Life of a Latinx Leader Series Provides Inspiration, Tools to Thrive in Academia
The "Life of a Latinx Leader" series features Dr. Alfonso Torres-Rua, an associate professor in Civil & Environmental Engineering.
Water
Associate Professor
Alfonso Torres-Rua is an Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Utah State University, USA and Chief Scientist of the AggieAir Drone Program. He specializes in innovative Irrigation Engineering and conducts research on irrigation water management using state-of-the-art drone and satellite technologies, which can help farmers save water, increase crop yield, and reduce environmental footprint. He holds a teaching appointment at the Agricultural Engineering Faculty at La Molina National Agrarian University, Peru, where he collaborates with faculty members. Furthermore, his research activities cover optimizing agriculture / urban irrigation, water balance, and water-use and stress using remote sensing (satellites and drones) over grassland, grapevines, almonds, cherries, olive, rice, and urban green areas in the Western US, South America, and Middle East.
Geographical Information Systems, Remote Sensing, Basic and Advanced Irrigation Science, Machine Learning, Drone applications
My research focuses on improving plant water use and stress assessment from a spatial perspective, using remote sensing technology, approaches, and applications. I employ a combination of ground, UAV, and satellite data to validate, harmonize, and enhance agricultural information. I develop and apply physical, data-driven, and hybrid algorithms that account for the effects of weather, crops, soils, and human activities. I estimate water balance components and biotic stressors to address the information needs of end users.
(Student) Karem Meza: Exposure, Experience & Education for Students & Teachers, 2022
Irrigation Association
(Student) Katherine Osorio: Exposure, Experience & Education for Students & Teachers, 2022
Irrigation Association
(Student) Moises Duran: Exposure, Experience & Education for Students & Teachers, 2022
Irrigation Association
Outstanding Graduate Mentor of the Year, 2022
Civil and Environmental Engineering Department
(Student) Karem Meza: CRA-WP Grad Cohort for Women, 2022
Grad Cohort for Women
(Student) Karem Meza: Spring Runoff Conference - Poster Competition, 2022
Utah State University
(Student) Oliver Hargreaves: Spring Runoff Conference - Poster Competition, 2022
Utah State University
(Student) Karem Meza: HydroLearn Educational Development Training, 2021
National Science Foundation
HydroLearn Educational Development Training, 2021
National Science Foundation
(Student) Karem Meza: College of Engineering Outstanding Student Spotlight, 2021
Utah State University
(Student) Rui Gao: Runner Up Award SPIE Conference, 2021
SPIE 'Autonomous Air and Ground Sensing Systems for Agricultural Optimization and Phenotyping VI'
CEE Department Undergraduate Research Mentor of the Year, 2020
Utah State University
(Student) Ayman Nassar: Best Paper Award SPIE Conference, 2020
SPIE 'Autonomous Air and Ground Sensing Systems for Agricultural Optimization and Phenotyping V'
(Student) Ayman Nassar: UWRL Outstanding Student Spotlight, 2020
Utah State University
(Student) Tyler Jackson: Outstanding Pre-Professional, 2020
USU College of Engineering
(Student) Ayman Nassar: National Science Foundation FAIR Cyber Training , 2020
National Science Foundation / Purdue University
(Student) Mahyar Aboutalebi Outstanding Ph.D. Scholar of the Year, 2020
Utah State University
(Student) Ayman Nassar - College of Engineering Technical Writing Competition, 2020
Utah State University
(Student) Ayman Nassar: Travel Scholarship Eighth International Conference on Flood Management (ICFM8), 2020
National Science Foundation
Visiting Professor- Agricultural Engineering, 2019
La Molina National Agrarian University
Faculty Development Symposium Scholarship, 2019
National Science Foundation
Nominee to the EPA FY 2020 membership for the Agricultural Sciences Committee , 2019
Environmental Protection Agency
Top 2017-2018 Downloaded Article, 2019
Irrigation and Drainage Journal - Wiley
(Student) Paolo Consalvo Utah State University Honors Research Fund, 2019
Utah State University
UWRL Outstanding Faculty Spotlight, 2019
Utah State University
(Student) Mahyar Aboutalebi: Best Paper Award at the 2019 SPIE Conference, 2019
SPIE 'Autonomous Air and Ground Sensing Systems for Agricultural Optimization and Phenotyping IV'
(Student) Tyler Jackson: ICER ACRES Summer Internship, 2019
National Science Foundation /Minnesota State University
(Student) Mahyar Aboutalebi: UWRL Outstanding Student Spotlight, 2019
Utah State University
(Student) Mahyar Aboutalebi: Cyberinfrastructure for Intelligent Water Supply (CIWS) Data Visualization Challenge, 2019
National Science Foundation (NSF)
(Student) Mahyar Aboutalebi: Remote Sensing 2018 Outstanding Reviewer Awards, 2019
Remote Sensing Editorial Board and Editorial Team Journal
(Student) Ayman Nassar: AWWA Intermountain Section Scholarship, 2019
American Water Resources Association (AWRA)
(Student) Tyler Jackson Utah State University Honors Research Fund, 2019
Utah State University
Faculty Development Symposium Scholarship, 2018
National Science Foundation
(Student) Mahyar Aboutalebi: Runner-up for Best Paper Award at the 2018 SPIE Conference, 2018
SPIE 'Autonomous Air and Ground Sensing Systems for Agricultural Optimization and Phenotyping III'
(Student) Mahyar Aboutalebi: J. Paul Riley AWRA Paper Competition, 2017
American Water Resources Association (AWRA)
An asterisk (*) at the end of a publication indicates that it has not been peer-reviewed.
An asterisk (*) at the end of a publication indicates that it has not been peer-reviewed.
An asterisk (*) at the end of a publication indicates that it has not been peer-reviewed.
An asterisk (*) at the end of a publication indicates that it has not been peer-reviewed.
An asterisk (*) at the end of a publication indicates that it has not been peer-reviewed.