Dr Helen Czerski
NERC Research Fellow
Institute of Sound and Vibration Research
University of Southampton, UK
h.czerski@soton.ac.uk
I'm
a physicist and oceanographer with a passion for science,
sport, books, creativity, hot chocolate and investigating
the interesting things in life. I currently work at
the Institute for Sound and Vibration
Research in Southampton.
I graduated from the University of Cambridge in 2001 with a
first in Natural Sciences (Physics), and again in 2006 with
a PhD in experimental explosives physics. During this time
I also worked at the University of Toronto in Canada and
Los Alamos National Laboratory in the USA. A continuing
fascination with the world of very fast small-scale
phenomena led me from explosives to the study of ocean
bubble formation. In October 2010, I returned to the UK
after nearly four years spent working in the USA at
the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San
Diego, and the Graduate School of Oceanography
in Rhode Island.
My research interests are the optics and acoustics of
ocean bubbles, the structure of the bubble plumes caused
by breaking waves, and the influence of oceanic bubbles
on the atmosphere. I'm very keen on public engagement on
scientific topics, and I'm always looking for new
opportunities to share my enthusiasm for
science.
Below is a high-speed
photography sequence of a bubble forming just beneath the
water surface after the impact of a raindrop. These
pictures were taken at the Scripps Institution of
Oceanography, in collaboration with Grant Deane and Dale
Stokes. The acoustical signal produced as the bubble formed
was also recorded, and analysis of these data is ongoing
with the assistance of James Wallis.
