Yu-Wen Chen

Yu-Wen Chen

PhD Candidate  ·  Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences  ·  University of Colorado Boulder

I am a PhD candidate working with Prof. K. Sebastian Schmidt in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder. My research centers on 3D radiative transfer and its applications to satellite remote sensing of greenhouse gases and cloud–surface interactions. I co-developed the Education and Research 3D Radiative Transfer Toolbox (EaR3T) to mitigate cloud-induced biases in CO₂ retrievals from NASA's OCO-2 satellite. I also conduct airborne observations in the Arctic to study how clouds modulate sea ice energy balance. I am a recipient of the NASA FINESST award.

PhD (in progress)  ·  Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences University of Colorado Boulder  ·  2021 – present
M.S.  ·  Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences University of Colorado Boulder  ·  2021 – 2023
M.S.  ·  Chemistry National Taiwan University  ·  2016 – 2018
B.S.  ·  Chemistry (Minor: Atmospheric Science) National Taiwan University  ·  2013 – 2016

Research

☁

3D Radiative Transfer Modeling

Co-developing the Education and Research 3D Radiative Transfer Toolbox (EaR3T) to simulate how three-dimensional cloud fields scatter and absorb solar radiation, enabling physically realistic modeling of the radiation environment observed by satellites.

🌎

Satellite CO₂ Bias Correction

Applying 3D radiative transfer calculations to mitigate cloud-induced biases in CO₂ retrievals from NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2), improving the accuracy of global carbon cycle monitoring from space.

❄

Arctic Cloud–Surface Interactions

Investigating how clouds regulate the radiative energy balance over Arctic sea ice using airborne observations from the ARCSIX campaign. Cloud-induced surface warming may be systematically underestimated by passive satellite-derived products.

🌍

Atmospheric Chemistry & Air Quality

Applying supervised machine learning to identify key drivers of ground-level ozone formation in Taiwan, and conducting aircraft–ground intercomparisons of aerosols and pollutants near major pollution sources.

Publications

Published
  1. Mitigation of satellite OCO-2 CO₂ biases in the vicinity of clouds with 3D calculations using the Education and Research 3D Radiative Transfer Toolbox (EaR3T)
    Yu-Wen Chen, K. Sebastian Schmidt, Hong Chen, Steven T. Massie, Susan S. Kulawik, and Hironobu Iwabuchi
    Atmospheric Measurement Techniques, 18, 1859–1884 (2025) DOI →
  2. Investigating variable importance in ground-level ozone formation with supervised learning
    Yu-Wen Chen, Sourav Medya, Yi-Chun Chen
    Atmospheric Environment, 119148 (2022)
  3. The Roles of Local Circulation and Boundary Layer Development in Tracer Transport over Complex Topography in Central Taiwan
    Min-Ken Hsieh, Yu-Wen Chen, Yi-Chun Chen, Chien-Ming Wu
    Journal of the Meteorological Society of Japan, 100, 555–573 (2022)
  4. Quantification of glucose via in situ growth of Cu₂O/Ag nanoparticles
    Yu-Wen Chen, Arun P. Periasamy, Huan-Tsung Chang, Chien-Fu Chen
    Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 285, 224–231 (2019) DOI →
  5. Porous aluminum electrodes with 3D channels and zig-zag edges for efficient hydrogen evolution
    Arun P. Periasamy, Pavithra Sriram, Yu-Wen Chen, Chien-Wei Wu, Ta-Jen Yen, Huan-Tsung Chang
    Chemical Communications, 55, 5447–5450 (2019) DOI →
  6. Smart app-based on-field colorimetric quantification of mercury via analyte-induced enhancement of the photocatalytic activity of TiO₂–Au nanospheres
    Rini Ravindranath, Arun P. Periasamy, Prathik Roy, Yu-Wen Chen, Huan-Tsung Chang
    Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, 410, 4555–4564 (2018) DOI →
  7. Fe₂O₃/Al₂O₃ microboxes for efficient removal of heavy metal ions
    Rini Ravindranath, Prathik Roy, Arun P. Periasamy, Yu-Wen Chen, Chi-Te Liang, Huan-Tsung Chang
    New Journal of Chemistry, 41, 7751–7757 (2017) DOI →
In Review
  1. The Arctic Radiation-Cloud-Aerosol-Surface Interaction Experiment (ARCSIX) airborne campaign dataset
    Patrick C. Taylor, Armin Sooroshian, Rei Ueyama, Sebastian Schmidt, … Yu-Wen Chen, … and Paquita Zuidema
    Earth System Science Data Discussions (2026)
  2. Bias in satellite-derived cloud radiative effect over Arctic sea ice relative to aircraft measurements during ARCSIX
    Sebastian Becker, Konrad Sebastian Schmidt, Hong Chen, Yu-Wen Chen, Kerry G. Meyer, Colten A. Peterson, and Manfred Wendisch
    Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Discussions (2026)
In Preparation
  1. High Arctic Sea Ice Albedo Shifts Cloud Radiative Effect Toward Surface Warming
    Yu-Wen Chen, Ken Hirata, Hong Chen, Vikas Nataraja, and K. Sebastian Schmidt
    Geophysical Research Letters (2026)

Presentations

Oral Presentations  (* presenting author)
  1. Introduction and Demonstration of the Education and Research 3D Radiative Transfer Toolbox (EaR3T)
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Hong Chen, Ken Hirata, and Vikas Nataraja  ·  Netherlands Institute for Space Research (SRON), Leiden, Netherlands  ·  May 2026
  2. Mitigation of Cloud-induced Biases in CO₂ Remote Sensing
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Hong Chen, and Steven T. Massie  ·  SRON, Leiden, Netherlands  ·  May 2026
  3. Spring- and Summertime Airborne Observations in the Arctic Suggest Prolonged Cloud-Induced Surface Melt
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Hong Chen, Ken Hirata, and Vikas Nataraja  ·  University of Colorado Boulder, CO, US  ·  April 2026
  4. Correcting Cloud-induced Biases in CO₂ Remote Sensing
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Hong Chen, and Steven T. Massie  ·  National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan  ·  January 2026
  5. The Impact of Polarization on OCO-2 Bias Mitigation in the Vicinity of Clouds
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Steven T. Massie, and Susan S. Kulawik  ·  4th Advancement of POLarimetric Observations (APOLO), Kyoto, Japan  ·  November 2024
  6. Satellite 3D Radiance Simulator for the OCO-2 Mission and its Application to the Mitigation of Spectroscopy Retrieval Biases in the Vicinity of Clouds
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Steven T. Massie, and Susan S. Kulawik  ·  International Radiation Symposium 2022, Thessaloniki, Greece  ·  July 2022
  7. Investigating Ground-level Ozone Formation: A Case Study in Taiwan
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sourav Medya, and Yi-Chun Chen  ·  AIMOCC 2021 Workshop at ICLR 2021, virtual  ·  May 2021
  8. Quantitation of glucose through its manipulation of the growth of Cu₂O/Ag nanoparticles
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Arun P. Periasamy, and Huan-Tsung Chang  ·  Analytical Chemistry Technology Conference, Keelung, Taiwan  ·  May 2018
Poster Presentations  (* presenting author)
  1. The Impact of 3D Cloud Radiative Effect on Trace Gas Retrievals: Bridging the Gap from Low Earth Orbit to Geostationary Missions
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Hong Chen, and Steven T. Massie  ·  EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria  ·  May 2026
  2. Cloud-Induced Warming of Spring and Summer Arctic Sea Ice is Likely Underestimated by Passive Satellite Imagery Derived Products
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Hong Chen, Ken Hirata, Vikas Nataraja, and Sebastian Becker  ·  Radiation and Climate Gordon Research Conference 2025, Lewiston, ME, US  ·  July 2025
  3. The Impact of Polarization on OCO-2 Bias Mitigation in the Vicinity of Clouds
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Steven T. Massie, and Susan S. Kulawik  ·  4th APOLO, Kyoto, Japan  ·  November 2024
  4. Mitigation of OCO-2 CO₂ Biases in the Vicinity of Cloud
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Steven T. Massie, and Susan S. Kulawik  ·  20th International Workshop on Greenhouse Gas Measurements from Space, Boulder, CO, US  ·  May 2024
  5. Mitigating the Impact of Three-Dimensional Cloud Effects on CO₂ Retrievals for Various Surface and Cloud Types Using a 3D Radiance Simulator
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Steven T. Massie, and Susan S. Kulawik  ·  AGU Fall Meeting 2023, San Francisco, CA, US  ·  December 2023
  6. Mitigation of Satellite OCO-2 CO₂ Biases in the Vicinity of Clouds with 3D Calculations
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Steven T. Massie, and Susan S. Kulawik  ·  OCO-2/3 Science Team Meeting, Boulder, CO, US  ·  October 2023
  7. The Impact of Clouds on the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 Satellite Trace Gas Retrievals
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Steven T. Massie, and Susan S. Kulawik  ·  Workshop Lille on recent advancements in remote sensing and modeling of aerosols, clouds and surfaces, Lille, France  ·  May 2023
  8. Mitigation of OCO-2 Spectroscopy Retrieval Biases in the Vicinity of Clouds
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Sebastian Schmidt, Steven T. Massie, and Susan S. Kulawik  ·  OCO-2/3 Science Team Meeting, Boulder, CO, US  ·  October 2022
  9. Intercomparison of aircraft and ground based measurements of pollutants and aerosols near major pollution sources over Taiwan
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Yi-Chun Chen, Charles C.-K. Chou, Lisa Eirenschmalz, Hans Schlager, Helmut Ziereis, Katharina Kaiser, Stephan Borrmann, Johannes Schneider, John P. Burrows, and Pao-Kuan Wang  ·  18th Asian Chemical Congress, Taipei, Taiwan  ·  December 2018
  10. Quantitation of Glucose through its Manipulation of the growth of Cu₂O/Ag Nanoparticles
    Yu-Wen Chen*, Arun P. Periasamy, and Huan-Tsung Chang  ·  Graduate Student Poster Session, Dept. of Chemistry, NTU, Taipei, Taiwan  ·  June 2018

Teaching

Weather and the Atmosphere
Teaching Assistant
University of Colorado Boulder
Fall 2021
  • Assisted in general affairs for 350 undergraduate students
  • Led weekly lecture review and exam study guide
High School Student Research
Research Instructor
National Taiwan University
Sept. 2016 – July 2018
  • Instructed three high school students on fuel cell research; students received Advanced Honor in the Young Scientists Development Program
Analytical Chemistry Lecture
Teaching Assistant
National Taiwan University
Spring 2017
  • Assisted in general affairs for 160 undergraduate students
  • Led weekly lecture review and discussion for study groups
Analytical Chemistry Lab
Teaching Assistant
National Taiwan University
Fall 2016, Spring 2017
  • Led weekly experiment review and guided laboratory experiments

Honors & Awards

2024 NASA FINESST Award University of Colorado Boulder, CO
2024 Summer School for Inverse Modeling of Greenhouse Gases Colorado State University, CO
2023 Government Scholarship to Study Abroad Taiwan Ministry of Education
2023 NASA Workshop Lille Travel Support University of Oklahoma
2018 Best Popularity Award of Poster Graduate Student Poster Session, NTU, Taipei
2017 Teaching Excellence Award National Taiwan University, Taipei
2014 NTU–Kanagawa University Chemistry Workshop Kanagawa University, Japan