Mehmet Kurum

Mehmet Kurum is an Associate Professor in the School of Electrical & Computer Engineering at the University of Georgia and holds the Paul B. Jacob Endowed Chair. He concurrently serves as an Adjunct Professor at Mississippi State University (MSU). His roles include academic leadership, research, and teaching in electrical engineering and remote sensing.

Dr. Kurum earned his B.S. from Bogazici University (Turkey), M.S. and Ph.D. from George Washington University (USA), followed by postdoctoral work at NASA Goddard. He previously served as Assistant and Associate Professor at MSU from 2016 to 2023.

His research focuses on microwave remote sensing, particularly using satellite and UAS-based systems for environmental sustainability in agriculture. Key projects involve NASA missions (SMAP, SNOOPI, NISAR, CYGNSS) and developing spectrum-efficient technologies to address modern challenges like soil moisture estimation under forest canopies and RFI mitigation.

Dr. Kurum has secured grants from DOD, NASA, NSF, and USDA. His work emphasizes GNSS reflectometry, LiDAR integration, and deep learning for precision agriculture and environmental monitoring. Awards include the NSF CAREER Award for innovative spectrum recycling research.

His recent efforts include the SNOOPI CubeSat mission for P-band remote sensing and the SWIFT-SAT project addressing radiometer/communication coexistence. He collaborates with interdisciplinary teams on forest canopy modeling, soil moisture retrieval algorithms, and UAS-based sensor development.