PhD students on Edu4Climate project – Nikos Gialesakis

Student name: Nikos Gialesakis

Short bio: Nikos Gialesakis graduated from the University of Crete, Department of Chemistry where he also obtained his master’s. He conducted his research thesis “Interannual and seasonal variability of greenhouse gases at Finokalia station in the Eastern Mediterranean” at the Environmental Chemical Processes Laboratory. Since then, he has been part of a joint PhD between the University of Crete and the University of Bremen.

PhD year of study: 2^nd year

PhD supervision: Professor Maria Kanakidou (University of Crete) and Professor Mihalis Vrekoussis (University of Bremen).

PhD institution: University of Crete, Department of Chemistry, Environmental Chemical Processes Laboratory (ECPL) and University of Bremen, Institute of Environmental Physics, Laboratory for Modeling and Observation of the Earth System (LAMOS)

Thesis title and description: “Study of the sources of greenhouse gases in the east Mediterranean using a 3D data assimilation system”

The aim of our study is to optimize the bottom-up anthropogenic emission estimations of greenhouse gases over Greece. We provide the estimated emissions to an atmospheric model (WRF-CHEM-GHG) which are being optimized by assimilating in-situ and satellite observation, using a data assimilation system (CTDAS). The coupled system compares the simulated results with observation data and tries to minimize their differences by optimizing the anthropogenic emissions, resulting in more accurate emissions.

Relevance of Edu4Climate to your project: Greece is part of the EMME which is identified as a critical area impacted by climate change. By providing more accurate emission estimates we can better understand the impact of human activities on the region and develop effective strategies to mitigate their effects and to achieve the Paris agreement objectives, which align with the Edu4Climate objective to address climate change and air pollution related challenges in the region.