Scholar Spotlight: Anner Paldor
“I use computer models to predict the hidden underground flow of water, especially in terms of how it interacts with rivers, lakes, and the ocean.”
Anner Paldor
Assistant Professor
Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences
My research seeks to elucidate the dynamics of groundwater interactions with surface water bodies, and to better predict how these dynamics might shift under changing environmental conditions.
The field of hydrogeology traditionally relied heavily on field measurements, but these techniques are limited in their spatial coverage, and insights necessarily relate only to the observed conditions. Computational hydrogeology allows much broader explorations both in space and in time—and, therefore, adds substantial rigor to our analyses and predictions.
Why I Do What I Do
Globally, groundwater makes up about 96% of liquid freshwater on earth (excluding saltwater and ice). This means that for both humans and ecosystems, freshwater availability greatly depends on our understanding of groundwater systems and the ability to predict future changes in these systems. That fills me with a great sense of mission as a groundwater scientist. On a more personal level, I have always been drawn to computational work, though I also love being out in the field collecting data.
Currently Working On
One of my students has recently made a breakthrough in simulating the interactions between groundwater and rivers with varying morphologies. This is a significant advancement, as varying river morphology is not typically considered in hydrogeological studies. We are very excited to further explore these dynamics and are confident it will produce impactful insights.
By Amy Beth Miller