Written by: Daniel Self

This past spring, I had the pleasure of being selected for the GeoPaths Internship program at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. I was matched with mentors Rachel Clemesha and Kristen Guirguis at the Southern California Heat Hub for a research project that culminated in a scientific poster presentation at the Mesa College Research Conference. This was my first research experience, and I was eager to be involved with a project of any kind and get real-world experience with the scientific process.

Being mentored by Rachel and Kristen was a wonderful experience, and they provided me with an excellent introduction to the world of climate science. They showed me their research as well as the current research being conducted at the SoCal Heat Hub. Rachel and Kristen, along with help from graduate student Alexander Weyant, helped me learn the tools necessary to do this kind of work. This involved learning a new programming language, something I was excited for, being a computer engineering major.

I began my research by looking at weather station data from the Southern California region with the goal of analyzing heat waves. We wanted to see the various ways heat waves are related to weather patterns and public health. The categorization of weather patterns, or regimes, is something that Kristen is currently working on. I found that a substantial amount of heat waves occur during a specific weather regime – Weather Regime 5 (WR5), and that a significant public health risk may be exacerbated under these conditions. I also did a case study of a 2022 heat wave that occurred during WR5, in which a substantial amount of adverse public health events occurred.

I compiled my work into a poster, titled “Learning From San Diego Heat Waves And Changing Weather Patterns For Improved Climate Change Resilience.” This was a highlight of my internship. It was very rewarding to see my work put together in a tangible form. I also enjoyed participating in the poster conference at Mesa College and was even selected for two awards, 2nd Place Poster as well as the Special Recognition in Climate Change.

The experience of participating in the GeoPaths program was transformative. Under the mentorship of Rachel and Kristen and collaboration with Alexander, I developed a deeper understanding of the critical role that applied science plays in tackling climate change. This program refined my technical and analytical capabilities and reinforced my confidence in myself. I am inspired by the people I worked with, and I am sure now that I want to continue to incorporate geoscience into my future.

Daniel shows off plaques for the two awards he won alongside Mesa College Vice President of Instruction, Dr. Isabel O’Connor.

Header image: Daniel and Kristen pose in front of Daniel’s poster at the Mesa College Research Conference.