Eleanor BrowneView profile
Associate Professor
Dr. Eleanor (Ellie) Browne is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Colorado Boulder and a Fellow at the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES). Her research focuses on atmospheric chemistry, particularly the formation and growth of aerosol particles and their role in climate, air quality, and planetary habitability. Education: Ph.D. in Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley (2012) Research Interests: Dr. Browne's research integrates field measurements, laboratory experiments, and instrument development to understand the chemistry of aerosol formation and growth in Earth’s atmosphere and beyond. Her group investigates new particle formation in agricultural environments, organic haze formation in planetary atmospheres (including Titan and early Earth), and the atmospheric fate of organosilicon compounds. A major theme of her work is the development of novel mass spectrometry techniques and data visualization tools to probe atmospheric composition with unprecedented detail. Scientific Awards: 2025 RIO Faculty Fellow, CU Boulder and CU System 2023 Rising Star in Environmental Research, National/International Recognition 2022 ACS Environmental Au Rising Star in Environmental Research 2021 CIRES IRP Award for aerosol chemical characterization method development 2019 American Society for Mass Spectrometry Research Award 2012 NOAA Climate and Global Change Postdoctoral Fellowship 2010 NASA Earth Systems Science Fellowship Research Group & Collaborations: Dr. Browne leads the Browne Research Group, which is jointly affiliated with the Department of Chemistry and CIRES. The group conducts field campaigns at the DOE ARM Southern Great Plains site and develops advanced instrumentation for chemical ionization mass spectrometry. She is also active in interdisciplinary training programs, including CECA (CIRES Center for Education and Collaboration in the Atmosphere), which supports graduate students and postdocs across CU Boulder. Labs & Facilities: Her group operates environmental simulation chambers for studying Titan-like and Archean atmospheres, and develops custom mass spectrometry tools for real-time aerosol characterization. The team also maintains a strong collaboration with the DOE Atmospheric Radiation Measurement program, leveraging long-term measurements for process-level understanding of atmospheric chemistry.









