DUNEX Student Spotlight: Ciara Dooley

Ciara Dooley is a PhD student in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology-Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (MIT-WHOI) Joint Program originally from San Diego, CA, but currently living in Falmouth, MA.?Studying Applied Ocean Science and Engineering through the Civil and Environmental Engineering department at MIT and Applied Ocean Physics and Engineering department at WHOI, she’d like to continue to do research after graduation.?Dooley said she is seeking a position in industry, government, or academia.?“My goal for my future career is to find myself in a role where I am continuously learning and surrounded by others passionate about ocean science,” she said.

Dooley heard about DUNEX in the Outerbanks of North Carolina from her research advisor, Dr. Britt Raubenheimer, and was “immediately interested in the collaborative nature of the experiment and the opportunity to explore field work”, she expounded.?Dooley was at DUNEX from early August through late October and was accompanied by her fellow graduate students from the PVLAB, Jinshi Chen, postdoc Drude Christensen, guest investigator Enrique Padilla, engineer, Levi Gorrell, and her research advisors, Britt Raubenheimer, and Steve Elgar of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

From left to right: Jinshi Chen, Britt Raubenheimer, Ciara Dooley, 
and Enrique Padilla, installing a pipe with pressure sensors into 
the beach through “jetting”, aka liquifying the sand with high 
pressure water, allowing the sensor pipe to be pushed deep into the ground.        

Even though this was her first field experiment, she was able to transfer her skills from her undergrad background in Mechanical Engineering to help install, troubleshoot, and maintain an assortment of sensors out in the field.?Another skillset she brings is her SCUBA certification and several dives under her belt that enabled her to clean and maintain acoustic doppler velocimeters (ADVs) and acoustic doppler current profilers (ADCPs) throughout the experiment.?“I learned so much about how to successfully gather data during DUNEX, and I know this knowledge is going to help me in my future research and prepare me for many future field experiments to come,” she elaborated.?

From left to right: Britt Raubenheimer, Steve Elgar, Ciara Dooley, 
and Jinshi Chen. Post SCUBA dive photo after cleaning and inspecting 
ADV and ADCP sensors in the water.        

When asked about her earlier influences and what got her interested in coastal science, she stated, “I first studied coastal science as an undergraduate at UC San Diego during an Environmental Fluid Mechanics course I was taking. I connected with the professor teaching, Dr Geno Pawlak, and became involved with research on coral reef roughness as an undergraduate in his lab group. As a senior, I then had a capstone design project working with Dr. Jules Jaffe at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography to design a bio-inspired autonomous underwater vehicle. Both these experiences showed me how much coastal science has to offer: meaningful projects, technically challenging problems, and still so much science left to be discovered. However, after graduating from UC San Diego, I turned away from coastal science and decided to pursue another interest and career at Northrop Grumman working on aircraft radios. After three years, I realized I missed having an environmental focus in my work as well as the constant learning required by research, so I applied to graduate school. I was able to join the PVLAB at WHOI, which has led me to DUNEX and the continuation of my career in coastal science.”

For those who are interested in coastal science, Dooley said to get involved. “Even if you think you don’t have the skills required, it doesn’t hurt to ask. Every scientist I know is so excited to share and talk about their work, just reach out. Any internship, research position, coursework, or seminar you can find will build your knowledge and skills, and help you map out your future. It doesn’t have to be a straight line – I spent several years working in an unrelated field before returning to my interest in coastal science,” she explained.

From left to right: Enrique Padilla, Jinshi Chen, Steve Elgar, 
and Ciara Dooley, loading up a gator with pressure sensors and 
tools to take to the beach for installation.        

Dooley also expressed that outreach to local communities is important to reach future generations by "informing generations about the challenges currently facing us.?As a kid, I was fortunate to have field trips and other opportunities to talk with scientists at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography, and those experiences planted seeds to a career in environmental science. Seeing engineers and scientists working on environmental problems gave me some great role models to aspire to.”

When not doing fieldwork, Dooley enjoys being outdoors whether it’s car camping, backpacking, day hiking, biking, swimming, or kayaking. When indoors, Dooley enjoys spending time with her cat, playing her guitar, and cooking. ?“Although I miss my family in sunny San Diego, I’ve been enjoying New England winter activities like cross-country skiing and snowboarding for the past two winters,” Dooley mused.

Lastly, she would like to acknowledge that she has an NDSEG Fellowship for funding support.