Kakani Katija Young facts for kids

Kakani Katija is a super cool bioengineer from Hawaii. She studies how ocean animals move and eat. She learned about this while getting her advanced degrees in engineering.

Kakani Katija's Education Journey

Kakani Katija started her studies at the University of Washington in 2004. There, she earned her first degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics. This field is about designing and building aircraft and spacecraft.

She then went to the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). In 2005, she earned a Master's degree in Aeronautics. Later, in 2010, she received her Doctorate degree in Bioengineering from Caltech. After her studies, she worked as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.

Exploring the Ocean: Kakani Katija's Career

Kakani Katija has received special research awards from important groups. These include the American Society for Engineering Education and the National Science Foundation. These awards helped her do amazing research.

She is also a certified research diver. This means she can dive deep into the ocean to study marine life up close. She has explored many places around the world. For example, in 2009, she studied jellyfish off the coast of Palau archipelago.

Jellyfish Secrets and Ocean Mixing

During her jellyfish study, Kakani Katija and her team made an exciting discovery. They found that jellyfish not only push water with their bodies. They also pull a steady stream of water behind them. This discovery helped scientists understand how jellyfish move.

This finding also led Katija to study how sea creatures help mix the ocean. Her work shows that marine life can mix ocean fluids. They do this at rates similar to how winds and tides mix the water. This is a big deal for understanding ocean currents!

Inventing New Tools for Ocean Research

Today, Kakani Katija leads the Bioinspiration lab. This lab is at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in Moss Landing, California. Her team creates new technologies inspired by nature.

One of her cool inventions is called DeepPIV. This special tool helps scientists study ocean habitats without disturbing the animals. It makes marine research much better and less invasive.

Kakani Katija has even tested DeepPIV on research ships. She went on two expeditions aboard the R/V Falkor. These trips were called "Designing the Future" and "Designing the Future 2." You can even see images from DeepPIV's use on the Schmidt Ocean Institute's R/V Falkor online!

Awards and Special Recognitions

Kakani Katija has received many honors for her important work.

In 2011, the National Geographic Society named her an "Emerging Explorer." This award recognized her as a rising star in exploration. As part of this honor, a research dive she did in Panama was filmed in 2012 by National Geographic.

In 2013, she was named a Kavli Research Fellow. This award came from the National Academy of Sciences. It recognizes young scientists who are leaders in their fields.

Most recently, in 2023, Katija received the Compass Distinguished Achievement Award. The Marine Technology Society gave her this award. It celebrates people who have made huge contributions to marine science and technology throughout their careers.