Sonya Dyhrman, a microbial oceanographer at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and an associate professor in the Columbia Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, is among the 109 scientists elected new Fellows of the prestigious American Academy of Microbiology.
The Academy is part of the American Society for Microbiology, the world’s oldest and largest life science organization. Fellows are elected annually through a highly selective peer-review process and are chosen based on their scientific achievement and original contributions that have advanced the field of microbiology.
“It is such an honor to have my contributions to the field recognized by the Academy leadership in this way,” Dyhrman said. “While this is an individual recognition, I share it with my lab and many wonderful collaborators — their hard work, creativity, countless hours at sea, laughter, and friendships made this honor possible.”
Dyhrman leverages molecular tools to study the physiological ecology of marine microbes and their role in shaping marine ecosystem structure, function, and biogeochemistry. She’s received research support through the Center for Climate and Life’s partnership with World Surf League PURE and is a member of the Center’s internal scientific advisory board.
She graduated with high honors in biology from Dartmouth College and received her Ph.D. in marine biology from Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Dyhrman completed her postdoctoral training at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), where she was a tenured member of the scientific staff until she joined Lamont in 2013.
