Space Glasgow

I co-lead the UK Fireball Network that images fireballs and track meteorites to find out which asteroids they come from and where they land. We recently helped recover the Winchcombe meteorite in 2021.​

I use correlative microanalysis to analyse changes that occur in materials in response to space weathering.​

By studying water-rich meteorites, Martian meteorites and asteroid sample return mission materials we are uncovering new reservoirs of water in our Solar System and inferring how they evolve and interact on rocky bodies, to help answer the question where did Earth’s oceans come from?​

Projects​

• Imaging the night sky. The UK Fireball Network takes pictures of the night sky every 30 seconds from six different locations capturing fireballs and also weather, stars, satellites and others​
• Correlative microanalysis. Our analytical pipeline can be readily applied to uncover micro-nano-scale structural features of any material from rocks to satellite components

I study carbonaceous chondrites derived from primitive asteroids to explore the earliest history of the Solar System. This work uses an array of microscopy techniques including electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), X-ray computed tomography (XCT), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and atom probe tomography (APT). I analyse meteorites that have been recovered from Antarctica, samples that have been returned from primitive asteroids by spacecraft, and meteorites that have fallen recently to Earth including the UK’s very own Winchcombe. I also participate in searches for meteorites that have bene recorded to land in the UK by national fireball camera networks.

I am interested in the earliest history of asteroids and planets – when they were built, what they were made from, and how their constituent rocks and minerals evolved in response to heat, water and pressure. Understanding these processes is key to addressing fundamental questions including how and when Earth became a habitable planet.

Ask me about the Space Nanomaterials Atom Probe. This new analytical facility will enable us to study space materials in an unprecedented level of detail. I will be using it to find drops of liquid water that have preserved for 4500 million years in meteorites derived from primitive asteroids and can provide powerful new insights into the where in the early Solar System the asteroids formed, and how they evolved.

E-mail me at: Martin.Lee@Glasgow.ac.uk, or visit my webpage: Staff - Professor Martin R Lee

That is as diverse as smashing hydrated minerals with a projectile at 5 km/s or crushing up a 4-billion-year-old meteorite and dissolving its contents to search for the building blocks of life.

 

I then use its isotopic fingerprint to understand more about the extraterrestrial body it came from.

 

To find out more you can email me at Aine.obrien@glasgow.ac.uk or find me on Bluesky, LinkedIn, or on Instagram as aineonmars.

I measure the trace quantities of gases trapped in primitive meteorites to determine when they were ejected from their parent body and to identify if they preserve remnants of material that pre-dates the formation of the Solar System. 

Ask me about new ways to determine how the lunar surface has evolved. ​We have developed a method using Neon Isotopes produced by Galactic Cosmic Rays to determine how efficiently the upper few metres of lunar soil is gardened by meteroid impacts and electrostatic levitation.

Staff - Professor Fin Stuart

Applications of electrochemistry in space. For example, oxygen and hydrogen production from water under low gravity and extreme conditions, electrolysis of regoliths for oxygen and metal extraction and development of electrochemical systems for closed chemical cycles (e.g. for life support and resource recycling to support human space exploration). 

I work on developing autonomous mechatronic systems for extreme environments. In relation to space this includes developing extra-terrestrial exploration platforms (next generation rovers) and tools (sampling devices), satellite subsystems including sensor, actuator, and control design with an emphasis on the robust control of complex platforms (systems involving robot arms in space).