Dr. Emma Menio joins the Office of Polar Program's Arctic sciences section as a science analyst

Dr. Emma Menio is joining OPP from the University of Arkansas, where she received her Ph.D. in Geosciences, and from Dartmouth College, where she received her B.A. in earth sciences. While collaborating with the University of Arkansas’ Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies, Menio researched the development of historic elevation models over Canada’s Mackenzie Delta region. She generated rigorous photogrammetric elevation models from archival aerial imagery to constrain volumetric change over time along the Richardson Mountains alluvial fan complex. Through her research, Menio aims to understand the aptitude of our elevation data products at high latitudes and how data quality impacts scientific conclusions.

Menio brings a large variety of experiences to NSF. She has previously served as an engineering for polar operations, logistics, and research GIS intern for the USACE Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory. In this role, Menio worked with the University of Minnesota’s Polar Geospatial Center to provide remote sensing support for the Greenland Inland Traverse, and she assisted in the installation of the Summit Station Mobile Garage. In addition, Menio’s studies at the University Centre in Svalbard, Norway, and at the Summer Institute for Earth Surface Dynamics at St. Anthony Falls Laboratory, MN, provided specialized field and modeling expertise of permafrost and periglacial environments in Arctic and alpine landscapes. Most recently, as a field technician for the University of Arkansas’ Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies, Menio designed, coordinated, and piloted UAS lidar data collection missions in the remote American Southwest, producing high-quality elevation products for academic partners.