Jess F. Adkins
Associate Professor of Geochemistry and Global Environmental Science
In the Adkins lab, we are interested in why there are glacial cycles and past climate change generally, how corals make their skeletons, trace metals in the modern ocean, and the use of sulfur isotopes in constraining major events in Earth's history. We have a lab that is currently involved in U-series and radiocarbon dating, trace and minor elements in carbonates, pore water studies, and sulfur isotope geochemistry. Our group has mounted a series of expeditions to caves in Borneo to collect stalagmites, and cruises to the bottom of the ocean using submarines and robots to collect deep-sea corals.
Email: jess@gps.caltech.edu
Group website: http://www.gps.caltech.edu/~jess/
Woodward W. Fischer
Assistant Professor of Geobiology
Research in the Fischer Group generally addresses questions that are historical in nature and stem from geological observations. We employ field geology, petrography and geochemical measurements on returned field samples, and laboratory experiments concerning the metabolisms and molecular biology of selected extant organisms, chosen to provide insight into ancient geobiological processes. Broadly, we work to understand the coevolution of life and Earth surface environments during Precambrian time (> 542 Ma). Much of our research focus is aimed at understanding the geobiology of the Archean Earth, just prior to the rise of atmospheric oxygen. We are also currently exploring the evolution of lipid biomarker synthesis, the origin of unusual carbonate rock textures once common on ancient carbonate platforms, and the coupled behavior of redox and acid-base processes at critical transitions (e.g. carbon cycle perturbations and mass extinctions) in Earth history.
Email: wfischer@caltech.edu
Group website: http://www.gps.caltech.edu/~wfischer/
John P. Grotzinger
Fletcher Jones Professor of Geology
In the Grotzinger group we are interested in the co-evolution of surficial environments and life on Earth and Mars. Our research addresses the chemical development of the early oceans and atmosphere, and the environmental context of early evolution. Field mapping studies are the starting point for more topical laboratory-based studies involving geochemical, paleontological, and geochronological techniques.
Email: grotz@gps.caltech.edu
Joeseph L. Kirschvink
Nico and Marilyn Van Wingen Professor of Geobiology
Email: kirschvink@caltech.edu
Group website: http://www.gps.caltech.edu/users/jkirschvink/
Jared Leadbetter
Associate Professor of Environmental Microbiology
Email: jleadbetter@caltech.edu
Group website: http://www.its.caltech.edu/~jaredl/
Dianne K. Newman
Professor of Biology and Geobiology
In the Newman Lab, we take an interdisciplinary approach to studying the molecular mechanisms that underlie putatively ancient forms of metabolism. By understanding the way extant organisms function at the molecular level, we hope eventually to gain insights into the evolution of ancient metabolic and biomineralization pathways, interpret the chemical signatures of early life found in the geologic record, and understand how multicellular bacterial communities survive in the context of anaerobic infections.
Victoria J. Orphan
Assistant Professor of Geobiology
The Orphan lab is broadly interested in defining the specific metabolic roles of microorganisms within natural ecosystems, with an emphasis on methane, sulfur, and nitrogen cycling and microbe-microbe interactions (syntrophy) in anoxic and extreme environments. We use a combination of geochemical, isotopic, molecular, and metagenomic approaches to understand the metabolic and ecological relationships between uncultured microorganisms, specializing in high-resolution, single cell molecular and chemical analysis.
Email: vorphan@gps.caltech.edu
Group Website: http://www.gps.caltech.edu/people/vorphan/profile
Alex L. Sessions
Assistant Professor of Geobiology
Research in the Sessions lab uses the abundance, structure, and stable-isotopic composition of organic molecules present in earth materials (biota, water, sediment, rock) to study a range of questions in geobiology, geochemistry, and environmental science. Current projects include the biological control of hydrogen isotope fractionation in lipids, the origins of particulate organic matter in the modern oceans, the sulfurization of lipids in sediments, and records of environmental change during the Precambrian.
Email: als@gps.caltech.edu
Group website: http://www.gps.caltech.edu/~als/