Job Description:

This postdoctoral position is to conduct research related to the biosignature preservation potential of Ocean World ices exposed to space-like combinations of temperature, pressure, and radiation. Research activities would include contributing to experiments using the Europa Tower (Stone Aerospace Facility) to provide cryogenic temperatures, hard vacuum, a large ice column, and sources of ionizing and UV radiation to ice samples doped with biogenic materials. Experiments include (i) those in which candidate biosignatures are mixed and frozen to simulate accreted sub-surface ices transported to the near subsurface and (ii) the flash freezing of ices by depositing microdroplets into vacuum to simulate geyser-derived materials. Measurements will be made on the experimental products using GC-MS and the postdoctoral associate will make the measurements, analyze the data, prepare manuscripts, and present the results at conferences. There will be op...