Drew Friedrichs

My name is Drew Friedrichs and I am a recent graduate (Fall 2024) from the Water Resources Engineering PhD program within the Civil and Environmental Engineering department at UC Davis. I specialize in collecting direct observations of environmental fluid mechanics in natural and engineered surface water bodies. I have done extensive work at the poles as part of my PhD dissertation, which explores the intricacies of the heat transport that is driven by the introduction of glacial meltwater into the coastal ocean.

 

I also find it particularly rewarding to explore waterbodies much closer to home. You can often find me on Lake Tahoe either testing equipment or assisting in ongoing monitoring campaigns, or perhaps on Shasta Lake where I hope to assist in the investigation of warm water leakage into the Shasta Dam Temperature Control Device.

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My Masters project (2022) focused on the parameterization upper ocean turbulence based on prevailing wind speeds, and in 2023 I subsequently passed my Fundamentals of Engineering Exam. I am currently a research consultant at the Tahoe Environmental Research Center and I intend to continue working in the field of water engineering within the state of California.

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In my free time, I enjoy running, watching sports (Go Cubs Go), and visiting every beach I can find.