Laurie Barge
Dr. Laurie Barge is a Senior Research Scientist at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Barge co-founded and co-leads the JPL Origins and Habitability Laboratory which studies how life can emerge and be detected in planetary environments. She is interested in elemental redox cycling, mineral catalyzed organic reactions, and studies of hydrothermal vents in the lab and in the field. Dr. Barge is the HiRISE Investigation Scientist on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, a Mars Science Laboratory Participating Scientist, and the Ocean Worlds Program Area Scientist for JPL’s Planetary Science Directorate. She is the co-founder and Board of Directors co-chair of the Scientific Society for Astrobiology, a new professional society for astrobiology (the study of the origins, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the Universe). Dr. Barge has 15+ years of experience in outreach and mentoring and has a particular interest in helping graduate and undergraduate students find paths into research and STEM careers.
Dr. Barge received her B.S. in Astronomy and Astrophysics from Villanova University and her Ph.D. in Geological Sciences from the University of Southern California. After graduate school she was a Caltech Postdoctoral Scholar and then a NASA Astrobiology Institute Postdoctoral Fellow. For her research Barge has received various awards including the JPL Lew Allen Award, the NASA Early Career Public Achievement Medal, the Rosalind Franklin Society Award in Science, and the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers.
More links:
https://science.jpl.nasa.gov/people/barge/