Research

Check out my blog for a research expedition I recently went on, to the Western Antarctic Peninsula!

One of my main motivations in life is to improve our understanding of Earth’s climate system. In fact this is why I became a scientist in the first place! I am interested in finding out how our climate has changed during our planet’s history, and what we can expect in the future. I specifically focus on the climate history of the enigmatic continent of Antarctica and its surrounding Southern Ocean, where I study how the ice sheets that cover this massive landmass have changed over the last 40 million years, and the role they played in global climate change, as recorded in marine sediments surrounding its coasts.

My research involves using novel geochemical techniques to study the provenance and weathering signatures of marine sediments along the Antarctic continental margin. I study the radiogenic isotopes of neodymium, strontium and lead in detrital and authigenic sediment components, along with major and minor elemental compositions. In addition, I research the provenance and distribution of ice-rafted detritus in the Southern Ocean to reconstruct the locations of major ice sheet collapse in the past, using argon isotope thermochronological signatures of mineral grains, lead isotopes in feldpars, petrography and mineral grain morphology. I am also interested in clay mineralogy, general sedimentology, and the paleoceanography of the Southern Ocean, and have some experience studying diatom assemblages.

I am very passionate about improving scientific literacy in the media and in politics, and outreach communication about climate change to non-specialists such as young people and politicians.