People

Current Graduate Students

Kumar Bajagain (Ph.D Student, Fall 2025 -)

I got my B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Physics from Tribhuvan University, Nepal, where my research focused on designing lightweight, low-cost meteorological sensors. Now I am pursuing a Ph.D. degree in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences at Purdue University, supervised by Prof. Qianlai Zhuang. My research focuses on quantifying thermokarst and permafrost degradation and their impacts on water and carbon feedback to the climate system using Earth system modeling.

Chenfan Li (Ph.D Student, Fall 2024 -)

Email: li5334@purdue.edu

I obtained my BS degrees from Anhui Agricultural University and Colorado State University in Environmental Science and in Ecological Science and Sustainability, respectively. I then did a MS degree study in Environmental Science and Policy at Johns Hopkins University. Afterwards, I interned with Farmlink Project and Nanjing University in the areas of material cycle studies. My research interests were primarily in the life and cycle of material or elements. My current research focuses on quantifying Arctic and global carbon cycling with biogeochemical models.

Shuo Chen (Ph.D. student, Fall 2022 - )

Email: chen4371@purdue.edu

I obtained my Bachelor’s degree from Guangzhou University in Geographical Information Science and my Master’s degree from Beijing Normal University in Safety Science and Engineering. Currently, I am working towards a Ph.D. degree in the Department of Earth, Atmosphere and Planetary Science at Purdue University, supervised by Dr. Zhuang. I am interested in earth system modeling focusing on model-data fusion studies using ecosystem and biogeochemistry models, in situ and satellite data, and machine learning techniques.

Xuan Xi (PhD, Fall 2020 - )

E-mail: xi32@purdue.edu

I received my Bachelor's Degree of Engineering from Northeastern University in Communication Engineering. Then I received my M.S. degree from Columbia University in Earth and Environmental Engineering, where my research focused on the variability of surface soil moisture and its relationship with evapotranspiration and precipitation. Now I am working towards a Ph.D. degree in the EAPS department at Purdue University. My advisor is Prof. Qianlai Zhuang. My research interests are in quantifying complex hydrological, permafrost and carbon dynamics in the Arctic.