Austin Gion
Personal Information
Name: Austin Gion
Address: 8000 Regents Drive, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742
Email: agion@umd.edu
ORCID: 0000-0001-9124-039X
Education
2020 (estimated) Ph.D. in Geology, University of Maryland
2017 M.S. in Geology, University of Maryland
2015 B.S. in Geology, Wichita State University
2014 International Study, University of Sydney
Employment
2016-Present Research and Teaching Assistant University of Maryland, MD, USA
2015 Geotech for Independent Exploration Geologist, Wichita, KS
2013-2015 Geological Data Integrator
Research Groups
2016-Present Lab Manager, Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research,
University of Maryland, MD, USA
2014-2017 EarthByte Group, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
2014 Centre for Research on Ecological Impacts on Coastal Cities,
University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
Professional Organizations
American Geophysical Union
Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada
Geologic Society of America
American Association for Petroleum Geologist
Kansas Geological Foundation
Society of Economic Geologists
International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior
Geological Society of Washington
Publications in Refereed Journals
1. Gion, A. M., Piccoli,. P.M, and Candela, P.A., 2019, Constraints on the formation of
granite-related indium deposits: Economic Geology [Accepted]
2. Gion, A. M., Piccoli, P. M., and Candela, P. A., 2018, Partitioning of indium between
ferromagnesian minerals and a silicate melt: Chemical Geology, v. 500, p. 30-45,
doi:10.1016/j.chemgeo.2018.08.020.
3. Gion, A. M., Williams, S. E., and Muller, R. D., 2017, A reconstruction of the Eurekan
Orogeny incorporating deformation constraints: Tectonics, v. 36,
doi:10.1002/2015TC004094.
Abstracts and Presented Works
1. Gion, A. M., Piccoli, P. M. Candela, P. A, 2018, An Experimental Study on the
Formation of Scandium-Rich Rocks: American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting,
Washington, D.C.
2. Sullivan, G., Gion, A. M., Piccoli, P. M. Candela, P. A., and Ash R. D., 2018, Modeling
Indium Enrichment in the Mount Pleasant Ore: American Geophysical Union Fall
Meeting, Washington, D.C.
3. Gion, A. M., Candela, P. A., and Piccoli, P. M., 2017, Experimental Geochemistry and
Modeling as an Aide to Exploration: An Indium Case Study: Geological Society of
America Abstracts with Programs, Seattle, Washington, v. 49, no. 6,
doi:10.1130/abs/2017AM-306392
4. Gion, A. M., Williams, S. E., and Muller, R. D., 2017, Modelling and visualizing
distributed compressional plate deformation using GPlates2.0: The Arctic Eurekan
Orogeny: EGU General Assembly, Vienna, Austria.
5. Gion, A. M., Piccoli, P. M., and Candela, P. A., 2017, From Lab to Lode: Applications of
Experimental Geochemistry to Mineral Exploration with Reference to Indium: Student
Mineral Colloquium, Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada, Toronto,
Canada.
6. Gion, A. M., Piccoli, P. M., Candela, P. A., and Nance, J. R., 2016, Indium In
Ferromagnesian Minerals: An Experimental Study: Geological Society of America
Abstracts with Programs, v. 48, no. 7, doi:10.1130/abs/2016AM-286546
7. Gion, A. M., Piccoli, P. M., Candela, P. A., and Nance, J. R., 2016, Partitioning of
Indium Between Biotite and Felsic Melts: Pan-American Current Research on Fluid
Inclusions Conference, Columbia, Missouri.
8. Gion, A. M., Williams, S. E., and Muller, R. D., 2015, The Wegener Fault revisited:
Building a deforming plate model for the Eurekan Orogeny: GeoBerlin Dynamic Earth –
from Alfred Wegener to today and beyond, Berlin, Germany.
Grants
NSF REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) awarded to Philip
Piccoli and Philip Candela as an extension for NSF EAR 1348010 to study
the distribution of indium in the Mount Pleasant ore system. Amount
awarded: $6,000.
Reviewing Activities
Ore Geology Reviews
Lithos
Service
2019: Assisted with visit of 5th – 7th grade students to the Department of Geology (UMD)
2018/2019: Assisted with visit of 3rd grade class to the Department of Geology (UMD)
2018: Liaison between graduate students and faculty during new hire search
2016-2019: Volunteer at Maryland Day (the University of Maryland’s yearly open house)
Awards
PDAC Travel Award – PDAC Conference 2017
ESSIC Travel Award – Spring 2016, 2017 and Fall 2016, 2017, 2018
GSA Northeastern Travel Grant – GSA 2016 and GSA 2017
Kansas Geological Foundation Preservation Award – 2016
Teaching
GEOL 445: High Temperature Geochemistry Lab
The role of this course is to teach students Earth and Solar system forming
processes. The topics included in this class include nucleosynthesis, element partitioning,
thermodynamics, phase relations, radiogenic isotopes, and geochronology. The
laboratory section was concerned with applying these topics to scenarios that students
will likely face as they continue with high-level scientific research, such that they might
encounter during the course of their Senior Thesis.
Taught Fall 2016, enrollment 6
GEOL 322: Mineralogy Lab
The role of this course is to introduce undergraduate students to crystallography,
basic mineralogy, and crystal chemistry. The laboratory section involved teaching
students how to identify minerals in hand samples, understand crystal symmetry, crystal
morphology, and basic mineral chemistry.
Taught Spring 2017, enrollment 21
GEOL 443: Petrology Lab
The role of this course is to teach undergraduate students the principles of igneous
and metamorphic petrology. The laboratory section consisted of describing igneous and
metamorphic rock and their significance. Students were required to describe the textures
and minerals present in both hand samples and thin section.
Taught Spring 2018 and 2019, enrollment 17 and 12, respectively
GEOL 423: Optical Mineralogy Lab
The role of this course is to teach undergraduate students the theory and
techniques used in optical mineralogy. The laboratory section consisted of identifying
minerals and describing their properties in thin section, as well as grain mounts.
Taught Fall 2018, enrollment 13
Field Camp Prep Course
This course was designed by graduate students to provide guidance to
undergraduates who are preparing for field camp. The course consisted of three meetings
where students were introduced to the expectations of field camp and were able to
practice basic field mapping skills. My role involved teaching and co-organizing.
Taught Spring 2016/18/19, ~10 Students per year
Advising
NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)
Gwen Sullivan – “Modeling indium enrichment in the Mount Pleasant Ore System”
presented at American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting 2018.
Senior Thesis Students
My primary role for the following students was assisting the students and their primary
advisor with fieldwork and explanation of geochemical concepts.
Andrew Houston, Spring 2019 – “Magmatism at the Mt. Pleasant deposit, New
Brunswick, Canada”
Luke Councell, Fall 2016 and Spring 2017– “Hydrothermal Formation of Unakite in
the Blue Ridge Mountains, Virginia: A Geochemical Analysis”
Rhobeca Oliveros, Spring 2017– “Fractionation in a dike in the Tuolumne Batholith
in California”
Joe Browning, Spring 2017– “Origin of Tourmaline in the Setters Formation,
Maryland: Evidence from Major and Trace Element, Boron Isotope, and Rare Earth
Element Characteristics”
Undergraduate Honors Projects
Gwen Sullivan, GEOL 322: Spring 2017– “Solid Solution Minerals in North Carolina
Eclogites”, My role was to oversee geochemical analysis using the electron microprobe.