September 29th, 2025
In recognition of her work advancing the understanding of atmospheric chemistry and climate, the Atmospheric Sciences section of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) has awarded Vaishali Naik, a physical scientist in the Earth System Processes and Interactions Division, the 2025 Future Horizons in Climate Science: Turco Lectureship.
Since joining GFDL in 2009, Naik has dedicated her research to the interactions between atmospheric composition, chemistry and climate with attention to societal implications. Her work focuses on the behavior of short-lived gases and aerosols in the Earth system, including how their distributions evolve over time and space. She develops and applies GFDL’s Earth System models to investigate how natural and human-driven changes in atmospheric chemistry and composition influence climate and how the changing climate, in turn, impacts atmospheric composition.
Upon receiving this honor, Naik expressed her gratitude, stating, “This award reinforces the importance of understanding the relationships between atmospheric chemistry and the broader Earth system, critical for making informed, science-based decisions. Working with talented, multi-disciplinary scientists, students, and colleagues has been both a privilege and a source of inspiration in addressing these complex issues. This recognition honors the incredible collaboration behind my work. I look forward to sharing recent research insights in the upcoming lecture at AGU’s annual meeting this December.”
Naik’s contributions have been widely cited, with more than 80 publications and a Google Scholar citation index exceeding 70. The nomination for the award highlighted Naik’s ability to unravel atmospheric chemistry–climate connections and lead international efforts that prioritize future areas of focus. Her “rigor for getting the details right” was recognized, combined with her holistic, ‘big picture’ view. She has consistently demonstrated a remarkable capacity to synthesize diverse information and distill complex relationships into illustrative schematics.
In addition to her impactful research, Naik has a strong record of leadership in international science. She served as a Coordinating Lead Author for the “Short-lived Climate Forcers” chapter of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Sixth Assessment Report Working Group I. Currently, she co-leads the Climate Model Intercomparison Project Phase 7 Climate Forcings Task Team, which plays a key role in identifying, developing, documenting, and delivering updated forcing datasets used to drive Earth System models. She serves on the advisory board of the National Center for Atmospheric Research’s Community Earth System Model and is a co-chair of GFDL’s next-generation Atmospheric Model Development Team.
AGU’s Future Horizons in Climate Science: Turco Lectureship aims to recognize significant interdisciplinary scientific research, discoveries, or advancements in climate science, encouraging scientists to focus on future research areas essential for addressing global warming and its related challenges.