Engineering

When Professor Asmeret Asefaw Berhe arrived at UC Merced in 2009, she and her husband, Professor Teamrat Ghezzehei, were leaving major research institutions to join a brand-new campus in California’s Central Valley. It was a leap of faith — one made easier by the Sierra Nevada Research Institute.

UC Merced, in conjunction with longtime campus partner the Campos Foundation, launched the pilot Campos ENgage Summer Bridge Academy, a weeklong summer program aimed at supporting underrepresented minority and female students interested in STEM.

As the Hellman Fellowships celebrate their 30th year, three more researchers, one from each of UC Merced’s schools, have joined the prestigious ranks of recipients.

Electrical engineering Professor Qian Wang, sociology Professor Meredith Van Natta and Earth systems Professor Adeyemi Adebiyi will receive funding through their fellowships for projects they have proposed.

Lightning from thunderstorms rolling through Central California on Sept. 2 ignited numerous wildfires, including several large fires in the Sierra Nevada foothills that had burned more than 19 square miles by Wednesday morning. The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services recorded more than 9,000 lightning strikes in a single day.

Lightning is a major source of wildfire ignition in the western United States every summer.

Three professors are joining UC Merced’s Agricultural Experiment Station this fall, bringing more expertise and resources to the 3-year-old research center.

This is part of a series of profiles of new UC Merced Bobcats enrolled for the fall 2025 semester.

Drake Ledford was an exemplary high school student, earning a 4.29 GPA. The Merced Union High School District (MUHSD) recognized him as one of its top scholars. He was also honored as valedictorian for his class and a California Scholarship Federation Sealbearer, the highest level of recognition for academic achievement, at his graduation in June.

The U.S. National Science Foundation has awarded nearly $600,000 to support a groundbreaking project at UC Merced aimed at accelerating the future of artificial intelligence and scientific research.

This is part of a series of profiles of new UC Merced Bobcats enrolled for the fall 2025 semester.

One could say UC Merced has always been part of incoming Bobcats Ella and Satchel Ortez’s lives. The twins’ father worked for the 10th UC campus when it opened, and they lived with the campus as their backyard view until moving down Highway 99 in 2013.

UC Merced's Makerspace lab has been living up to its name recently.

The School of Engineering's lab, housed in the Sustainability Research and Engineering building, has been increasingly busy. The Makerspace offers services to courses, research and campus clubs.

At UC Merced's biggest lab, students work from before sunrise to well after dusk. They are operating the university's Experimental Smart Farm, 40 acres of dirt and plants, research and experiments.

They study everything from pollinators to hydroponics, but there are more than just academic endeavors happening: Students say they have plans for community engagement opportunities including a corn maze and pumpkin patch. They also have been planting tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash, kale, arugula and melons.