Encarni Medina-Lopez

Dr. Encarni Medina-Lopez is a Senior Lecturer in Ocean Observation at the University of Edinburgh's School of Engineering, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. She holds a PhD in Energy Systems & Dynamics of Biogeochemical Flows and leads the Coastal and Environmental Remote Sensing Group (CEReS). Her affiliations include Turing Fellowship at the Alan Turing Institute and membership in professional bodies like the Institution of Civil Engineers and Higher Education Academy.

Education:

• PgCert Academic Practice, University of Edinburgh (2021-2022)
• PhD Energy Systems, University of Edinburgh/Granada (2015-2017)
• MSc Environmental Hydraulics (2013-2014)
• MEng Civil Engineering, University of Granada (2008-2013)

Research Focus: Her work integrates remote sensing, machine learning, and field data to address coastal environmental challenges and marine renewable energy optimization. Key areas include satellite-based monitoring of sea surface parameters, wave energy converter performance, and climate impact assessments on coastal systems.

Research Trends: Recent publications demonstrate strong emphasis on machine learning applications for satellite data processing, coastal vulnerability assessment, renewable energy resource quantification, and glacial dynamics monitoring using advanced remote sensing techniques.

Awards & Recognition:

• Turing Fellow, Alan Turing Institute
• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
• MASTS Saltire Emerging Researcher
• Chartered Engineer (CEng MICE)

Leadership & Grants: Principal Investigator of the £2.2M EPSRC-funded FeME Network Plus project focused on climate-resilient engineering. Serves as Deputy Director for Training at SENSE CDT and co-investigator in IDCORE. Supervises multiple PhD students in coastal remote sensing and energy applications.

Research Group: Leads the CEReS group specializing in satellite-based coastal monitoring and marine renewable energy assessment with 15+ current and past members including postdoctoral researchers and doctoral candidates.