People: Astrobiology Graduate Student Directory

Sanjoy Som
Earth & Space Sciences

I am second year graduate student in Earth and Space Sciences. My research interests lie in the Aerospace and Planetary sciences, although since finishing my masters in aerospace engineering, where I worked on film stability and heat transfer during condensation in unsteady pressure environments (technology applicable in environment control and life support systems on spacecrafts), I have found a new interest in planetary environments.

As such, With Prof. Dave Montgomery, I am working on getting quantitative data (as opposed to simply photo-interpretive ones) regarding the downstream variation of the Martian fluvial-like features from which I hope to extrapolate environmental conditions during formation. Using trends that exist on Earth, I hope to see (or not see) whether those trends exist on Mars, which could give insight on whether or not those features were precipitation carved.

For the early Earth, I am looking at Archean lava flow deposits and study the vesicles trapped in them to infer atmospheric pressure, again from which I hope to extrapolate environmental conditions during formation. Such a study has brought me to the inlands of Western Australia, the Pilbara, where I spent 4 weeks in August 2005 working with Roger Buick on Archean geology. Extrapolation to Mars might be possible from Viking vesicular boulder imaging, but this is still in the works.

Astrobiology is the only program on campus where I can satisfy my academic needs of learning topics that span a wide range of departments, and the only way I feel I can train to be a competent planetary scientist, which is the career I wish to pursue.

In Australia discussing the origin of life with Roger Buick. (Photo by Jelte Harnmeijer)