My research is focused on three aspects of impact cratering: the creation of habitable environments, age determination via 40Ar/39Ar geochronology, and shock metamorphism.
My current research project is investigating micro-tunnels in impact-generated glasses in order to determine whether or not they are biotic in origin, and if so, whether or not the biota colonised the site as the result of an impact-induced hydrothermal system. The samples for this study come from the Ries, Boltysh, Dellen, and Rochechouart impact structures.
I am also working on the geochronology of terrestrial impact structures, including Chicxulub, Boltysh, and Gow Lake, and I am studying the effects of shock metamorphism on feldspar group minerals from Chicxulub.
Where did life originate? Hydrothermal systems (where heat and water interact) are prime candidates. Such systems can form by collision of an asteroid with a planet, forming an impact crater. However, the duration of hydrothermal activity, and therefore the opportunity for life to develop, remains unknown. My research is focussed on determining the duration of impact-generated hydrothermal systems throughout the solar system by combining empirical measurements with numerical simulations. Results will illuminate windows of opportunity for the development of life in hydrothermal systems, thereby furthering our understanding of the origin of life and informing the search for life on other planets.
