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Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Yale University
New Haven, CT
United States of America

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Research Interests

General Circulation Modeling

General circulation models (GCMs) are computational tools that solve the primitive equations of meteorology. Using GCMs allows us to simulate the complex states of planetary atmospheres and oceans, providing access to immense datasets of simulated variables, including winds, temperatures, and compositions. I work with the Titan Atmospheric Model (TAM) which was developed by my advisor, Professor Juan Lora, and is built on the GFDL FMS system. During my PhD, I developed new features to the model to capture the impact of Titan's seasonally varying composition on its circulation structure, as well as explore how the circulation drives the seasonally varying composition.

Observational Astronomy

I've lead studies of Titan's atmosphere with data from the Composite Infrared Spectrometer (CIRS) on the Cassini spacecraft and the Texes Echelon Cross Echelle Spectrograph (TEXES) on the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) on Mauna Kea. With these data, I've made the first measurements of propene in the stratosphere, as well as the first detection of propadiene on Titan. Through different wavelengths of light, I've also made the deepest measurement of ethane and hydrogen isocyanide in Titan's stratosphere, which provide critical constraints for photochemical models to better simulate the chemistry that occurs in Titan's organic-rich atmosphere.

Latest GOES-16 Image – Our planet ~20 minutes ago

First Author

1. 2023 "The Heat and Momentum Budgets of Titan's Middle Atmosphere"
   Lombardo, N. A. & Lora, J. M.
2. 2023 "Influence of Observed Seasonally Varying Composition on Titan's Stratospheric Circulation"
   Lombardo, N. A. & Lora, J. M.
3. 2019 "Detection of Propadiene on Titan"
   Lombardo, N. A., Nixon, C. A., Greathouse, T. K., Bézard, B., Jolly, A., Vinatier, S., Teanby, N. A., Richter, M. J., Irwin, P. J. G., Coustenis, A., Flasar, F. M.
4. 2019 "Ethane in Titan’s Stratosphere from Cassini CIRS Far- and Mid-Infrared Spectra"
   Lombardo, N. A., Nixon, C. A., Sylvestre, M., Jennings, D. E., Teanby, N., Irwin, P. G. J., and Flasar, F. M.
5. 2019 "Spatial and Seasonal Variations in C3Hx Hydrocarbon Abundance in Titan’s Stratosphere with Cassini CIRS Observations"
   Lombardo, N. A., Nixon, C. A., Achterberg, R. K., Sung, K., Jolly, A., Irwin, P. G. J., and Flasar, F. M.

Co-Author

1. 2024 "The D/H ratio in Titan’s acetylene from high spectral resolution IRTF/TEXES observations”"
   Bézard, B., Nixon, C. A., Vinatier, S., Lellouch, E., Greathouse, T. K., Jiles, R., Lombardo, N. A., Jolly, A.,
2. 2024 "Measurements of Titan’s Stratospheric Winds During Equinox with the eSMA"
   Light, S., Gurwell, M., Thelen, A. E., Lombardo, N. A., Nixon, C. A.
3. 2023 "Equatorial Waves and Superrotation in the Stratosphere of a Titan General Circulation Model"
   Lewis, N. T., Lombardo, N. A., Read, P. T., Lora, J. M.
4. 2023 "Spitzer IRS Observations of Titan as a Precursor to JWST MIRI Observations"
   Coy, B. P., Nixon, C. A., Rowe-Gurney, N., Achterberg, R. K., Lombardo, N. A., Fletcher, L. N., Irwin, P. G. J.
5. 2022 "New Constraints on Titan’s Stratospheric n-Butane Abundance"
   Steffans, B.L., Nixon, C.A, Sung, K., Irwin, P.G.J., Lombardo, N.A., Pereira, E.
6. 2020 "N2 and H2 Broadened Isobutane Infrared Absorption Cross Sections and Butane Upper Limits on Titan"
   Hewett, D., Bernath, P. F., Wong, A., Billinghurst, B. E., Zhao, J., Lombardo, N. A., Nixon, C. A., Jennings, D. E.
7. 2019 "Cassini Composite Infrared Spectrometer Observations of Titan 2004-2017"
   Nixon, C. A., Ansty, T., Lombardo, N. A., Bjoraker, G. L., Achterberg, R. K., Annex, A. M., Rice, M., Romani, P. N., Jennings, D. E., Coustenis, A., Bézard, B., Vinatier, S., Lellouch, E., Teanby, N. A., Cottini, V., Flasar, F. M.