Abhishek Chatterjee

Dr. Abhishek Chatterjee joined Schmidt Sciences in February 2026, bringing over a decade of experience in Earth science and climate research from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) in Greenbelt, Maryland, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. Before transitioning to Schmidt Sciences, Dr. Chatterjee held significant leadership roles as the Project Scientist for NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory-3 (OCO-3) mission and as the Deputy Project Scientist for the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) mission, both pivotal missions within NASA’s Earth science program focused on measuring atmospheric carbon dioxide and understanding its global distribution.

Dr. Chatterjee’s expertise lies at the intersection of carbon cycle and climate science, Earth system modeling, and the development of remote sensing technologies to address large-scale environmental issues. By leveraging advanced scientific techniques and big data, he has pioneered new data analysis tools and methodologies, enabling deeper insights into the carbon cycle and its dynamic relationship with a changing climate. His contributions have been published in leading peer-reviewed journals, including Science and Nature. He has also contributed to major national and international reports on the carbon cycle and climate, such as the Second State of the Carbon Cycle Report and the 5th National Climate Assessment.

Currently, Dr. Chatterjee serves as a lead author for the Third Decadal U.S. Carbon Cycle Science Plan, where he heads a team of approximately 25 experts in defining the strategic direction for U.S. carbon cycle research from 2026 to 2035. In addition, he remains actively engaged in the scientific community, serving on several editorial boards for major academic journals, chairing the North American Carbon Program Science Leadership Group (NACP SLG) and contributing to the American Geophysical Union (AGU) and the American Meteorological Society (AMS).

Dr. Chatterjee holds a PhD and Master’s degrees in Environmental Engineering from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and a Bachelor’s degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the Delhi College of Engineering, New Delhi.

His work continues to shape the future of carbon cycle and climate science and the application of space-based technologies to address the most pressing environmental challenges of our time.