trends in atmospheric δD-CH₄ and δ¹³C-CH₄.”
    Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2025.

  • Kuhn, M., Olefeldt, D., Arndt, K. A., and coauthors, including Oh, Y.
    “Current and future methane emissions from Boreal-Arctic wetlands and lakes.”
    Nature Climate Change, 2025.

View Complete Publication List

Teaching and Mentoring

Research Mentoring

  • Santanu Halder, Postdoctoral Researcher, NOAA GML and CIRES
    Incorporating deuterium isotopes into CarbonTracker-CH₄

  • Rongchao Dong and Yiming Sun, University of Pittsburgh
    Knowledge-guided machine learning for global wetland methane emissions and soil methane sinks

  • Kevin Rozmiarek, Ph.D. student, University of Colorado Boulder
    Biogeochemical modeling of Arctic wetland methane isotope signatures

  • Chris C. R. Smith, former CIRES Postdoctoral Researcher
    Knowledge-guided machine learning for global methane soil sinks

  • Matt Ziminski, M.S. student, University of Illinois Chicago
    Four-dimensional visualization of CarbonTracker-CH₄

  • Christianese Kaiser, undergraduate researcher, Princeton University
    Regional modeling of Arctic microbial methane oxidation

Professional Mentoring

  • CIRES mentor for early-career scientists at NOAA GML
  • Mentoring focused on scientific development, career planning, and professional growth

Guest Lectures

  • Next-Generation Modeling of Global Natural Methane Fluxes
    GEOG 5100: Special Topics in the Carbon Cycle, University of Colorado Boulder, 2026

  • Recent Atmospheric Methane Growth, the Global Methane Pledge, and CarbonTracker-CH₄
    ENV 623: The Role of Methane in Global Climate Disruption, Yale University, 2023

  • Global Methane Cycle and Stable Isotopes
    EAPS 591: Stable Isotopes, Purdue University, 2019

  • Microbial Methane Oxidation in a Warmer Arctic
    EAPS 529: Modeling Ecosystems and Biogeochemical Cycles, Purdue University, 2019

Leadership and Professional Service

Scientific Leadership

  • Principal Investigator, AI for Natural Methane Working Group / AI4Methane, 2024–present
  • Organizer, NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory Seminar Series, 2024–present
  • Organizer, CIRES Mentoring Program, 2023–present
  • Early Career Scientist Committee Member, FLUXNET, 2022–present
  • AGU Session Organizer, 2018–present

AGU Sessions

Organized sessions addressing:

  • Terrestrial and aquatic methane sinks
  • Data-driven estimation of global wetland methane fluxes
  • Verification of anthropogenic emissions
  • Connections among observations, models, artificial intelligence, and policy

Peer Review

Reviewer for more than 30 manuscripts since 2020, including submissions to:

  • Nature Climate Change
  • Science Advances
  • Nature Communications
  • Communications Earth & Environment
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
  • Geophysical Research Letters
  • Global Change Biology
  • Journal of Climate
  • npj Climate and Atmospheric Science
  • Carbon Balance and Management
  • Waste Management

Selected Invited Presentations

  • Environmental Data Science Seminar Series, Earth Lab / ESIIL, 2026
  • ESIIL Innovation Summit, Boulder, 2026
  • Iowa State University, Department of Earth, Atmosphere, and Climate, 2026
  • Cornell University, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, 2025
  • Colorado State University, Department of Atmospheric Science, 2025
  • NCAR Mesoscale and Microscale Meteorology Laboratory, 2025
  • Yale AI for Natural Carbon Capture Workshop, 2025
  • U.S. Department of Energy Environmental System Science PI Meeting, 2025
  • National University of Singapore, 2025
  • California Institute of Technology, 2024
  • Yale University, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, 2024
  • NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Carbon Club Seminar, 2023
  • Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 2023
  • Seoul National University, 2023
  • Yonsei University, 2023
Show additional presentations
- American Geophysical Union Fall Meetings, multiple years - NOAA Global Monitoring Annual Conference, multiple years - Woodwell Climate Research Center Methane Workshop - Spark Climate Solutions Brown Bag Seminar - NOAA Artificial Intelligence Working Group - NOAA–NASA Joint Polar Satellite System Seminar - DOE Artificial Intelligence for Methane Workshop - University of Illinois Chicago - WMO–BIPM Workshop on Metrology for Climate Action - University of Copenhagen Center for Permafrost - Korea Polar Research Institute - South University of Science and Technology

Technical Expertise

Modeling

  • CarbonTracker-CH₄ atmospheric data assimilation system
  • TM5 atmospheric chemistry and transport model
  • Terrestrial Ecosystem Model
  • Process-based methane biogeochemistry models
  • CESM, ORCHIDEE, and LPJ-family Earth system models
  • Atmospheric inverse modeling
  • Stable-isotope modeling
  • Knowledge-guided machine learning

Programming and Data Analysis

  • MATLAB
  • Python
  • Fortran
  • IDL
  • C and C++
  • LaTeX

Laboratory

  • Gas chromatography
  • Isotope ratio mass spectrometry
  • Elemental analyzer–isotope ratio mass spectrometry

Languages

  • Korean — fluent
  • English — fluent
  • Chinese — beginner
  • Japanese — beginner