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The Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) offsite link, organized by the Society for Science offsite link, is the world’s largest international pre-college science competition. Regeneron ISEF provides a platform for the best and brightest young scientists to showcase their science, technology, engineering, or math research.
As a Special Award Organization offsite link, NOAA presents several awards, which recognize outstanding projects in ocean, coastal, Great Lakes, weather, and climate sciences from students in the United States. NOAA has sponsored Regeneron ISEF as a Special Award Organization since 2005.
In 2022, 1,750 finalists from 63 countries, regions, and territories competed for over $8 million in awards and scholarships. This was the first time since 2019 that Regeneron ISEF was able to offer an in-person fair and the first time ever that Regeneron ISEF was a hybrid virtual event.
Our 2022 winners:
Taking the Pulse of the Planet First Award ($1,500)
Presented to students whose research has demonstrated the principles and technical innovations that offer the greatest potential for an improved understanding of Earth’s dynamic processes
- Eliana Juarez: Urban Ozone Forecasting and Policy Recommendations Through Photochemical Modeling and Machine Learning
- Eyrin Kim: Planning Equitable Accessibility to Dialysis Care: A Case Study of Hurricane Ida
Science Communication Award ($1,000)
Presented to the student who best explains their research project in clear, understandable, and accessible language, contributing to a better understanding of public science and engineering
- Faye Lin: WAL-SEA: Development of a Homebuilt, Multifunctional Remotely Operated Vehicle for the Study of the Near-Shore Ocean Ecosystems
Judge's Award: Passion Project ($500)
Presented to the student whose research project ignited passion and excitement, leading to a greater understanding of Earth’s dynamic processes
- Ellery McQuilkin: Projecting Disappearance of the Dana Glacier Using Observed Melt Rate and 3D Modeling
Judge's Award: Self Starter ($500)
Presented to the student whose research project was self-driven with limited support or resources and is leading to a greater understanding of Earth’s dynamic processes
- Dakota Perry: A Mechanism Utilizing Renewable Energy for Eliminating Aquatic Trash in Waterways That Does Not Contribute to Global Warming and Air Pollution
2021 winners
2021 NOAA Special Award winners
The 2021 winners of the NOAA 'Taking the Pulse of the Planet' Special Award at Regeneron ISEF. From left to right: First Award winners Melanie Quan and Yuchen Li, and Second Award winners Angela Chen, Shreya Khullar, Rithika Narayan, and Lila Schweinfurth. (Courtesy of Society for Science)
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of $1,500
- Melanie Elise Quan: Analysis of Plastic Pellet Distribution in the Environment Using Citizen Science Nurdle Patrol Data and Batch Identification to Differentiate Spills
- Yuchen Li: Path Dependence of Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation Weakening: A Geostrophic Shear Approach
Taking the Pulse of the Planet second award of $500
- Angela Chen: Assessing and Predicting Wildfire Severity in California Based on Relationships Between Wildfires and Drought Using Machine Learning
- Shreya Khullar: Dendrochronological Data Analysis to Measure Climate Sensitivity and to Develop Paleoclimate Reconstructions
- Rithika Narayan: Harnessing Deep Learning to Assess Coral Reef Health Through Crowd-sourced Efforts
- Lila Schweinfurth: Developing a User Friendly System for Predicting Harmful Levels of Marine Biotoxins
2019 winners
2019 NOAA Special Award winners
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of $1,500
- Angelina Guerra: Novel unmanned environmental DNA collection technique
- Annalisa Minke: Investigating how water vapor emission impacts the temperature of the troposphere
Taking the Pulse of the Planet second award of $500
- Mark Leone: Mitigation of Florida red tide (Karena brevis) blooms through flocculation with enhanced local sediments
- Melanie Quan: Algal bioplastics: Developing a sustainable cycle of compostable and water-soluble plastics by repurposing waste
- Robert Strauss: Tsunami forecasting and risk analysis
- Uma Volety & Elizabeth Kinsey: The bioaccumulation, toxicity, and electrical discharge plasma-treatment of the emerging perfluorinated contaminant, GenX
2005 - 2017 winners
2017
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship, plus award of $500
- Kelly van Woesik, Home Ranges of Atlantic Great White Sharks, Phase II
Taking the Pulse of the Planet second award of $500
- Jared Goodwin, Arsenic Contamination through Tsunami Wave Movement in Hawaii: Investigating the Concentration of Heavy Metals in the Soil from the 1960 Hilo, Hawaii Tsunami
2015
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship, plus award of $500
- Natalie Marie Bush, Mitigation of Hypoxic Ecosystems Using Hemolymph Analysis of Callinectes sapidus and Procambarus clarkii in Relation to Spartina Grasses, Year Two
Taking the Pulse of the Planet second award of $500
- Jesse Tan Zhang, The Effect of the Atlantic Ocean on Polar Vortex Weakening
2014
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship, plus award of $500
- William Wu, Lunar Tide Contribution to Thermosphere Weather
Taking the Pulse of the Planet second award of $500
- Jesse Tan Zhang, Monitoring Ocean Microscopic Organic Material: Assessing Large-Scale Ecological Disruption on Annual Chl-a, POC, and PIC Fluctuation Equilibrium
2013
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship, plus award of $500
- Olivia Kaye Joslin, The Replacement of Fishmeal with Formulated Sustainable Meals and Its Effect on the Growth of Litopenaeus vannamei
Taking the Pulse of the Planet second award of $500
- Meagan Elizabeth Currie, Effects of Environmental Stressors on the Filtration Rates of the Blue Mussel Mytilus edulis
2012
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship, plus award of $500
- Matthew Joseph Hummel, Navibot: Phase V O.R.C.A.
Taking the Pulse of the Planet second award of $500
- Devon M. Enke, Mycoremediation: Using Pleurotus ostreatus Mycelium to Remove Petroleum Hydrocarbons from Freshwater and Saltwater Environments
2011
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship
- Harihar Ganeshan Subramanyam, Tornado App
2010
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship
- Heather Marie Eberhart, Design and Development of a Portable Light Trap for
Sampling Brachyuran Crab Larvae
2009
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship
- Collin Northcott McAliley, Red Tide Mitigation: Neutralizing Brevetoxin Using the Amino Acid Derivative, Cysteine Methyl Ester
2008
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship
- Zaki Daniel Moustafa, Resilience/Survivorship of a Red Sea Fringing Coral Reef under Extreme Environmental Conditions: A Four-Year Study
2007
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship
- John Christopher Turner, The Possible Effects and Predictive Capabilities of the El Niño Southern Oscillation and the North Atlantic Oscillation on Western Hemisphere Warm Pool Variability
2006
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship
- Alexa A. Carey, Effectiveness of Strobe Lights, Sound Frequency, and Lasers in reducing Salmon Entrainment Through Hydropower Turbines
- John Christopher Turner, Storm Warning: Is There a Predictable Correlation Between the North Atlantic Oscillation and Tropical Cyclone Activity?
- Malcolm Bruce Young, Coral Bleaching Adaptation
2005
Taking the Pulse of the Planet first award of paid internship
- Ryan Reynolds Neely, Global warming: The effects of increased temperature and carbon dioxide