NASA Postdoctoral Program - Planetary Mineralogy and Petrology

The NASA Postdoctoral Program (NPP) offers unique research opportunities to highly-talented scientists to engage in ongoing NASA research projects at a NASA Center, NASA Headquarters, or at a NASA-affiliated research institute. These one- to three-year fellowships are competitive and are designed to advance NASA's missions in space science, Earth science, aeronautics, space operations, exploration systems, and astrobiology. This specific opportunity seeks highly motivated postdoctoral candidates interested in pursuing research in planetary mineralogy and petrology through the analysis of astromaterials and/or through experimental petrology. The research focuses on determining the abundances and roles of volatiles (H2O, F, Cl, S, C, N) in magmatic systems within terrestrial planetary bodies, including Earth, Moon, Mars, Venus, Mercury, and asteroids. Additionally, candidates will investigate the thermal and magmatic evolution of terrestrial planets under a variety of conditions relevant to planet formation from core formation to crust formation. The position is located at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, under the advisorship of Dr. Francis McCubbin.