Faculty

Brian K. Arbic

Earth and Environmental Sciences

Tides and planetary-scale ocean dynamics; tidal evolution with planetary rotation and obliquity; climate and habitability; ocean influence on the emergence of life on Earth and other worlds

Steve Battel

Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering

Systems engineering; low-noise instrumentation; electromagnetic compatibility; avionics; space power systems; high-voltage electronics; planetary environment instrumentation; JWST; Juno; Parker Solar Probe; Europa Clipper; Dragonfly; MethaneSAT; Mars 2020; Landsat 9; NISAR; HelioSwarm

Udo Becker

Earth and Environmental Sciences

Mineral surface science; Redox chemistry; biomineralization; minerals and organic matrices interact at the nanoscale; redox processes relevant to early life; mineral spectroscopy

Ted (Edwin) Bergin

Astronomy

Composition and evolution of protoplanetary disks and planetary atmospheres; disk chemistry; planet formation; atmospheric composition; solids, volatiles, and carbon-bearing materials in emerging planetary systems

Nuria Calvet

Astronomy

Inner regions of protoplanetary disks; composition of young solar-nebula analogs; gas and silicate signatures; refractory elements; depletion patterns and radial gradients; formation history of the Solar System

Lía Corrales

Astronomy

X-ray spectroscopy, astromineralogy, and data-driven discovery with machine learning; interstellar dust, exoplanet aerosols, and the formation, growth, and phase behavior of solid materials in space

Ryan Dewey

Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering

Planetary space environments; interactions with stellar winds; in-situ plasma and magnetic-field measurements; Mercury and near-Sun solar wind; magnetospheres and atmospheric evolution; magnetic shielding in habitability

Richard A. Frazin

Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering

Instrumentation for high-contrast astronomical imaging and solar diagnostics; wavefront sensing; instrumental polarization modeling; direct imaging of exoplanets; three-dimensional tomography of the solar corona

Elena Gallo

Astronomy

Lee Hartmann

Astronomy

Physics of protoplanetary disks; early solar-system evolution; numerical simulations to investigate accretion outbursts, disk heating, and magnetorotational instability; high-temperature processing that shapes disk and solar-system materials

Robert Holder

Earth and Environmental Sciences

Geology at planetary and Earth-system scales; plate tectonics, petrology, geochronology, subduction, and Earth history; origin and evolution of continents and tectonic systems; long-term planetary evolution.

Xianglei Huang

Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering

Radiative transfer; hyperspectral remote sensing; climate modeling; theoretical radiative transfer; atmospheric spectroscopy; data-rich Earth and planetary applications; Monte Carlo methods for ultra-hot Jupiters

Xianzhe Jia

Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering

Planetary magnetospheres and space environments; plasma physics; kinetic and MHD modeling; solar wind interactions with planets; planetary aurorae; space weather and habitability

Jena Johnson

Earth and Environmental Sciences

Mineralogical and geochemical signatures of early life and planetary evolution; redox-sensitive ore deposits; precambrian biogeochemical evolution; origin of iron-bearing minerals in both Earth history and the early Solar System

Cheng Li

Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering

Planetary atmospheres and oceans through theory, modeling, and observations; photochemical-radiative-convective climate models; hydrodynamic simulations of plumes and convection; Microwave and radio observations of giant-planet atmospheres

Jackie Li

Earth and Environmental Sciences

Material properties and planetary differentiation under extreme conditions; high-pressure and high-temperature experimental tools including diamond-anvil cells, laser heating, large-volume presses and synchrotron radiation; deep planetary materials and the chemical pathways of life’s building blocks

Mike Liemohn

Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering

Earth and planetary space environments; kinetic and MHD modeling; data–model comparison and mission science; Earth’s paleomagnetosphere; broader role of magnetic fields and space environments in planetary habitability.

Mary Anne Limbach

Astronomy

Exomoons and planetary systems beyond the Solar System; exomoons transiting free-floating planets; auroral physics; moon formation and dynamics; biosignatures of habitable exomoons detectable with future observatories

Chip Manchester

Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering

Atmosphere–plasma modeling of Mars and planetary space environments; thermosphere-ionosphere coupling and MHD models; whole-atmosphere responses to events such as interplanetary coronal mass ejections; Sun–planet interactions

Michael R. Meyer

Astronomy

Planet formation, composition, and habitability across planetary systems; exoplanet demographics; giant-planet atmospheres; protoplanets in formation; observational tools to connect formation models with atmospheric properties, energy budgets, and signs of habitability