Elisabeth Sikes, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Marine and Coasts Sciences, was elected as an AGU Fellow, joining a select group of 54 individuals in the 2024 Class of Fellows. AGU, the world’s largest Earth and space science association, bestows this honor annually to a select number of individuals who have made exceptional contributions. Since its inception in 1962, less than 0.1% of AGU members have been selected as Fellows each year.
AGU Fellows are recognized for their scientific eminence, demonstrated through breakthroughs, discoveries or innovations that advance the Earth and space sciences. Fellows act as external experts, advising government agencies and other organizations outside the sciences upon request. Sikes was selected for her exemplary leadership and outstanding scientific achievements, which have been innovative on multiple fronts, most notably for past sea surface temperature estimations, identifying glacial deep ocean CO2 sequestration in the Southern Ocean, and clarifying the relationship between the changes in Southern Ocean circulation and atmospheric CO2 levels during ice ages.
Liz Sikes on board the RV Thomas Thompson in 2018 during the CROCCA-2s voyage to the Southern Indian Ocean. Ile Amsterdam, in the background, is one of the most remote islands in the Southern Ocean.
“Receiving this award means to me that that not only have we made scientific progress in climate research, but we have also made progress in our outlook. We have come a long way since my graduate school days when my chemist roomies would jokingly tease me that no one cared about climate or climate change that happened more than 100 years ago,” said Sikes.
For more than two decades, Sikes has been studying the influence of the Southern Ocean on atmospheric CO2 and the interconnection between global carbon cycling, ocean circulation and climate change in an effort to determine its role in the global carbon cycle. The Southern Ocean is one of the most important locations for the exchange of CO2 between the atmosphere and ocean. She has been on 16 oceanographic voyages, seven in the Southern Ocean and 3 as chief scientist. She received the AGU Emiliani Lecture in 2020 and the SCAR Medal for Excellence in Antarctic Research in 2022.
Honorees will be recognized at AGU24, which will convene more than 25,000 attendees from over 100 countries in Washington, D.C. and online everywhere on 9-13 December 2024. Reflecting the theme ‘What’s Next for Science’ at AGU24, the Honors Reception will recognize groundbreaking achievements that illustrate science’s continual advancement, inspiring the AGU community with their stories and successes.
