Department of Atmospheric Science

Current Interns

Meet our 2023 Interns!

Douglas Falter

Hometown: Attica, Ohio

University: Iowa State University

Major: Meteorology

Year in School [Fall 2023]: Junior

Research interests: Atmospheric Dynamics, Cloud Physics, & Machine Learning

Hobbies: Weightlifting, hiking, listening to music, & eating food!

What are you most looking forward to this summer?: Getting to experience a formal research process while learning more about atmospheric science! I am also looking forward to experiencing north-central Colorado’s interesting climate!

Mitchell Green

Hometown: Manistique, Michigan

University: Central Michigan University

Major: Meteorology

Year in School [Fall 2023]: Senior

Research interests: Land-air interactions, precipitation processes, boundary layer dynamics

Hobbies: Golfing, fishing, exploring new places, or anything that allows me to spend time outdoors!

What are you most looking forward to this summer?: I’m most looking forward to making connections with the other interns, exploring the greater Fort Collins area, and expanding my knowledge of atmospheric science!

Bailey Kropp

Hometown: Plano, TX

University: Texas A&M University

Major: Meteorology

Year in School [Fall 2023]: Senior

Research interests: Cloud Dynamics, Mesosphere Meteorology, Lightning Dynamics,  Instrumentation

Hobbies: I enjoy skateboarding, hiking, and listening to live music anywhere I can!

What are you most looking forward to this summer?: It’s hard to pick just one thing, but I would say learning under a mentor and really diving into my research topic, just learning something new in a beautiful place! 

James Miezejeski

Hometown: Kiowa, CO

University: University of Northern Colorado

Major: Meteorology

Year in School [Fall 2023]: Senior

Research interests: Wildfire forecasting, bomb cyclogenesis, extreme orographic precipitation events, and severe weather outbreaks.

Hobbies: Hiking, storm chasing, going to concerts, and hanging out with friends

What are you most looking forward to this summer?: Being from Colorado, I am excited to get to explore Fort Collins more and get a sense of what CSU has to offer.

Debanjali Pathak

Hometown: Kolkata, India

University: Grinnell College

Major: Physics (Concentration – Environmental Studies)

Year in School [Fall 2023]: Junior

Research interests: Climate Science, wind and ocean circulation systems, seismology and earthquakes 

Hobbies: reading mythological and historical fiction, listening to music, cooking, watching cricket

What are you most looking forward to this summer?: I am looking forward to my first ever research experience outside my college, meeting new people and exploring Colorado with them. Most importantly, I look forward to realizing my own love for a research-career in the field of earth science! 

Juliette Rocha

Hometown: McKinney, Texas

University: Texas A&M University

Major: Meteorology

Year in School [Fall 2023]: Junior

Research interests: Mesoscale Meteorology, Numerical Weather Prediction, Data Assimilation, and Machine Learning

Hobbies: Baking, volunteer work, collecting vinyl records, exploring Python, and taking weather observations.

What are you most looking forward to this summer?:  I am so excited to dive into professional research for the first time and meet incredible peers that share similar passions!

REU Calendar

Explore Fort Collins

Transfort

Public Transportation.  Fort Collins operates a city bus system called Transfort that includes the frequently-running north-south Max Line.  You can also look into short-term e-scooter rentals

Bikes

Human-powered Transportation.  Fort Collins is a bike-friendly city, with an extensive network of dedicated bike lanes and bike paths.

FoodTruckRally

Food Truck Rallies happen every Tuesday in City Park and feature some of the best food in Fort Collins!

Music

Free Live Music.  Fort Collins is home to a vibrant summer live music scene.  Like so much else, this part of our community was shut down during 2020, but elements of it are slowly returning.  Keep an eye on the website to see how things unfold in 2021.

Downtown

Old Town.  Also known as Downtown, Old Town is the heart of Fort Collins.  This is where the urban fun is.

Horsetooth

The Great Outdoors.  This may be one of the main reasons you applied for the CSU REU program, and we want you to enjoy it!  We’ve got everything from a citywide network of recreational trails, City-owned Natural Areas, County Parks (including local favorite Horsetooth Mountain Open Space), State Parks (including nearby Lory State Park), Rocky Mountain National Park, and more all within easy reach of your summer home.  You might learn as much about yourself while exploring a trail as you will while exploring your science.