Chia-Ying Lee, Ph.D.

Chia-Ying Lee is an Associate Research Professor at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University.

She studies tropical cyclones and climate. Lee received her B.S. and M.S. in Atmospheric Science from National Taiwan University and my Ph.D. from the Meteorology and Physical Oceanography division of the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science (RSMAS) at the University of Miami. Her current research focuses on three distinct but interconnected themes: subseasonal to seasonal (S2S) tropical cyclone prediction, the impacts of climate change on regional tropical cyclone activity, and tropical cyclone risk. Across all of these themes, Lee aims to improve our understanding of the physical processes driving tropical cyclones, including both their internal dynamics and the ways in which climate influences them. She applies this physical understanding to the development, evaluation, and use of predictive models. Lee collaborates with experts from a wide range of disciplines—including communications, economics, civil engineering, and public health—to bridge the gap between physical science research and real-world applications. Her work contributes to disaster risk reduction, climate adaptation, and emergency management, maximizing its benefit to society. Beyond tropical cyclones, she has been leading discussions on climate-informed risk assessment at AGU since 2022. In 2021, Lee was awarded the Natural Hazards Early Career Award from the American Geophysical Union. Since 2022, she has been a recipient of the Palisades Geophysical Institute (PGI) Young Scientist award.