Moninya Roughan is a physical oceanographer with expertise in the dynamics of coastal ocean circulation. Moninya's research focuses on improving dynamical understanding of the coastal ocean including physical forcing mechanisms, nutrient enrichment processes and their biological impact. She uses a combination of observations and numerical models to study the oceanography of Western Boundary Currents, with a focus on the East Australian Current and its impact on the continental shelf waters.
Over the past 10 years, Roughan has been instrumental in the design, deployment and ongoing development of NSW-IMOS, one of the most comprehensive ocean observing systems in the southern hemisphere. In this capacity, Moninya leads the deployment of oceanographic moorings, ocean gliders and radar along the SE Australian coast. She has received a number of awards for her research. Roughan has a PhD in Physical Oceanography from UNSW Australia (2002), and spent 4 years at Scripps Institute of Oceanography as a postdoctoral scholar (2002-2006). Presently Moninya is a Professor of oceanography at UNSW Australia.