Jida Wang

Dr. Jida Wang is an Associate Professor at the University of Illinois' School of Earth, Society & Environment, serving as Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Geography & Geographic Information Science. His research focuses on surface water dynamics in lakes, reservoirs, and wetlands, examining their roles as climate change sentinels and regulators. He integrates satellite remote sensing, hydrological modeling, and AI/ML to study interactions between water systems, the cryosphere, and human impacts. Dr. Wang holds a Ph.D. from UCLA (2013) and an M.S. from SUNY-ESF (2008).

Research Interests:

• Surface water abundance and dynamics
• Lake-river-cryosphere interactions
• Climate change impacts on water systems
• Remote sensing innovations (SWOT, ICESat-2)
• Hydrogeodesy and global water monitoring

Publications highlight cutting-edge work with NASA's SWOT mission, Tibetan Plateau lake dynamics, and global dam/reservoir databases. He leads collaborative projects on satellite data integration and policy-relevant water resource assessments.