Dawn Science

By Britney Schmidt, University of Texas, Austin, TX

Hi! I'm Dr Britney Schmidt from the University of Texas. I received my PhD at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in June of 2010. Most of my work at UCLA involved studying large asteroids that we call "protoplanets," especially those who have or once had large amounts of water in them. My Thesis involved using Hubble Space Telescope and theoretical models to study Pallas and Vesta. While at UCLA, I was supported by the Dawn mission and now continue my work as a member of the Dawn Education and Public Outreach team as a science advisor.

I am currently a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics (UTIG) in Austin. Here, I can continue my love of ice by studying cryospheres of the solar system, focusing specifically on Europa, an icy moon of Jupiter, and the Earth's polar regions. I use Galileo spacecraft data and Earth analogs to study Europa's ice shell and how radar can be used to study this moon. At UTIG, I'm a member of the ICECAP project that studies the Earth's poles. I have just returned from my first season working out of a DC-3 aircraft flying over Antarctica studying the ice, ocean and geophysics of the continent below the ice using ice penetrating radar, magnetometry, gravity, and altimetry.

I am excited to talk about all of the great science and exciting aspects of the Dawn Mission, and will be happy to answer questions about Dawn, the asteroids, and given time, even some about my work with Europa and the Earth.