Research studying planetary impacts at LPI and fossil bird bones at the Field Museum of Natural History; TA for BIOL 0210; Member of men’s varsity water polo team. 

Research with Prof. Salap-Ayca & Dr. Prilipko Huber; Nature Conservancy internship 2024; NSF REU at UVA 2023; Presented at NACIS 2024; TA for EEPS 0220, 0240, ENVS 1107; Food & Fundraising Committees co-leader for SBFT 2023 and 2024; Brown’sTones Acapella. 

Thesis: Stickers, Crayons, and Cartography: Children as Map Makers and Map Readers (S. Salap-Ayca)

Research in malaria vaccine with Prof. Kurtis at Med. School; Summer study abroad in Jordan 2022; Presented at NCEMSF 2025; EMT for Brown Ambulance; Campus support coordinator for Brown EMS; Army ROTC; Coordinator at Brown OMAS. 

Research with Prof. Smith; UTRA 2024; SARP at UC Irvine 2023; NSF REU at Wash. State 2022; Presented at AGU 2023 & 2024; Authored journal article in MDPI Remote Sensing 2024.

Thesis: Bridging the Vegetation Water Content Data Gap with Spaceborne LiDAR in Search of the 'b' Parameter (L. Smith)

A.B. Applied Math; Sarah LaMendola Award 2024; Research with Prof. Ibarra; Caltech WAVE; NCAR NSF SOARS; Presented at AGU 2023 & 2024; TA for EEPS 0240; Tutor for MATH 0100; Varsity Track & Field. 

Thesis: Phasing of Seasonal Monsoon Systems in Southeast Asia during the Late Holocene using Two Philippines Speleothems (D. Ibarra) 

A.B. Health & Human Biology; Research with Breathe Providence & Prof. Hastings 2024; HIV cure research in Ghana 2023; TA for EEPS 0240; President of Ghanaian Students Union; Connect for Health advocate with Brown Univ. Health. 

Thesis: Elevated PM2.5 concentrations from Wood-Burning Community Event in Providence, RI (M. Hastings) 

Two-time All-Ivy Track & Field Athlete; Div. 1 Track & Field East Regional Qualifier in javelin; Newcomer of the Year award for Women’s Track & Field; Math & English tutor at MLK Elementary School. 

Research with Prof. Liang & Prof. Robinson; UTRA 2022, 2023; Presented at GSA 2023; TA for EEPS 0250; Study abroad in New Zealand 2023; SBFT 2022; Dir. Brown Science Olympiad; Badminton Club; Mahjong Club. 

Thesis: A Nutrient-Phytoplankton Model to Explore Bloom Phenology in the Southeast Bering Sea (M. Freilich)

A.B. Applied Math; Research with Prof. Freilich; NOAA Hollings Scholar 2024; UTRA 2023; Presented at AGU 2024; TA for EEPS 0070, 0240, BIOL 1470; SBFT co-leader 2024 & Field Guide Committee leader 2023; Captain Shiver Ultimate Frisbee Club. 

Thesis: An Analysis of Mid-Pleistocene Transition Paleothermometer Records from the Congo River Fan (J. Russell)

Research with Prof. Russell; UTRA 2023; Voss 2024; Presented at AGU 2024; TA for EEPS 0070, 0220, 0240, 1330; Meiklejohn Peer Advisor 2023-2025; Gear Committee co-leader for SBFT 2023 & 2024; GeoDUG President 2022-2024; Co-captain Brown Cycling Team.

Thesis: Whole Rock Scale Constraints to the Halogen Budgets of Continental Arcs

Advisor: Emily Cooperdock

I completed my undergraduate studies in Earth Science and Chemical Engineering at Universidad de los Andes (Colombia) in 2021. I worked for a while in the Colombian Geological Survey as a geochemist, then got a M.Sc. in Geography and Geology at Missouri State University in 2023. I've been the recipient of a GSA Lipman Research Grant for my M.Sc. thesis work at Missouri State, and I TA'd for EEPS0230 - Geochemistry: earth and planetary materials and processes, where I was in charge of designing and running lab sessions. 

Thesis: A new model of uppermost mantle Vs and crustal Vp/Vs beneath Alaska 

Advisor: Colleen Dalton

Abby's research focuses on imaging the subsurface structure of the Earth and using Rayleigh Wave amplitudes to do so. She served as a TA for EEPS 220 Understanding Earth and Environmental Processes, and is also involved in the DEEPS CORES outreach program, teaching at Hope High school. 

Thesis: Pore closure in planetary crusts: A revised model

Advisor: Chris Huber

Uthkarsh is a California transplant, having completed his bachelor's degree at the University of California, Davis with a degree in Computational Physics and Math. He became interested in earth science while working on a project modeling geyser dynamics, apparently got tired of the idyllic 365 days of sunshine, moved to New England and now works with Chris Huber on problems regarding multiphase flows in planetary and volcanic contexts. He has TAed for Ralph's Planetary Geology class.

Thesis: Interrogating Leaching Procedures of Meteorites for Triple Oxygen Isotope Analyses

Advisor: Gerrit Budde and Daniel Ibarra

Riley received her bachelor's degree in physics from the University of Central Florida in the spring of 2022 before joining DEEPS in the fall of that year. During her time at Brown so far, Riley has enjoyed studying stable isotopes in meteorites and what they can tell us about how our solar system formed. One of her favorite parts about her job is spending time in the lab tinkering with the fluorination line. Outside of Brown, Riley loves to spend time with friends at crossfit, silent book club, and the beach.

Thesis: Two Al-in-Olivine Thermometers for Mafic and Ultramafic Rocks from Mars

Advisor: Yan Liang

Noah J. Hooper is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at Brown University, where his current research centers on Martian meteorites and planetary geochemistry. He specializes in geo-thermometry, with a particular focus on mafic and ultramafic rocks from Earth, Mars, and the Moon. His work integrates high-temperature experimental petrology, high precision EMPA and LA-ICP-MS analysis, and numerical methods to reconstruct magmatic and thermal histories.

Thesis: Alkenone-based sea ice reconstruction reconciles discrepancies between IP25 and foraminifera on the Norwegian margin during the Younger Dryas

Advisor: Yongsong Huang

I TA'd Environmental Geochemistry, and have enjoyed mentoring a number of undergraduate researchers. I received my BSc from Montana State University in 2023 in Earth Sciences. I am an avid hiker, biker, and advocate for environmental sustainability. 
 

Thesis: Resilience of the Amazon Rainforest in the Late Quaternary

Advisor: Jim Russell

Ellen uses biomarkers in lake sediment to explore the paleo environmental conditions of the Amazon basin. While at Brown, she received Honorable Mention for the NSF GRFP and published her first first-authored paper on upwelling dynamics in the California Current System with collaborators at NOAA. A Goldwater and NOAA Hollings Scholar, she got her B.S. in Earth Science and B.S. in Environment, Sustainability, and Policy from Syracuse University in 2023 where she researched dynamics of the North American Monsoon.
 

Thesis: Rapid Intensification and Poleward Expansion of the Summer Convective Zone in New England, USA

Advisor: Jung-Eun Lee

I’m an international student from Kenya. I have a BSc in Computer Science from Rust College, a small HBCU in Holly Springs, Mississippi. I also have a Master’s in Earth and Environmental Science from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA, where I also received the PB Meyers Award for Best TA. I joined Brown in Fall 2023 to start my PhD under Jung-Eun Lee. I TA’d EEPS0050 (Mars, Moon, and the Earth) in Fall 2024.

Thesis: Signal to Noise Ratio and Spectral Sampling Constraints on Olivine Detection and Compositional Determination in the Intermediate Infrared Region: Applications in Planetary Sciences

Advisor: John Mustard

Sebastian is a 3rd year PhD Candidate interested in crustal fluids, groundwater flow, and water-rock interactions. His master's thesis served as a fun introduction to spectroscopy in the planetary sciences. 

Thesis: Drivers of Ca isotope variability in human urine: Implications for the osteoporosis biomarker

Advisors: Gerrit Budde and Alberto Saal

Dan is an isotope geochemist interested in diverse applications of non-traditional isotope systems. To date, this includes the investigation of Ca, Mg, S, B, and Ti isotopes in several fields, ranging from paleoceanography to biomedical research to cosmochemistry. He leaves Brown to continue his PhD at MIT, where he will apply isotopes of moderately volatile elements to understand their systematics in the early, inner Solar System, when the terrestrial planets were still coalescing. 

Thesis: Creep of Talc at Subduction Zone Conditions: Implications for Slow Slip and Strength of the Lithosphere

Advisor: Greg Hirth 

I came to Brown after getting a bachelors in geophysics from UC Santa Barbara. For my PhD I've been conducting rock deformation experiments to understand the strength of the lithosphere in a variety of geologic settings. Since coming to Brown, I have been heavily involved in the DEEPS CORES program teaching earth science lessons weekly at Hope High School. I am also a recipient of an NSF GRFP. 

Thesis: Lunar volcanic gas cloud chemistry: Constraints from glass bead surface sublimates

Advisors: Stephen Parman and Alberto Saal

Tom has been using a combination of nanoanalytical tools and thermodynamic modelling to investigate lunar volcanism. While at Brown, he has published in Icarus (Lunar volcanic gas cloud chemistry: Constraints from glass bead surface sublimates), received the GSA Lipman Research Award, and TA’d for EEPS 0010: Face of the Earth. He received his MSc in Earth Sciences from the University of Oxford, where he researched pegmatite geochemistry.
 

Thesis: Impacts Of Tropical Deforestation On Seasonal Precipitation Based On Moisture Supply and Surface Heating

Advisor: Jung-Eun Lee

PhD Student from Atlanta, GA finishing his 2nd year studying Land-Atmosphere interaction in the tropics. Currently researching the effects of deforestation on precipitation. I am a recipient of the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. 

Thesis: From Emplacement to the Surface - Constraining the Exhumation History of Aleutian Arc Intrusives

Advisor: Emily H.G. Cooperdock

Anahi Carrera received a bachelor’s in Geosciences from the University of Arizona. She started her PhD at the University of Southern California with Emily Cooperdock where she helped re-establish and manage the mineral separation facilities, was the graduate advisor for the Earth Sciences undergraduate club, and served as a TA for ‘Mineralogy’ and ‘Earthquakes.’ Anahi moved to Brown in 2023 following her advisor where she completed the last two years of her PhD. She was awarded two Best Student Presentation Awards from the International Conference on Thermochronology in 2021 and the American Geophysical Union in 2023. She was also awarded the AGU 2024 Geosciences Congressional Visits Day Travel Award to advocate for science-informed policy with members of Congress in Washington, D.C. Most recently, Anahi was awarded the UCLA Chancellor’s postdoctoral fellowship, which she declined in favor of a fellowship from the National Nuclear Security Administration hosted at Lawrence Livermore National Lab in Livermore, California where she will be starting this June working in the Nuclear Forensics research group.

Thesis: Atmospheric Nitrate Chemistry and Response to Emissions Reductions in the Northeastern US

Advisor: Meredith Hastings

Heejeong Kim earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in South Korea. She joined the department in the fall of 2000, and has produced extensive and deeply meaningful datasets via a variety of analytical techniques and modeling. Her research, conducted under the guidance of Dr. Meredith Hastings and Dr. Wendell W. Walters, focuses on the reactive nitrogen cycle—specifically, how regulations on nitrogen oxides (NOₓ) emissions influence the sources and production pathways of atmospheric nitrate in southern New England. She employed new analyses of stable isotopes as a powerful tool to trace emission sources and elucidate atmospheric chemical processes. Her work contributes to a broader understanding of particulate matter formation, a major air pollutant, and provides actionable insights into how future emission control strategies may shape air quality and climate outcomes. During her Ph.D., Heejeong served as a teaching assistant forWeather and Climate and Environmental Science in a Changing World courses. She also co-founded a Korean graduate student group that contributes to a sense of belonging at Brown for international students. Heejeong will be continuing at Brown University as a postdoctoral scholar and is considering future faculty positions in South Korea.  

Thesis: High Latitude Influences on Eastern Equatorial Pacific Climate Evolution Since the Pliocene

Advisor:  Tim Herbert

Kristin Kimble grew up in Massachusetts and received a B.A. from Middlebury College in 2019, where she double majored in geology and biology. She joined the Herbert paleoceanography lab at Brown and was a teaching assistant for Stratigraphy and Sedimentation and Earth and Environmental Processes courses. Kristin was also involved in outreach and education programs through DEEPS, visiting local elementary and high school classes weekly to help lead earth science activities. She received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2023. Kristin is now a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography.

Thesis: Atmospheric Ammonium Deposition to the North Pacific Ocean: Source Origins and Implications

Advisor:  Meredith Hastings

Alex MacFarland completed a Bachelor of Science degree at Suffolk University, majoring in environmental science and biology. She joined Meredith Hastings’ research group in the fall of 2020, and over the last 5 years has studied the reactive nitrogen in air and ocean, specifically quantifying inorganic nitrogen deposition and determining its source origins to the North Pacific ocean. As part of this she participated in fieldwork and received samples from Hawaii and coastal location in China. Alex was twice awarded a NASA-Rhode Island Space Grant Consortium Graduate Student Fellowship, and Institute at Brown for Environment and Society Graduate Research, Training & Travel Awards. She was also a teaching assistant for Water in our World and Ocean Biogeochemical Cycles, and contributed to the department’s community as GeoClub president and a representative for the Graduate Student Women in Science and Engineering group. Alex is currently applying for research positions in New England.

Thesis: Forcings of Indo-Pacific Warm Pool Climate During the Past One Million Years

Advisor:  Jim Russell

Before starting at Brown, Meredith received a Masters of Science degree at the University of Wyoming, where she studied paleoclimate in the western United States. At Brown she studied paleoclimate in the Indo-Pacific. She was a teaching assistant for Stratigraphy and Sedimentation and Earth: Evolution of a Habitable Planet, and she mentored undergraduate research. She received a GSA research grant in 2021 and an Outstanding Student Presentation Award at the AGU scientific conference in 2023. Meredith is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at George Mason University. 
 

Thesis: Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy of Meteorites,Analogs, and Returned Samples: Advances in Context, Connections, and Characterization

Advisor:  Ralph Milliken