Timothy Goudge
Appointment
CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholars 2021-2023
Earth 4D: Subsurface Science & Exploration
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About
Tim Goudge’s research program seeks to understand how geologic systems that operate on planetary surfaces (e.g., rivers, dunes, lakes) have shaped the landscapes we see across our Solar System, from Earth to Mars to Saturn’s moon Titan. In addition to studying modern planetary landscapes, his team also focuses on understanding the activity of ancient geologic processes as they are preserved in the sedimentary rock record.
Goudge’s scientific approach centers on the analysis of planetary mission remote sensing data, combined with field studies on Earth and numerical modeling approaches. By integrating information on the topography, stratigraphy, and mineralogy of planetary surfaces and sedimentary rock outcrops, the team aims to characterize the evolution of past planetary environments, for example the hydroclimate of Mars more than 3.5 billion years ago. These paleoenvironmental reconstructions help to inform a better understanding of planetary habitability, and settings in which life might have existed or been able to thrive.
Awards
- NASA Planetary Science Early Career Award, 2021
- AGU Ronald Greeley Early Career Award in Planetary Sciences, 2021
- G. Moses and Carolyn G. Knebel Distinguished Teaching Award, Department of Geological Sciences/The University of Texas at Austin, 2019, 2020
Relevant Publications
- Goudge, T. A., A. M. Morgan, G. Stucky de Quay, and C. I. Fassett (2021). The importance of lake breach floods for valley incision on early Mars. Nature, 597, 645–649, DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-03860-1.
Goudge, T. A., Fassett, C. I. & Mohrig, D. (2019). Incision of paleolake outlet canyons on Mars from overflow flooding. Geology, 47(1), 7–10. DOI: 10.1130/G45397.1.
Goudge, T. A., Milliken, R. E., Head, J. W., Mustard, J. F. & Fassett, C. I. (2017). Sedimentological evidence for a deltaic origin of the western fan deposit in Jezero crater, Mars and implications for future exploration. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 458, 357–365. DOI: 10.1016/j.epsl.2016.10.056.
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