March 3, 2026 – University of Montana News

Recent UM chemistry Ph.D. graduate and SMART FIRES researcher Lixu Jin published a study in Science Advances that improves understanding of how wildfire smoke changes as it travels and how those changes affect air quality and human health. Mentored by SMART FIRES Smoke Lead Lu Hu and others, Jin analyzed aircraft data from wildfire plumes across the western U.S., identifying gaps in atmospheric models used to predict ozone formation and smoke impacts. The research advances wildfire smoke science and supports more accurate assessments of air quality, public health, and climate effects.