Postgraduate Research Scholarships

Dan is a first year PhD student at Victoria University of Wellington’s Antarctic Research Centre studying past grounding line migration of the Ross Ice Shelf to better inform future model projections of the sea level rise contribution of the Antarctic ice sheet. Originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (USA), Dan first became interested in past climates and glaciology as a geology student at Brown University and working as an intern at the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration’s Paleoclimatology division. Prior to arriving at Victoria University of Wellington, Dan received his master’s degree at the University of Michigan, completing a thesis on CO₂ thresholds for Paleozoic ice sheet initiation.

Jacob obtained his BSc in Earth Science at Massey University and his MSc in Geology at the University of Otago, where he held an AINSE Postgraduate Research Award. He is currently undertaking his PhD at the University of Otago. His research focuses on past Antarctic climate and ice sheet behavior. He uses glacial geology, geomorphology, cosmogenic-nuclide geochemistry and paleoecology to understand changes in ice volume, sea-level and climate through time. He has participated in four scientific expeditions to Antarctica and has been on two expeditions to the Auckland Islands. Jacob manages the environmental programmes at the Sir Peter Blake Trust. Through his research and work at the Sir Peter Blake Trust he is also passionate about science communication and outreach.

Holly graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Geography degree from the University of Otago in 2013. She is currently completing a Master of Science degree in Surveying, with a focus on Antarctic glaciology and remote sensing. Holly’s MSc project investigates how small-scale pinning points (grounded regions within ice shelves) regulate the flow of the eastern sector of the Ross Ice Shelf. A key research objective is to project how changes to pinning points will affect future ice shelf flow, including changes to ice flow velocity, mass flux and the position of the grounding line. Holly’s research will contribute valuable insight into a process that affects the stability of the Ross Ice Shelf.​

Lisa finished her bachelor’s degree in geology in 2014, and topped off her honours year in 2015 with a month in Antarctica investigating the seismic properties of ice in the McMurdo Ice Shelf. She is now working on her MSc at the University of Otago, observing on the mechanics of Antarctic ice flow in the laboratory. What interests her most is bridging the gap between the micro- and macro-scales, finding ways to relate microstructural processes to the long-term behavior of glaciers and ice shelves in order to better understand our changing environment.

Michael is studying geology at the University of Otago and last year, was invited to sail to the Southern Ocean with an oceanography research group from Stanford University. Michael is studying the layers of life (microscopic algae called diatoms) that died and settled into the sediment over the last million years. These diatoms hold chemical fingerprints of what the oceans were like at the time they died. The NZ Post Antarctic Scholarship means Michael will travel to the Antarctic continent to look at life growing underneath sea ice with Associate Professor Ken Ryan from Victoria University of Wellington. It’s a dream come true for this second year masters student who is passionate about algae

Florence studied a Bachelor of Science in Geography at University of Otago, including a year at Durham University in the UK. Her Doctoral research, based at Victoria University of Wellington’s Antarctic Research Centre, is looking at changes in sea ice and outlet glaciers in East Antarctica and how they’re linked to changes in long-term climate patterns.

Florence’s doctoral project uses pre-existing data sets – so she’s mainly sitting at her computer running calculations and models. But part of this scholarship award will involve her travelling to Antarctica to work in the field with NIWA scientist Natalie Robinson to study how sea ice in McMurdo Sound interacts with the upper ocean.

Sheng is studying how dust and gravel in glaciers influence their flow. This season, he’ll use sound waves to measure the ice structure and how it moves under different stress. The University of Otago PhD candidate “never thought he would be able to do Antarctic research”, but this year he will travel to Antarctica to collaborate with scientists at New Zealand’s Scott Base as well as from the Korean Antarctic Programme