University of Washington
Massachusetts Institute of Technology/Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Joint Program
Known for
Oceanography
Marine Geochemistry & Biogeochemistry
Mentoring
Awards
The Oceanography Society Mentoring Award, For Excellence and/or Innovation in Mentoring the Next Generation of Ocean Scientists (2021)
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow (2015)
Ocean Sciences Early Career Award, American Geophysical Union (AGU) (2006)
Claudia Benitez-Nelson is a Latinx American
oceanographer whose research focuses on marine
geochemistry and
biogeochemistry. A Carolina Distinguished Professor,[1] she serves as the Senior Associate Dean for College Initiatives and Interdisciplinary Programs at the
University of South Carolina’s College of Arts and Sciences.[2]
Benitez-Nelson’s research centers on the mechanisms that influence the formation, composition, and downward transport of material from the surface ocean to depth. This research directly relates to biological production and diversity and the ocean’s role in the uptake and sequestration of
greenhouse gases,
nutrients,
toxins and
trace metals. She has been a leader in developing new techniques that use both novel chemical approaches (i.e., Benitez-Nelson et al, 2004; Diaz et al, 2008; Sekula-Wood et al, 2009; McParland et al., 2015) and sample collection methods with naturally occurring short-lived
radionuclides (i.e., Benitez-Nelson and Buesseler, 1998; Benitez-Nelson et al., 2001; Buesseler et al. 2001; Benitez-Nelson and Moore, 2006 (and references therein); White et al., 2013). She has authored or coauthored more than 130 articles, which have been published in premier, high impact journals such as PlosOne, Geophysical Research Letters, Nature and Science, and has been the principal investigator or co-principal investigator on substantial, multi-year research and education grants from the
National Science Foundation (NSF) and the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), among others.[7] Her research has received international acclaim and includes the Early Career Award[8] in Oceanography from the
American Geophysical Union (AGU),
Fulbright and
Marie Curie Fellowships, and being named
National Academies of Science/
Humboldt Foundation Kavli Fellow, an
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow, and a Sustaining Fellow of the
Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO).[9][10] Her many professional service duties include serving as Chair of the International Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research (SCOR) Capacity Building Committee, National Academy of Science Ocean Studies Board,[11] and as an elected member of the
AGU Ocean Sciences Section and
ASLO Executive Committees. Benitez-Nelson is also highly regarded as a teacher, receiving many teaching honors, including the Mungo Distinguished Professor Award, the UofSC’s highest undergraduate teaching award.[12]
Osborne, Emily B.; Thunell, Robert C.; Gruber, Nicolas; Feely, Richard A.; Benitez-Nelson, Claudia R. (January 2020). "Decadal variability in twentieth-century ocean acidification in the California Current Ecosystem". Nature Geoscience. 13 (1): 43–49.
Bibcode:
2020NatGe..13...43O.
doi:
10.1038/s41561-019-0499-z.
S2CID209381004.
Humphries, Marc S.; Benitez-Nelson, Claudia R. (2013). "Recent trends in sediment and nutrient accumulation rates in coastal, freshwater Lake Sibaya, South Africa". Marine and Freshwater Research. 64 (11): 1087.
doi:
10.1071/MF12313.
Diaz, Julia; Ingall, Ellery; Benitez-Nelson, Claudia; Paterson, David; de Jonge, Martin D.; McNulty, Ian; Brandes, Jay A. (2 May 2008). "Marine Polyphosphate: A Key Player in Geologic Phosphorus Sequestration". Science. 320 (5876): 652–655.
Bibcode:
2008Sci...320..652D.
doi:
10.1126/science.1151751.
PMID18451299.
S2CID41092139.
Benitez-Nelson, Claudia R.; Bidigare, Robert R.; Dickey, Tommy D.; Landry, Michael R.; Leonard, Carrie L.; Brown, Susan L.; Nencioli, Francesco; Rii, Yoshimi M.; Maiti, Kanchan; Becker, Jamie W.; Bibby, Thomas S.; Black, Wil; Cai, Wei-Jun; Carlson, Craig A.; Chen, Feizhou; Kuwahara, Victor S.; Mahaffey, Claire; McAndrew, Patricia M.; Quay, Paul D.; Rappé, Michael S.; Selph, Karen E.; Simmons, Melinda P.; Yang, Eun Jin (18 May 2007). "Mesoscale Eddies Drive Increased Silica Export in the Subtropical Pacific Ocean". Science. 316 (5827): 1017–1021.
Bibcode:
2007Sci...316.1017B.
doi:
10.1126/science.1136221.
PMID17510362.
S2CID24522740.