Judi Ford has departed Climate & Space for sunny Florida. Judi, who helped administer grants and contracts for the department, has been with CLaSP since 2013, and the U-M since 2002. Judi tells us her husband’s retirement and “…and a desire to always be warm!” is what’s pulling them southward. She’s also looking forward to “not being cooped up during the winter” and taking full advantage of all that Fort Myers has to offer.

Have fun in your next chapter, Judi!

This past summer, assistant research scientist Dr. Dan Welling accepted an assistant professor position in the Physics Department at the University of Texas at Arlington.

Dr. Welling is a Michigan native who grew up just south of Ann Arbor. He received his bachelor's degree in physics from Northern Michigan University, and his PhD in atmospheric and space sciences from the University of Michigan.

“I first found my way to CLaSP via a summer research internship with Dr. Bob Clauer,” he says. “After a postdoc stint at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Prof. Mike Liemohn pulled me back to Climate & Space to join his research team.” While here at CLaSP, Dr. Welling's research focused on the Earth's magnetosphere, which he plans to continue at his new position.

“I will teach physics (including plasma physics), scientific programming, and plan to build a research team of undergraduates, grad students, and others to continue to learn and explore the magnetosphere.”

We're happy to know that Dr. Welling will remain one of Michigan's leaders and best wherever he is.

Best of luck, Dan!