Research Projects

This project focused on a variety of sulfide, oxide, and (oxy)hydroxide minerals. LIBS, Raman, and IR spectra were collected for each sample. The spectral data were then processed using unsupervised learning for dimensionality reduction, producing a smaller set of variables. These reduced variables were input into supervised learning models for classification. The goal is to optimize data collection protocols for future in situ underwater missions to ocean worlds. 

Metal oxides, hydroxides, (oxy)hydroxides, and sulfides (specifically iron) are widespread at present-day terrestrial hydrothermal vents and presumed to form on most ocean worlds, such as Europa and Enceladus. Iron minerals likely occurrence on ocean worlds may be conducive towards habitability; these minerals presence may have facilitated prebiotic chemistry processes relevant for the origins of life. As a result, these iron minerals are a promising set of minerals to investigate for the origins of life.

However, detecting these minerals accurately on ocean worlds presents significant challenges due to high communication latencies and low data rates from missions to the outer solar system. As a result, future missions must use fast and efficient methods to classify specific mineral species. Therefore, our study is essential for maximizing scientific return, as real-time results will help inform artificial intelligence systems used in mission operations.

Note: Due to the principal investigator, Dr. Laura Rodriguez, moving institutions, the research was conducted at both NASA JPL in the Origins and Habitability Lab (Summers 2021 & 2022) and the Lunar and Planetary Institute (Summers 2024 & 2025). However, it was the same project. 

Enceladus ejects organics from its plume, which are likely encased in ice. How these organics disperse within the ice shell, especially in salty environments, remains unclear. Understanding how organic compounds like amino acids partition in ice and affect crystallization is crucial. Since microbes on Earth inhabit micro-liquid channels in ice, studying amino acid effects on brine channels helps assess Enceladus's potential habitability. 

To investigate this, I conducted Raman analysis and microscopy on frozen ice cores doped with amino acids to simulate Enceladus brine. The ice cores were prepared and frozen at -20°C at the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio. 

I developed a method to collect Raman spectra of ice samples using a room-temperature laser, while keeping the samples cold. Raman analysis was performed with a temperature-controlled Linkam Cooling Stage equipped with a 532 nm laser. The stage maintained a temperature of -150°C to prevent melting and avoid laser-induced heating or phase transitions, despite the samples being initially frozen at -20°C.

After the ice sub-sample was carefully extracted from the core, it was placed on a layer of aluminum foil within a plastic weighing boat inside the Linkam Cooling Stage. Subsequently, a modified Styrofoam cup was lowered to create a thermal barrier, effectively insulating the sample from the ambient room temperature. Aluminum foil is Raman-inactive, whereas the ice is translucent. The plastic weighing boat was to ensure that the frozen brine did not come into contact with the interior of the Linkam stage, thus preventing any potential corrosion.

In the Raman spectra, I looked for subtle shifts caused by the presence of amino acids and salts. These shifts can be linked to changes in the strength of intermolecular bonding based on the polarity of the solution. Of the six amino acids tested, the ice core doped with isoleucine, the least polar of the group, was consistently unstable. It melted more easily, and was difficult to stabilize. As a result, the spectra were fuzzy and noisy. 

In June 2016, I began my first of three internships at LANL working with the ChemCam instrument on the Mars rover, Curiosity, under Dr. Nina Lanza. ChemCam is a laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy instrument that uses lasers to gain geochemical data from Mars rocks. 

While at LANL, I determined the spatial distribution of manganese oxides in Gale Crater and examine their relationships with other elements to understand their depositional history. My findings on Martian Manganese revealed a change in oxidation with elevation in the lacustrine Murray formation.

Terrestrial manganese does not concentrate in large quantities without liquid water and highly oxidizing conditions. Terrestrial manganese did not begin to frequently appear in the geological record until the Great Oxygenation Event on Earth, about 2.3 billion years ago, when atmospheric oxygen began to rise steeply. In modern times, most terrestrial manganese minerals are made by microbes. Therefore manganese deposits anywhere else in the universe have implications for astrobiology because it could be a sign of habitability or microbes themselves. 

In addition to tracking Martian manganese, I also pressed and mix geological standards with concentrations into manganese pellets to be shot with the ChemCam engineering model at LANL to help redo the LIBS Mn calibration, and help quantify the Martian manganese more accurately. Then recalculated the ChemCam manganese calibration and manganese in Gale Crater. 

From my work at LANL, I presented twice at the Lunar and Planetary Scientific Conference, and at the Midwest Regional American Chemical Society Meeting. During my LANL internships, I won a LANL Spot Award and was included as a recipient of a NASA Group Achievement Award to the MSL Extended Mission-1 Science and Operations Team.

My first undergraduate research project was at Kansas State University working under Dr. Matthew F. Kirk, a geomicrobiologist. We chose a project that focused on growing and analyzing manganese oxide samples using microbes. There were two simultaneous experiments using two different types of microbes, one that produces a biofilm and one without biofilm. 

The purpose was to determine chemical, mineralogical, and structural properties differences between the two manganese minerals. The products of these experiments were analyzed with laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Raman spectroscopy at Kansas State University, and a scanning electron microscope at the University of New Mexico. 

For this work, I won a Kansas State University College of Arts and Science Research Award. This project was in tandem with my ongoing research at Los Alamos National Laboratory.