For my research, I study the transport and exchange of water masses over the continental shelf. The shelf is the interface between the fresh riverine water inshore and the salty open ocean water offshore. It is present on all the continents with diverse shapes and structures. Some shelves are narrow and deep while others are wide and shallow, such those on the East Coast of the United States. The different water masses form a dynamic interface on the continental shelf, whose circulation and hydrographic structure is affected by the underwater topography, the changing atmospheric and oceanic conditions such as wind, stratification, and ocean rings/eddies. These forcing mechanisms and their interaction with each other are part of the physical drivers of the shelf ecosystem.
A key part of my study is to better understand the physical dynamics of along-shelf and cross-shelf transport over the Middle-Atlantic Bight region using data from the Coastal Ocean Observation Lab (RUCOOL) and numerical models. Eventually I plan to apply my knowledge to study other shelf systems in the world such as the polar region where rapid climate change is taking place.

While I study hard and I play even harder. I enjoy activities such as Kung Fu, photography, sailing, freediving, hiking and cooking. I practice Shaolin Kung Fu with Sifu Lawrence Hill. Sailing is my passion and I plan to sail through the Northwest Passage in 2013 and hope to circumnavigate the world one day. The ocean is vast, beautiful, and giving but it is also fragile.  I hope to leave it a better place than when I found it. To find out more about me and my research, please visit http://freezingmariner.com/ or email me :