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Kevin Boyd

Graduate Teaching Assistant

Biography

I studied Astrophysics in my time as an undergraduate, where I naturally gravitated towards the study of planetary sciences, with a special emphasis on planetary atmospheres. The diverse realizations of weather and climate on other planets as controlled by solar radiation, atmospheric composition, planetary mass, and more is truly fascinating! My interests were diverted to the Earth's atmosphere, where the same laws of physics apply, and a deep, robust understanding of dynamical processes is made possible by a suite of in-situ and remote observations. I was eager to apply the knowledge I gained in my undergraduate curriculum to understanding complex weather systems, and these interests eventually led me to join Dr. Zhuo Wang's research group in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences at UIUC, where we currently collaborate on a multi-staged research project on polar lows. 

Education

B.S. in Astrophysics, Ohio University, 2020

M.S. in Atmospheric Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2022

Awards and Honors

2019 Distinguished Professor Scholarship Recipient, Department of Physics and Astronomy at Ohio University

Courses Taught

TA - ATMS 140: Climate and Global Change, Fall 2021

TA - ATMS 314: Mesoscale Dynamics, Spring 2024

Recent Publications

Boyd, K., Wang, Z., & Walsh, J. E. (2022). A Genesis Potential Index for Polar Lows, Journal of Climate, 1-30https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-22-0100.1

Boyd, K., Wang, Z., Walsh, J., & Stoll, P. (2023). Subseasonal predictions of polar low activity using a hybrid statistical-dynamical approach. Geophysical Research Letters, 50, e2022GL102145. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL102145

Wang, Z., Boyd, K., & Walsh, J. E. (2023). Modulation of polar low activity by the Madden-Julian Oscillation. Geophysical Research Letters, 50, e2023GL103719. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GL103719

Boyd, K., & Wang, Z. (2024). Revisiting the Relationship between Polar Lows and Weather Regimes. Journal of Climate, In Press.