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Spring 2024: Expanding what X-rays can tell us about minerals on Mars

Affiliations: STEM Research Leadership Program
Project Leader: Lauren O’Neil
oneil@tamu.edu
Geology and Geophysics
Faculty Mentor: Mike Tice, Ph.D.
Meeting Times:
TBD
Team Size:
3
Open Spots: o
Special Opportunities:
Students will learn about x-ray interactions with minerals. They will gain familiarity with both data collection and analytical techniques. There is potential for co-authorship on a publication and research credits.
Team Needs:
Some experience programming with python is necessary. Coursework in physics, chemistry, or geology is beneficial but not required. Team members must be communicative and organized.
Description:
Our research will focus on detection of carbon and other light elements in rocks. We will compare and develop different analytical methods that can be used with different XRF instrumentation, including the PIXL instrument on the Perseverance rover. We will collect micro-XRF data in the lab, analyze it with a variety of software and coding techniques, and apply techniques to martian data. Most of this analysis will use python.

Written by:
América Soto-Arzat
Published on:
November 30, 2023

Categories: FullTags: Spring 2024

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