Fellow Highlight: Helin Henstridge

Meet Helin Henstridge

Helin Henstridge is a rising senior at the University of California, San Diego, majoring in biophysics. She is working at the Los Alamos National Lab this summer, synthesizing seismic waveforms to study underground hydrogen storage. As part of the Mickey Leland Energy Fellowship (MLEF) project Helin is using Python to analyze the waveforms and create video comparisons of the seismic wave velocities, over time. FECM’s mission drives this study, as it is imperative to understand underground hydrogen storage; if it can work long-term, globally, and if hydrogen plumes can be monitored from the surface. Underground hydrogen storage, if successful, would provide a large source of renewable energy that will allow for the decrease of carbon emissions and usage of fossil fuels.

Helin knows the importance of having a good mentor, especially when performing research in a new field. She hopes to maintain her positive relationship with her MLEF mentor after the program ends; “My mentor has been excellent so far and is someone I would love to stay in contact within the future.” The credit to her first mentor, however, goes to her sister. She inspired and motivated Helin to pursue a career in STEM, just as she did. “Watching how she created a future for herself and found joy in the STEM field gave me the courage to continue within this field, eventually discovering a passion for physics and chemistry.” After earning her bachelor’s degree, Helin plans to pursue her graduate studies.

Outside of the lab, Helin’s hobbies include reading – especially fantasy and fiction – as well as crocheting and cross-stitching.

Research project: Time-Lapse Seismic Monitoring of Underground Hydrogen Storage