Ashley Cornish, a doctoral candidate at the University of Georgia, has been named the recipient of the 27th annual Peter B. Wagner Memorial Award for Women in Atmospheric Sciences. The award ceremony took place on October 7, 2025, at the Desert Research Institute (DRI) campus in Reno.
The Peter B. Wagner Memorial Award recognizes outstanding academic publications by women pursuing graduate degrees in atmospheric sciences or related fields at U.S. universities. Established in 1998, it remains the only national honor specifically for graduate women in this discipline and includes a $1,500 prize.
Cornish received the award for her paper titled “The Impacts of Plant Physiological Responses to Rising CO₂ on Humidity-Based Extreme Heat.” Her research explores how changes in plant behavior due to increased carbon dioxide levels affect atmospheric moisture and extreme heat events. According to her findings, reduced water vapor from plants leads to higher temperatures and an increase in days meeting “heat index warning” criteria as defined by the US National Weather Service.
“I am incredibly honored to be this year’s recipient of the Wagner Memorial Award,” Cornish 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.”
Vera Samburova, chair of the Wagner Award committee, commented on Cornish’s work: “We received many applications from top researchers at universities across the nation. 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.”
Other finalists recognized were Siying Lu from DRI’s Division of Atmospheric Sciences for her paper on wildfire aerosol particle size distributions, and Kathleen Clough from San Jose State University (now with DRI), who studied methods for integrating fire observations into forecasting models.
The award was established by Sue Wagner in memory of Dr. Peter B. Wagner, a long-time DRI faculty member who died in a plane crash while conducting research in 1980. Initially created as a memorial scholarship for promising graduate students at DRI, since 1998 it has been awarded annually to women across the country pursuing graduate education in atmospheric sciences.
DRI is Nevada’s non-profit research institute founded in 1959 with more than 600 scientists, engineers, students, and staff working across campuses in Reno and Las Vegas. In 2024 alone, DRI conducted over $52 million in sponsored research focused on improving human and environmental health.
For more information about DRI’s work or awards program, visit www.dri.edu.