Priyanka Yadav
(Assistant Research Scientist)
| Email: | priyanka.yadav@nasa.gov |
| Org Code: | |
| Address: |
NASA/GSFC Mail Code 610.1 Greenbelt, MD 20771 |
| Employer: | UNIV OF MARYLAND COLLEGE PARK |
Brief Bio
Priyanka Yadav is an Assistant Research Scientist jointly affiliated with the University of Maryland Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center (ESSIC) and the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO) at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
Her research focuses on developing metrics for seamless prediction and predictability across weather to subseasonal timescales using the NASA GMAO GEOS-S2S-3 system model forecasts. She works at the intersection of observational data, climate models, and advanced statistical techniques to improve the predictability of atmospheric circulation on subseasonal-to-seasonal (S2S) timescales.
Priyanka's scientific contributions span a broad range of research areas, including S2S teleconnections via tropospheric and stratospheric pathways, the North American and South Asian monsoons and their links to the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD), air pollutant dispersion modeling, and stratospheric ozone depletion.
Research Interests
Predictability and prediction across weather-to-subseasonal-to-seasonal timescales.
Earth Science: AnalysisTropical Variability and Teleconnections on S2S timescales.
Earth Science: Atmospheric DynamicsTropical modes of variability, including the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO), Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD), and El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), exert a significant influence on global weather patterns across a range of timescales through tropospheric and stratospheric teleconnection pathways. These tropical drivers serve as key sources of subseasonal predictability for mid-latitude large-scale circulation patterns, including the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and the Pacific-North American (PNA) pattern, as well as persistent blocking events such as Scandinavian Blocking, the Atlantic Ridge, and Pacific Blocking. Understanding these remote influences is central to improving subseasonal-to-seasonal (S2S) forecast skill for high-impact weather events across the mid-latitudes.
Stratospheric Influences on High-Impact Winter Weather
Earth Science: Atmospheric DynamicsExtreme winter weather events, such as cold air outbreaks and severe snowstorms, can have profound socioeconomic impacts on communities across the mid-latitudes. My interest lies in understanding how sudden stratospheric warming (SSW) events, polar vortex disruptions, and large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns drive high-impact events. By investigating the dynamical pathways linking stratospheric variability to surface weather, I aim to enhance the prediction skill and predictability of extreme winter weather on subseasonal-to-seasonal (S2S) timescales, contributing to improved early warning systems and better-informed decision-making.
Current Projects
Seamless Prediction and Predictability across weather-to-subseasonal-to-seasonal timescales.
Positions/Employment
Assistant Research Scientist
University of Maryland (ESSIC) - Maryland
2023 - Present
Postdoctoral Research Scientist
ETH Zurich - Switzerland
2021 - 2023
Projects:
- The role of the stratosphere in teleconnections arising from fast and slow MJO episodes.
- Understanding intrinsic predictability in the mid-latitude response due to the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) heating variability using ECMWF reforecasts (stochastic heating experiments).
- Stratospheric variability due to the MJO teleconnections in S2S forecast models.
- Southern Hemisphere extremes events in 2022.
- The role of the Indian Ocean in temperature extremes.
Postdoctoral Research Scientist
University of Delaware - DE, USA
2018 - 2020
Projects:
- Variability of the North American monsoon onset and intensity due to the MJO.
- Evaluation of the onset and extremes in the North American monsoon using CMIP5 and CORDEX datasets.
Research Assistant
George Mason University - VA, USA
2012 - 2018
Project: Predictability of the North Atlantic Oscillation on Intraseasonal Timescales.
Project Associate
IISc - India
2010 - 2010
Project: Interannual variation of the South Asian monsoon over the Indian subcontinent.
Project Assistant
IISc - India
2008 - 2008
Project: Prediction of the South Asian Monsoon.
Project Assistant
Indian Meteorological Department - India
2006 - 2007
Project: Seasonal prediction of the Indian monsoon.
Teaching Experience
Teaching Assistant, 2017, Introduction to the Fundamentals of Atmospheric Sciences, George Mason University.
Education
Ph.D., George Mason University, Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic & Earth Sciences, USA
Dissertation: The character of the mid-latitude response to the fast and slow cycles of the Madden-Julian Oscillation heating.
M.Tech., Atmospheric Sciences, University of Pune, India
Thesis: Effects of meteorological inputs on air pollutant dispersion modeling over Pune City using AERMOD model.
M.Sc., Space Sciences, University of Pune, India
Thesis: Satellite Data Analysis of Stratospheric Ozone using TOMS data
B.Sc., Electronics, India
Professional Societies
American Meteorological Society
2018 - Present
American Geophysical Union
2019 - Present
Professional Service
AMS Early Career Leadership Academy Planning Committee (2024-2005)
Young Earth System Scientists Community (YESS) Executive Board Member (April 2021 - March 2022)
Other Professional Information
Publications
Refereed
2025. "Extreme weather in the Southern Hemisphere in early 2022.", Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, [10.1175/bams-d-23-0141.1] [Journal Article/Letter]
2024. "The Role of the Stratosphere in Teleconnections Arising From Fast and Slow MJO Episodes.", Geophysical Research Letters, 51 (1): [10.1029/2023gl104826] [Journal Article/Letter]
2023. "Intrinsic Predictability Limits arising from Indian Ocean MJO Heating: Effects on tropical and extratropical teleconnections.", Weather and Climate Dynamics, 4 1001-1018 [10.5194/wcd-4-1001-2023] [Journal Article/Letter]
2022. "The Winter North Pacific Teleconnection in Response to ENSO and the MJO in Operational Subseasonal Forecasting Models Is Too Weak.", Journal of Climate, 35 (24): 8013-8030 [10.1175/jcli-d-22-0179.1] [Journal Article/Letter]
2022. "Stationary wave biases and their effect on upward troposphere– stratosphere coupling in sub-seasonal prediction models.", Weather and Climate Dynamics, 3 (2): 679-692 [10.5194/wcd-3-679-2022] [Journal Article/Letter]
2022. "Advances in the prediction of MJO-Teleconnections in the S2S forecast systems.", Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 103 (6): E1426-E1447 [https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-21-0130.1] [Journal Article/Letter]
2019. "The Euro-Atlantic Circulation Response to the Madden-Julian Oscillation Cycle of Tropical Heating: Coupled GCM Intervention Experiments.", Atmosphere-Ocean, 57 (3): 161-181 [10.1080/07055900.2019.1626214] [Journal Article/Letter]
2018. "Systematic Errors in Weather and Climate Models: Nature, Origins, and Ways Forward.", Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 99 (4): ES67-ES70 [10.1175/bams-d-17-0287.1] [Journal Article/Letter]
2017. "Circulation Response to Fast and Slow MJO Episodes.", Monthly Weather Review, 145 (5): 1577-1596 [10.1175/mwr-d-16-0352.1] [Journal Article/Letter]