I'm Sarah

Hello!

I'm glad you found me!

I'm in the second year of my Geochemistry PhD program at UCLA, studying the origin of radionuclides in the galaxy and modeling the chemistry of exoplanet atmospheres.

I grew up on the north shore of Chicago and attended the University of Missouri with the intention of learning about the neurology of zebra fish. However, after taking an elective Astronomy course in my sophomore year, I became fascinated with the lives and deaths of stars and immediately changed majors. I graduated with a degree in Astrophysics and minors in writing and mathematics in 2018.

Along the way, I became the first physics student accepted into the graduate writing tutor program and spent many nights volunteering at the Laws Observatory on the roof of our physics building. These two experiences led me to an outreach position at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center with the Hubble Space Telescope, writing content for their website, social media, and exhibits. I then spend two summers in Godard's Astrochemistry lab, which kickstarted my interest in exoplanets and their atmospheres.

Soon after, I was offered the opportunity to spend a whole year working in that lab - an experience that solidified my desire to make the study of our Universe my career.

When I'm not spending time hunting down leaks in my vacuum lines or scouring my code for missing paratheses, I love spending time outside. I love golfing, hiking, yoga, kayaking, and hope to learn to sail and surf. I also enjoy playing board games, Dungeons and Dragons, being picky about coffee, and reading.

Birth of the Solar System

Radionuclides in general, and short-lived radionuclides (SLRs) in particular, are powerful tools that we can use to probe the origins of the Solar System and history of our galaxy. Although the SLRs present during the birth of the Solar System have long since decayed, the decay products that found in meteorites suggest that the solar nebula was rich with SLRs. The recent discovery that nuclides produced by the rapid neutron-capture process (r-process) may be produced mainly in kilonova events (e.g., neutron star mergers, neutron star-black hole mergers, etc.) rather than supernovae has reignited the concept that discrete events may be recorded in the abundances of the radionuclides. I use modern simulations of the r-process in different astrophysical settings to test whether or not the solar abundances of r-process nuclides are consistent with kilonova sources.

Evolution of the ISM

Two competing models have been put forth by cosmochemists to explain the abundances of Solar System radionuclides. The first is a one-phase interstellar medium (ISM) in which single, discrete events are responsible for the solar abundances deduced from studies of meteoritical materials. The alternative model, the two-phase ISM, suggests that the Solar System sampled averages accrued over time in the star forming region in which the Sun formed. Both models predict variations in relative abundances of radionuclides as a function of their radioactive mean lives (or half-lives). However, the precise nature of these correlations is different and serve as tests of the two different scenarios for acquiring radionuclides in the birth environment of the Solar System. I am working to evluate these models using meteorite data and modern astrophysical simulations.

Atmospheres of Hot Jupiters

As modeling the spectra of exoplanet atmospheres becomes increasingly important in anticipation of JWST, laboratory data can serve as a validation tool for spectra modeled for non-terrestrial conditions. Refractory clouds present in the atmospheres of Hot Jupiters will likely obscure what lies beneath, so they are an important tool to infer the properties of the atmosphere below. I built an apparatus to collect spectra of refractory cloud condensates expected to be present in Hot Jupiter atmospheres at high temperatures (1200 K). These spectra can serve as references when observing Hot Jupiters with the next generation of telescopes, validate model spectra being generated by atmospheric scientists, and be used to extract optical constants for materials that have previously been collected at near-ambient temperatures.

Planetary Core Density Deficit

The terrestrial planets in the Solar System consist of a central, metallic core surrounded by a rocky mantle. The metallic cores of Earth and Mars are thought to contain light elements in addition to iron, since they are under-dense by roughly 10% compared to a core of pure iron. These elements may be a combination of Si, O, C, S, or H, but the dominant element remains up for debate. I am working to constrain these possibilities by comparing the moment of inertia corresponding to weight percents of specific light elements in the planets' cores to the measured moments of inertia.

Outreach

My interest in astronomy was born from an excellent class and a series of wonderful lectures on the lifecycles of stars by a physicist that was enthusiastic about answering my questions. As such, it is very important to me that young scientists and the public at large have fun, interesting, and accessible space-related content with which to engage. My passion for outreach is fueled both by this mission and the reaffirmation of my love of science that accompanies it.

A small sample of my favorite public engagment projects that I created for the Hubble Space Telescope are linked below.

Explore the Northern Hemisphere's night sky by with Hubble's Messier Catalog!

Learn to observe astronomical objects from most locations on Earth using Hubble's Caldwell Catalog!

Discover where Hubble was pointing on any day of the year by playing with this tool I created using data from the telescope's archive!

CV

Elements

i = 0;

while (!deck.isInOrder()) {
    print 'Iteration ' + i;
    deck.shuffle();
    i++;
}

print 'It took ' + i + ' iterations to sort the deck.';