(Press-News.org) DRI is pleased to announce that the 27th annual Peter B. Wagner Memorial Award for Women in Atmospheric Sciences has been awarded to Ashley Cornish of the University of Georgia. An award ceremony commemorating her achievement was held at the DRI campus in Reno on Oct. 7, 2025.
The Peter B. Wagner Memorial Award for Women in Atmospheric Sciences is an annual competition recognizing the published works of women pursuing a master’s or Ph.D. in the atmospheric sciences or any related program at a university in the United States. The award is presented to women graduate students with outstanding academic publications and includes a $1,500 prize. This award has been presented annually by DRI since 1998 and is the only such honor designated for graduate women in the atmospheric sciences in the United States.
Cornish is completing her Ph.D. in the Department of Geography at the University of Georgia and is receiving this award for her paper “The Impacts of Plant Physiological Responses to Rising CO₂ on Humidity-Based Extreme Heat.” Cornish earned her B.S. in Meteorology from Rutgers University, where she investigated climate change indicators in New York and New Jersey for her honors thesis. At the University of Georgia, she earned an M.S. in 2022 and is expected to complete her Ph.D. in 2026. Her Ph.D. dissertation title is Impacts of Changing Biosphere-Atmosphere Interactions on Climate Extremes in Response to Rising Greenhouse Gas Concentrations and Geoengineering.
Cornish is an atmospheric/climate scientist interested in the effect of shifting vegetation dynamics on extreme climate events in global earth system models. She is passionate about investigating the drivers of climate extremes, as well as approaches to climate resiliency and advancing understanding of potential mitigation and adaptation strategies. Her award-winning study disentangles the competing effects of enhanced plant growth and decreased transpiration on atmospheric moisture and extreme heat. Her study finds that decreases in water vapor from plants lead to warmer temperatures, corresponding with increases in the number of days in a year under a “heat index warning” as defined by the US National Weather Service.
“I am incredibly honored to be this year’s recipient of the Wagner Memorial Award,” she said. “In this time where climate sciences and women alike are facing decreased support and increased disregard, uplifting our diverse perspectives is essential to advancing scientific progress for the environmental challenges we are facing. This recognition is incredibly meaningful to me, and I cannot thank the selection committee and Sue Wagner enough for making this award possible.”
The Wagner Award committee members highlighted the importance of Cornish’s research. “We received many applications from top researchers at universities across the nation,” said Vera Samburova, chair of the committee. “Ashley’s research stood out because of its global significance. In her study, Ashley used climate models to focus only on how plant behavior changes with increased CO₂, which is largely emitted due to human activities. Her research found that rising temperatures have a stronger effect than reduced moisture, leading to an overall increase in the 'heat index' — a measure of how hot it feels. The groundbreaking study advances our knowledge of extreme heat and its impacts on humanity around the world.”
Finalists for the 2025 award include:
2nd place – Siying Lu from DRI’s Division of Atmospheric Sciences, for the paper “Particle Size Distributions of Wildfire Aerosols in the Western USA.”
3rd place – Kathleen Clough from San Jose State University (currently at the Division of Atmospheric Sciences, DRI), for her study “Enhancing Wildfire and Smoke Forecasting by Integrating Fire Observations: A Comparative Analysis of Methods for Integrating Infrared and Satellite Data into a Coupled Fire-Atmosphere Model."
About the Peter B. Wagner Memorial Award
Ms. Sue Wagner — former Nevada Gaming Commissioner, Nevada Lieutenant Governor, and widow of DRI Atmospheric Scientist, Dr. Peter B. Wagner — created the Peter B. Wagner Memorial Award for Women in Atmospheric Sciences in 1998. Dr. Wagner, a faculty member at DRI since 1968, was killed while conducting research in a 1980 plane crash that also claimed the lives of three other Institute employees.
In 1981, Dr. Wagner’s family and friends established a memorial scholarship to provide promising graduate students in DRI’s Atmospheric Sciences Program an award to further pursue their professional careers. Since 1998, this opportunity has extended specifically to women pursuing graduate education across the nation.
The Wagner Endowment provides annual support for the Peter B. Wagner Memorial Award for Women in Atmospheric Sciences and the Peter B. Wagner Medal of Excellence for DRI scholars in the early stages of career development. DRI appreciates Ms. Wagner and her family for their continued support.
About DRI
We are Nevada’s non-profit research institute, founded in 1959 to empower experts to focus on science that matters. We work with communities across the state — and the world — to address their most pressing scientific questions. We’re proud that our scientists continuously produce solutions that better human and environmental health.
Scientists at DRI are encouraged to follow their research interests across the traditional boundaries of scientific fields, collaborating across DRI and with scientists worldwide. All faculty support their own research through grants, bringing in nearly $5 to the Nevada economy for every $1 of state funds received. With more than 600 scientists, engineers, students, and staff across our Reno and Las Vegas campuses, we conducted more than $52 million in sponsored research focused on improving peoples’ lives in 2024 alone.
At DRI, science isn’t merely academic — it’s the key to future-proofing our communities and building a better world. For more information, please visit www.dri.edu.
END
DRI recognizes Ashley Cornish as the 2025 Peter B. Wagner Memorial Award Winner for Women in Atmospheric Sciences
2025-10-08
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