Understanding the Geologic Evolution of the Solar System through Studies of Meteorites

陨石是太阳系中我们不容易到达的地方的样本。通过将现有的高科技方法分析这些外星岩石样本，我们可以了解它们是如何以及何时形成的，在它们的母星上影响它们的过程，以及它们是如何和何时被送到地球上的。陨石来自火星和木星轨道之间小行星带上的小行星，也来自月球和火星。除了月球和可能的两颗小行星外，这些陨石是我们拥有的唯一的母行星样本。阿尔伯塔大学陨石收藏是加拿大最大的大学陨石收藏，收藏了来自世界各地的155种不同陨石的1000多个标本。 我的研究项目包括应用最先进的工具来分析陨石中矿物的成分，以便更好地了解它们形成的条件。特别关注的是来自火星的陨石，那些来自具有类似行星内部的小行星的陨石，以及通过观察行星的形成来追溯太阳系最开始的陨石，包括我们知道的对生命很重要的分子是如何形成的。通过陨石，我们在时间和空间上探索太阳系的地质，并对地球及其在太阳系中的独特位置有了更好的了解。

Meteorites are samples of places in our Solar System where we cannot easily go. By applying existing, high-tech ways of analyzing rocks to these extraterrestrial samples, we can learn about how and when they formed, the processes that have affected them on their parent planet, and how and when they were delivered to the Earth. Meteorites come from asteroids in the asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, from the Moon and from Mars. With the exception of the Moon and possibly two asteroids, the meteorites are the only samples we have of their parent planets. The University of Alberta Meteorite Collection is the largest University-based collection in Canada, home to over 1000 specimens of 155 different meteorites from around the world. My research program involves applying state-of-the-art tools to analyze the compositions of minerals within meteorites, in order to gain a better understanding of the conditions under which they formed. Particular focus is on meteorites from Mars, those from asteroids that have planet-like interiors, and meteorites that peer through the formation of planets to see back to the very beginning of the Solar System, including a look at how molecules that we know are important for life came to be. Through meteorites we explore the geology of the Solar System in time and space, and come to a better understanding of the Earth and its unique place in the Solar System.