Armin Sorooshian earns research fellowship, AMS lecturer award

Armin Sorooshian, CHEE professor and University Distinguished Scholar, added two achievements to his running list of accolades: a lectureship award from the American Meteorological Society and a research fellowship with the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.

The longtime faculty member, named to the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s 2024 class of fellows, is recognized internationally for his research on air quality and the interactions between clouds and aerosol particles.

His studies focus on how aerosol particles – tiny solids or liquids suspended in the air – affect the environment, rainfall, climate and public health. His work combines ground-based observations with airborne measurements collected by aircraft and drones.

Spending a sabbatical in Japan

The Japan Society for the Promotion of Science awards fellowships to international researchers with proven achievements and an eagerness to collaborate with Japanese scientists.

“One thing that may have helped my application is my extensive experience with airborne research, which is an area the Japanese earth sciences research community seeks to get more involved with,” he said.  

He will partner with Makoto Koike, associate professor at the University of Tokyo, to study aerosol-cloud interactions and share expertise with students and faculty across Japan.

“I have tremendous respect for the scientific community in Japan,” Sorooshian said. “It excites me to immerse myself in that community, to learn from them, and to share some of my knowledge as well.”

This will not be Sorooshian’s first time in Japan. As a U of A chemical engineering student, he worked as a summer intern for Hitachi Chemical in Ibaraki.

“That was one of the best summers of my life,” he said. “I was fully immersed in Japanese culture and lifestyle, in addition to seeing many parts of the country.”

Nearly 25 years later, Sorooshian said he was ready to return for a sabbatical.

“This fellowship will allow me to spend several months in Japan, this time with my family, which is the part I am most excited about,” he said.

Continuing a legacy of lectureship 

The American Meteorological Society named Sorooshian the 2025 Walter Orr Roberts Lecturer in Interdisciplinary Sciences. The award honors mid-career scientists for significant contributions to atmospheric science through cross-disciplinary collaboration.

As an award recipient, Sorooshian will deliver a lecture at the AMS 106th Annual Meeting in Houston this January. He plans to reflect on two decades of field work, highlighting what he and his students learned about interactions between aerosol particles, clouds and meteorology.

“This award is extra special to me personally because my most important mentor, my dad, coincidentally received the same award from the AMS in 2009.”