Judson Mead Geologic Field Station

In my research I apply various microanalytical techniques (FTIR- H₂O and CO₂, EPMA- major elements, LA-ICP-MS- trace elements) to glasses and host phenocrysts to interpret the storage, evolution, and mobilization timescales that led to explosive eruptions.

My research focuses on the very initial fall deposits of explosive eruptions, where the aim is to investigate the processes that allow eruptions to start and stop, and what finally triggers the larger event.

Currently I am focused on applying different methods for determining decompression rate to the initial explosive deposits of the 3,600 year old Minoan eruption, the last caldera-forming event from Santorini, Greece.