UMass Boston

Coastal Carbon Cycling, Salt Marsh Systems, Coastal Resilience, Coastal Environmental Sensor Networks, Transdisciplinary Research and Education, Ocean and Environmental Education and Outreach, Blending Art and Science.

PhD, Chemical Oceanography, University of California, San Diego (Scripps Institution of Oceanography)

AB, Chemistry and Physics, Harvard University

• Najjar, R.G., M. Herrmann, R. Alexander, E. W. Boyer, D. Burdige, D. Butman, W.-J. Cai, E. A. Canuel, R. F. Chen, M. A. M. Friedrichs, R. A. Feagin, P. Griffith, A. L. Hinson, J. R. Holmquist, X. Hu, W. M. Kemp, K. D. Kroeger, A. Mannino, S. L. McCallister, W. R. McGillis, M. R. Mulholland, C. Pilskaln, J. Salisbury, S. Signorini, P. St-Laurent, H. Tian, M. Tzortziou, P. Vlahos, Z. A. Wang, and R. C. Zimmerman, 2018. Carbon budget of tidal wetlands, estuaries, and shelf waters of Eastern North America. Global Biogeochemical Cycles 32, DOI
• Schiebel, H.N, Wang, X.-C., Gardner, G.B., Peri, F., and Chen, R.F., 2017. Seasonal export of dissolved organic matter from a New England salt marsh. Journal of Coastal Research 34(4), 939-954.
• Chen, R.F. and Eisenkraft, A., 2016. Chapter 9-Professional Development for Teaching Energy. In Teaching Energy Across the Sciences: K-12. National Science Teachers Association Press, 220 pp. J. Nordine, Ed.
• Chen, R.F., 2016. Chapter 7-Energy and Natural Resources. In Teaching Energy Across the Sciences: K-12. National Science Teachers Association Press, 220 pp. J. Nordine, Ed.
• Wang, X.-C., Chen, R.F., Cable, J.E., and Cherrier, J., 2014. Leaching and microbial degradation of dissolved organic matter from salt marsh plants and seagrasses. Aquatic Sciences, DOI 10.1007/s00027-014-0357-4.
• Chen, R.F., Eisenkraft, A., Fortus, D., Krajcik, J., Neumann, K., Nordine, J., and Scheff, A. (Eds), 2014. Teaching and learning of energy in K-12 education. Springer, New York, 379 pp
• Chen, R.F., 2008. Ocean education and outreach for fame and • Chen, R.F., 2008. Ocean education and outreach for fame and fortune-A case study. Current-The Journal of Marine Education, 24: 36-40.
• Gardner, G.B., Chen, R.F., and Berry, A., 2005. High-resolution measurements of chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) fluorescence in the Neponset River Estuary, Boston Harbor, MA. Marine Chemistry, 96: 137-154.
• Aluwihare, L.I., Repeta, D.J., and Chen, R.F., 1997. A major biopolymeric component to dissolved organic carbon in seawater. Nature, 387: 166-169.
• Chen, R.F. and Bada, J.L., 1992. The fluorescence of dissolved organic matter in seawater. Marine Chemistry, 37: 191-221.

After an NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, he has remained at UMass Boston since 1993, serving as Graduate Program Director, Director of the Center for Coastal Environmental Sensing Networks (CESN), and presently Interim Dean. His research interests include the cycling of chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM), carbon biogeochemistry in coastal systems, and the development of sensor networks in shallow water systems. He has explored dissolved organic carbon (DOC) outwelling from salt marshes, remote sensing of coastal water quality, and indicators of estuarine health. He is also dedicated to ocean and environmental science education and outreach at the local, national, and international levels and transforming K-12, undergraduate and graduate environmental and aquatic science education. He was the Principal Investigator of the Watershed-Integrated Sciences Partnership (wisp.umb.edu), COSEE OCEAN (coseeocean.net), the Boston Energy in Science Teaching (BEST) (bostonscience.net), and Coasts and Communities IGERT projects, and he has been involved in Ocean Literacy and Energy Literacy efforts. He was Chair of the COSEE Council from 2013-2014. He has published over 70 peer-reviewed articles and is an active researcher in the area of coastal observations, carbon cycling, and contaminant distribution and fate.

Bob Chen CV19.pdf