Barbara Lafuente Valverde

Dr. Lafuente specializes in scientific databases with a focus on mineralogy and astrobiology. She contributes to the development of the Open Data Repository (ODR), an open-source software to easily create and publish databases, and the Astrobiology Habitable Environments Database (AHED), a repository to share and explore user-contributed astrobiology data.

Barbara supports the development of in-situ planetary mineralogical instruments (XRD, XRF, Raman), and participates to Mars analog rock and soil research via mineral characterization. Dr. Lafuente has over 10 years of experience applying a variety of analytical techniques for mineral identification and characterization including single crystal and powder X-ray diffraction, X-ray fluorescence, Raman and NIR spectroscopies and microprobe analysis.