Two researchers from IHCantabria awarded with the Extraordinary Doctorate Prizes of the University of Cantabria
With these awards, the UC recognizes the quality and relevance of the doctoral research carried out by Héctor Lobeto and Moisés Álvarez and their significant contribution to the advancement of knowledge in coastal and environmental engineering.
The Doctoral Commission of the University of Cantabria (UC) has recognized the excellence of the doctoral theses of Héctor Lobeto Alonso and Moisés Álvarez Cuesta, researchers at the Institute of Environmental Hydraulics of Cantabria(IHCantabria), awarding them the Extraordinary Doctoral Awards in the 2022 Call, in the category of Engineering and Architecture.
The Extraordinary Doctoral Awards are honorary mentions granted by the University of Cantabria to recognize the quality of doctoral theses. To this end, publications and patents associated with the thesis, attendance at conferences and participation in research projects during the predoctoral stage are evaluated.
Doctoral Thesis by Héctor Lobeto
The doctoral thesis of Héctor Lobeto Alonso, entitled “Study of the climatic variability of marine surface dynamics: extremes and effect of climate change”, was developed within the Doctoral Program in Coastal Engineering, Hydrobiology and Management of Aquatic Systems (IH2O) of the UC, and was directed by Melisa Menéndez and Raúl Medina.
In his research, Hector Lobeto has developed new methods and climate products to improve the characterization of marine surface dynamics at regional and global scales. The thesis focuses on wave and sea level, with particular attention to their extreme events, since both dynamics are crucial for the assessment of impacts in open ocean and coastal areas. In addition, climate variations at different time scales are evaluated, especially long-term variations induced by the effect of climate change.
His thesis was also distinguished with the award for the ‘Best Doctoral Thesis in Physics of the Atmosphere and Ocean’, after winning the prize for the “Best Doctoral Thesis in Physical Oceanography” awarded by the Specialized Group of Physics of the Atmosphere and Ocean (GEFAO) of the Royal Spanish Society of Physics(RSEF). These awards will be presented to Héctor Lobeto during the XXXIX Biennial of the Royal Spanish Society of Physics, to be held in mid-July this year in Donostia.
The complete content of Héctor Lobeto’s doctoral thesis is available through this link.
Moisés Álvarez’s Doctoral Thesis
Moisés Álvarez also developed his doctoral thesis within the UC IH2O Doctoral Program. This was entitled “Development of a methodology to obtain projections of shoreline evolution in the face of climate change considering different temporal and spatial scales in a framework of uncertainty” and was directed by Alexandra Toimil and Íñigo Losada. His research has focused on improving the characterization of coastal erosion and flooding impacts considering climate change to support coastal adaptation studies. To this end, it has developed a set of numerical tools to assess and predict shoreline changes and how these changes affect inundation in coastal environments that can be very complex.
Moisés Álvarez was awarded the First Modesto Vigueras 2023 Prize of the Technical Association of Ports and Coasts, the most important recognition in Spain for young professionals in Port and Coastal Engineering.
The complete content of Moisés Álvarez’s doctoral thesis is available through this link.
