Previous CPS members

A record of previous members of the Centre for Planetary Sciences at UCL/Birkbeck.

NameResearch
Dr Qasim AfghanComet observations
Dr Louise AlexanderLunar geochemistry 
Dr Claudio ArenaExoplanets - Atmospheric Detection and Characterisation; Scientific Payloads Attitude and Orbital Control Systems (AOCS); Infrared and THz Optics and Instrumentation
Dr Chris Arridge Planetary magnetospheres; Robotic exploration of the solar system; Astrophysical magnetospheres.
Dr Bob Barber The optical properties of water; Water in comets.
Lee BardonImpact melting and vapourisation of planets, including the proto-Earth
Dr David BarnesHeliospheric Physics; HELCATS (Heliospheric Cataloguing, Analysis and Technique Service) FP7 project using data from the STEREO twin spacecraft which is observing plasma structures in the solar wind.
Dr Jo Barstow (Eberhardt)Planetary atmosphere modelling; Extrasolar planets
Dr Carolina BergforsEvolved stellar and planetary systems. Star and planet formation. Low mass stars and brown dwarfs.
Dr Kimberley BirkettComets
Dr Eleni BohacekExoMars PanCam
James BraithwaiteMaterial behavior governing the evolution of the magma ocean
Dr George BrydonPlanetary penetrators
Dr Roberto BugiolacchiLunar science; MoonZoo
Abigail Calzada-DiazSource regions of lunar meteorites
Dr Jacqueline CampbellHyperspectral imaging; Compositional mapping of dynamic features on Mars;
Martian polar regions; Detection of organics
Dr Fuencisla CanadasCo-evolution of Neoproterozoic Biogeochemical Cycles
Dr George CannSimulation of biosignatures in the Martian atmosphere; Retrieval of martian atmospheric trace gases
Dr Quentin ChangeatExoplanets
Dr Mario DamianoExoplanets
Dr Camila Danielski Exoplanets 
Dr Joel DavisSurface processes on terrestrial planets; Geological and climate evolution of Mars; Arid landscapes and environment on Earth; DTM generation and change detection
Dr Lottie Davis Biomarkers in alkaline lakes and application to Mars
Ravindra DesaiSaturn’s Magnetosphere, Spacecraft Instrumentation
Dr Zach DickesonCharacterising the geology of the landing sites for the European Space Agencies upcoming ExoMars2020 rover mission
Dr Matthew DoddBiosignatures in Earth’s oldest sedimentary rocks
Dr Jac van DrielComposition and Internal Structure of Planetary Cores
Dr Amy EdgingtonProperties of core-forming and other deep-Earth materials and the implications these have on the behaviour and evolution of planetary interiors.
Dr Mohamed Ramy El-MaarryFracture mechanics in Solar System bodies, particularly Martian geology/geomorphology encompassing glacial/periglacial, volcanic and hydrological processes; geology/geomorphology of small bodies and moons.
Dr Marianna FeliciCassini, Maven
Dr Alistair FrancisSensor Independent Deep Learning for Detection Tasks with Optical Satellites
Dr Sam GrantIdentification and analysis of in-situ cometary ion tail encounters
Dr Zuri GrayPolarimetric observations of comets and asteroids
Dr Andrew D. GriffithsProject Manager for the ExoMars PanCam instrument; Imaging the Martian surface and atmospheric phenomena; Determining landing site morphology from stereo images; Determining the altitude distribution of water vapour in the Martian atmosphere via solar spectral line absorption measurements.
Dr Pete GrindrodSurface-atmosphere exchange and the history of water on Mars
Dr Samuel HalimThe survivability of lunar impactors
Dr Terence HackwillLunar geology
Dr Cui HangComputational Mineral Physics
Dr Flavien HardyPlanetary magnetosphere modelling; Solar wind - magnetosphere interaction; Accretion disks and planetary evolution
Prof Louise HarraThe trigger for solar flares and coronal mass ejections; Formation of the solar wind; The Sun-Earth connection
Dr Jennifer HarrisMartian meteorites, Mars analogues, VNIR mineral spectroscopy, PanCam.
Dr Richard HaythornthwaiteEnceladus; Titan; Plasma interactions 
Dr Cynthia HoExoplanets
Prof Karen Hudson-EdwardsProcesses and products of the biogeochemical cycling of contaminants and nutrients in mine wastes, waters, dusts and contaminated land.
Dr Emily IngmanAstrobiology
Huma IrfanPlanetary GIS, particularly Lunar GIS studies related to lunar digital elevation models and future lunar missions. 
Dr Caitriona JackmanSolar wind - magnetosphere coupling; Magnetotail dynamics (Saturn, Mercury, Jupiter, Earth)
Andrew JamiesonInvestigating the thermoeleastic properties of the [Fe,Ni]3Si system in conditions relevant to Mars and other smaller planetary bodies
Dr Jamie JasinskiSaturn’s magnetosphere
Dr David JohnsonAtmospheric modelling; Data assimilation techniques; Space weather; Meteorolgy
Dr Luke KeyteElemental abundances in protoplanetary disks; Planetary formation and evolution; Spectroscopy of exoplanet atmospheres
Prof Carolina Lithgow-BertelloniGeophysics and Geodynamics: the connection between the dynamics of planetary interiors and their surface expression, including the influence of dynamics on surface deformation and topography.
Dr Haiyang LuoModeling of planetary materials; Structure and properties of silicate melts; Element partitioning and isotope fractionation; Evaporation and diffusion of elements and isotopes.
Jane MacArthurPlanetary Science MSc graduate
Dr Giulia MagnariniThe formation mechanism of long runout landslides on planetary bodies
Dr Adam MartinsHydrogen and Helium at conditions of Gas Giant interiors (Now programmer at UK Met Office)
Dr Lauren Mc KeownPlanetary surface processes (particularly those on Mars and icy moons); Ice sublimation geomorphology; Planetary analogue laboratory experiments under low pressure; Planetary surface change detection techniques.
Dr Dimitrios MillasMagnetospheric modelling of giant planets
Dr Mario MorvanObservation of exoplanets; Machine & Deep Learning
Dr Tom NordheimMoon-magnetosphere interactions at Saturn and Jupiter; Space weathering effects on un-magnetised bodies; Modelling of cosmic ray interactions in neutral atmospheres; Planetary robotics.
Dr Rok NezicPolarimetry of comets
Dr Lucy NormanAstrobiology, Titan and the Self-Assembly of Amphiphiles
Dr Panagiotis SidiropoulosPattern recognition; Machine learning; Image and video processing; Computer vision
Dr Priya PatelImage Processing Techniques for Studying Water in the Martian Atmosphere
Dr Divya PersaudDevelopment of Mars image data fusion and automated feature recognition for surface geology ahead of the ExoMars 2020 rover launch
Dr Nathan PilkingtonMagnetospheric physics 
Dr Wil PooleMars:South Polar Cap landforms; Surface roughness. Earth: Glaciers; Polar Caps; Surface roughness.
Dr Oliver PriceFine Scale Structure in Cometary Dust Tails
Alfiah ‘Kiky’ PutriData Mining on Planetary Datasets (Mars)
Dr Yudish RamanjoolooComets and their interaction with the Solar Wind
Dr Licia RayComparative planetary magnetospheres; Auroral processes; Magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling; Magnetospheric dynamics; Planetary ionospheres.
Dr Catherine ReganThe Influence of Dust Storms on the Induced Magnetosphere of Mars
Dr Leonardo RegoliCassini, Maven
Dr Marco RocchettoRobotic telescope systems; Bayesian retrieval techniques; Modelling of exoplanetary atmospheres; Molecular cross-sections; Time-series photometry
Dr Amy RonksleyCoupling of upper and lower atmosphere; 
SCANDI, FPIs and EISCAT radars;
Meteorology and space weather.
Dr Gillian SclaterPhysics of dissociating clathrates in cryovolcanic vents: application to Titan, Enceladus and Triton
Dr Elliot Sefton-Nash Mapping and understanding the composition, distribution and geologic influence of volatiles in the solar system. 
Dr Si-Ting Xiong3D subsurface mapping; Martian Polar regions; Subsurface mapping in deserts
Dr Joshua SnapeLunar meteorites and lunar regolith
Wilfrid SomogyiExoplanetary atmospheres; Theoretical high-resolution spectroscopy; Computational quantum mechanics; Diatomic molecules
Dr Arianna SorbaModelling planetary magnetospheres; Planetary aurorae; Magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling (at Jupiter and Saturn)
Dr Roger StabbinsScience preparations for ExoMars PanCam: Multispectral imaging of Martian geology and atmospherics
Dr Aaron StinsonPolarimetry of small Solar System bodies
Prof Lars StixrudeLarge-scale planetary processes through investigations of the fundamental atomic-scale physics of Earth- and planet-forming materials; Mineral physics; Earth and planetary liquids and fluids; Condensed matter physics; High pressure physics; Planetary structure and evolution.
Dr Andrew SwannPolluted white dwarfs; Exoplanetary systems
Dr Sam TaylorSaturn’s magnetosphere
Dr Marcell TessenyiUnderstanding exoplanet atmospheres through infrared spectroscopy; Twinkle space mission
Dr Angelos TsiarasExoplanet spectroscopy
Indhu VaratharajanPlanetary Science MSc graduate
Prof Serena VitiAstrochemistry
Dr Shahab VarkouhiBotryoidal quartz as possible abiotic biosignatures in Archean cherts
Dr Angharad WeeksExoplanets
Dr Anne WellbrockPlasma interactions with unmagnetised bodies in the solar system, especially Titan
Dr Affelia WibisonoX-ray aurora
Dr Fred WilsonThermodynamics of a MgO-CaO system under magma ocean conditions following giant impact
Dr Tom WilsonWater production and chemistry in comets
Dr Marisa WoodBirch’s Law: does it work for iron and iron alloys in planetary cores
Dr Bing XiaoComputational Mineral Physics
Dr (Kai) Gordon YipExoplanets; Machine Learning techniques; Radiative transfer model, TauREx
Dr Japheth YatesExoplanets; Super Earths; 
Atmosphere-magnetosphere coupling; Planetary Atmospheres. 
Dr Tiziano ZingalesExoplanets: Photometry of transiting planets