Arctic Oceanography, Sea Ice, Polar Bears & Internal Wave Dynamics | Dr. Kirstin "Kiki" Schulz

In this episode, I had the absolute pleasure of speaking with Dr. Kirstin "Kiki" Schulz. Dr. Schulz is a computational scientist and physical oceanographer at the Computational Research in Ice and Ocean Systems Group at the University of Texas at Austin. She holds her PhD in Physical Oceanography from the University of Rostock in Germany. During her PhD studies with PD Lars Umlauf at the Institute for Baltic Sea Research in Warnemuende, she investigated transport processes induced by tidal asymmetries in continental shelf regions. In this episode, Dr. Schulz and I discuss the ongoing climate change in the Arctic, and how that might affect oceanographic processes like large-scale mixing, temperature/salinity gradients, internal wave action, stratigraphic ocean layers, warm water input from the Gulf Stream, and more. We also had some fun banter about Polar Bears, what it's like doing Research in the Arctic Ocean, the cost of running an icebreaker (ship), and much more. Articles, Sources, and Further Reading: Greenland Lake Seminar: https://ig.utexas.edu/utig-seminar-series/2024/utig-seminar-series-melisa-diaz-the-ohio-state-university/ The Eurasian Arctic Ocean along the MOSAiC drift in 2019–2020: https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2023.00114 Thin and transient meltwater layers and false bottoms in the Arctic sea ice pack: https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2023.00025 Winter Vertical Diffusion Rates in the Arctic Ocean: https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JC019197 Along-Slope Heat Loss of the Boundary Current in the Eastern Arctic Ocean: https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JC016375 Turbulent Mixing and the Formation of an Intermediate Nepheloid Layer Above the Siberian Continental Shelf Break: https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GL092988 Dr. Schulz's Guest Lecture: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2ANdKB34MI Dr. Schulz: Academic Profile: https://oden.utexas.edu/people/directory/Kirstin-Schulz/ CV: https://www.unicornatsea.de/resources/General/CV_KirstinSchulz.pdf Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.at/citations?hl=en&user=LwMZ5D4AAAAJ Jason Bott and Heights of Humanity Podcast: Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.at/citations?hl=en&user=31Ae8UkAAAAJ X: https://x.com/JasonBott316244 https://www.instagram.com/heightsofhumanitypodcast/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-bott-a52944270/ https://www.tiktok.com/@heightsofhumanity Website: https://www.heightsofhumanitypodcast.com