About Me

I grew up in southern California, and moved to New York City for college, where I pursued my lifelong fascination with the cosmos by completing my bachelor's degree in Astrophysics at Columbia University. My growing interest in the diversity of planets and their compositions led me to pursue graduate study in planetary sciences after a post-baccalaureate research position at the American Museum of Natural History. I returned to Columbia University to pursue my PhD as a student in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, and as a researcher in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at the American Museum of Natural History. When not thinking about meteorites, I love to read and browse bookstores, rock climb, hike, try new coffee shops across New York City, and surf when I find myself near an ocean.

Marina Gemma

Education

Columbia University
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences

Ph.D. (December 2022)
M.Phil. Earth and Environmental Sciences (2020)
M.A. Earth and Environmental Sciences (2018)
Advisor: Denton Ebel

  

Columbia University
Department of Astronomy

B.A. Astrophysics (2015)
with a concentration (minor) in Earth Science

Awards and Honors

NASA Travel Award (2022, 2021)
Travel Grant ($1.6k, $1.14k)
83rd & 84th Meteoritical Society Meeting
Glasgow, UK & Chicago, IL

Chevron Student Initiative Fund Award (2021)
Research Grant ($800)
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
Columbia University

Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant Award (2020)
Course: Introduction to Mineralogy
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences
Columbia University

Student Poster Award (2020)
Travel Grant ($1k)
Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI)
NASA Exploration Science Forum

Kade Fellowship (2020)
Fellowship ($9.5k)
American Museum of Natural History

Student Poster Award (2018)
Travel Grant ($1k)
Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI)
NASA Exploration Science Forum

Dean's Fellow (2016 - 2022)
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Columbia University

Intel Independent Research Grant (2010)
Research Grant ($500)
Intel Corporation

Publications

  1. Calamari, E., Faherty, J. K., Visscher, C., Gemma, M. E., Burningham, B., and Rothermich, A. (2024). Predicting Cloud Conditions in Substellar Mass Objects Using Ultracool Dwarf Companions. The Astrophysical Journal, (accepted; preprint)
  2. Vos, J. M., Burningham, B., Faherty, J. K., Alejandro, S., Gonzales, E. C., Calamari, E., Bardalez-Gagliuffi, D., Visscher, C., Tan, X., Morley, C. V., Marley, M., Gemma, M. E., Whiteford, N., Gaarn, J., and Park, G. (2023). Patchy Forsterite Clouds in the Atmospheres of Two Exoplanet Analogs. The Astrophysical Journal, 944(2), 138. doi: 10.3847/1538-4357/acab58
  3. Calamari, E., Faherty, J. K., Burningham, B., Gonzales, E. C., Bardalez-Gagliuffi, D., Vos, J. M., Gemma, M. E., Whiteford, N., and Gaarn, J. (2022). An Atmospheric Retrieval of the Brown Dwarf Gliese 229B. The Astrophysical Journal, 940(2), 164. doi: 10.3847/1538-4357/ac9cc9
  4. Breitenfeld, L. B., Rogers, A. D., Glotch, T. D., Hamilton, V. E., Christensen, P. R., Lauretta, D. S., Gemma, M. E., Howard, K. T., Ebel, D. S., Kim, G., Kling, A. M., Nekvasil, H., Lindsley, D. H., and DiFrancesco, N. J. (2021). Machine Learning Mid-Infrared Spectral Models for Modal Mineralogy Predictions of CI/CM Chondritic Asteroids and Bennu. Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, 126, e2021JE007035, doi: 10.1029/2021JE007035
  5. Ustunisik, G., Ebel, D. S., Walker, D., Nielsen, R. L., and Gemma, M. (2019). Trace Element Partitioning Between CAI-Type Melts and Grossite, Melilite, Hibonite, and Olivine. Geochimica Et Cosmochimica Acta, 267, 124-146. doi: 10.1016/j.gca.2019.08.038
  6. Mukadam, A., Pyrzas, S., Townsley, D., Gansicke, B., Hermes, J., Szkody, P., Kemp, J., Patterson, J., Ding, C., Wolf, K., Gemma, M., Karamehmetoglu, E., and Rock, J. (2016). Constraining the Angular Momentum Evolution of V455 Andromedae. The Astrophysical Journal, 821(1), 14. doi: 10.3847/0004-637X/821/1/14

Selected Conference Talks

(2023) Trace Element Distribution Among Components and Phases in CV Chondrites . 85th Annual Meeting of the Meteoritical Society.

(2022) Effects of Metal Fraction, Petrologic Type, Temperature, and Particle Size on VNIR Spectra of Ordinary Chondrite Meteorites. 84th Annual Meeting of the Meteoritical Society.

(2021) Correlations of Multi-dimensional Structural, Chemical, and Spectral Data: Increasing Access, Awareness, and Availability of Museum Sample Measurement History. Astromaterials Data Management in the Era of Sample-Return Missions Community Workshop (virtual).

(2021) Effects of Temperature, Particle Size, and Petrologic Type on VNIR Spectra of Ordinary Chondrite Meteorites. 53rd Annual Meeting of the AAS Division for Planetary Sciences. (virtual)

(2021) Trace Element Diversity of Chondrule Mesostasis in CV and CR Chondrites. . 83rd Annual Meeting of the Meteoritical Society.

(2020) Planetary Data Visualization Using OpenSpace. Lunar and Small Bodies Graduate Conference (LunGradCon). (virtual)

(2019) Mapping Mineral Diversity in Ordinary Chondrite Meteorites. Lunar and Small Bodies Graduate Conference (LunGradCon).

Conference Proceedings

(2021) Evaluating Mineral Variation and Metal Coarsening Across Petrologic Types of H Chondrite Meteorites Gemma, M. E., and Ebel, D. S. NASA Exploration Science Forum & European Lunar Symposium, Poster #7.

(2021) Mineral Abundance, Variation, and Coarsening Across Petrologic Types of H Chondrite Meteorites. Gemma, M. E. and Ebel, D. S. Lunar and Planetary Science Conference LII, Abstract #2768.

(2021) OpenSpace: Interactive Public Outreach in a Virtual World. Gemma, M. E., Roe, C., Acinapura, M., Emmart, C., Ebel, D. S., Kinzler, R., Trakinski, V., Abbott, B. and Smith, R. L. Lunar and Planetary Science Conference LII, Abstract #2206.

(2020) Multi-dimensional Characterization of Mineral Abundance in Ordinary Chondrite Meteorites. Gemma, M. E., and Ebel, D. S. NASA Exploration Science Forum, Poster #30.

(2020) OpenSpace: Development updates and education applications. Gemma, M. E., Roe, C., Emmart, C., Trakinski, V., Smith, R. L., Acinapura, M., Abbott, B., Ebel, D. S., and Kinzler, R. Lunar and Planetary Science Conference LI, Abstract #2392.

(2020) Multi-dimensional Characterization of Mineral Diversity in Ordinary Chondrite Meteorites. Gemma, M. E., and Ebel, D. S. Lunar and Planetary Science Conference LI, Abstract #2588.

(2019) Mapping Mineral Diversity in LL Chondrites. Gemma, M. E., and Ebel, D. S. Goldschmidt Abstracts, 2019. Abstract #1112.

(2019) Visualizing the Universe Using OpenSpace. Gemma, M. E., Ebel, D. S., Emmart, C., Trakinski, V., Acinapura, M., Abbott, B., and Kinzler, R. Gordon Research Conference (Origin of Solar Systems).

(2019) Data Exploration Using OpenSpace. Gemma, M. E., Emmart, C., Trakinski, V., Smith, R. L., Acinapura, M., Abbott, B., Ebel, D. S., and Kinzler, R. (2019). Lunar and Planetary Science Conference L, Abstract #3178.

(2018) Visible-Near-Infrared (VNIR) Reflectance Spectroscopy of Ordinary Chondrite Meteorites Under Simulated Asteroid Surface Conditions. Gemma, M. E., Shirley, K. A., Glotch, T. D., and Ebel, D. S. NASA Exploration Science Forum, Poster.

(2018) Rare Earth Elements in CV Carbonaceous Chondrite Components. Crapster-Pregont, E. J., Gemma, M., and Ebel, D. S. (2018). Lunar and Planetary Science Conference XLIX, Abstract #2933.

(2018) OpenSpace: Setting the universe free. Crapster-Pregont, E. J., M. E. Gemma, C. Emmart, V. Trakinski, R. L. Smith, D. S. Ebel and R. Kinzler. Lunar and Planetary Science Conference XLIX, Abstract #2111.

Teaching Experience

Lecturing on chondrites to the Fall 2018 Secrets of the Solar System class in the Hall of Meteorites at AMNH.

Teaching was an integral part of my graduate experience. The courses I have taught cover a wide variety of subjects across the high school, undergraduate, and graduate levels.

Department of Education
American Museum of Natural History
Astrophysics Research Educator

  • Secrets of the Solar System
The After School program at AMNH offers free science courses that are open to any interested high school students in the New York City area. The courses are co-taught by a high school teacher and a research scientist. In my role as an Astrophysics Research Educator, I co-taught multiple iterations of the Secrets of the Solar System course, an introduction to planetary science and solar system astronomy, as part of the After School Program. Additionally, I have been a guest lecturer for numerous space-focused elementary and middle school classes run by the Department of Education at AMNH.

Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences
Columbia University
Graduate Teaching Assistant

  • EESC UN1011 Earth: Origin, Evolution, Processes, Future
  • EESC UN2100 Earth's Environmental Systems: The Climate System
  • EESC GU4113 Introduction to Mineralogy
I have taught at the non-major (EESC UN1011), major (EESC 2100) and graduate (GU4113) levels in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Columbia. I received the Undergraduate Student Committee Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant Award in 2020 (nominated and selected by students) for my efforts in the graduate course Introduction to Mineralogy, where I overhauled existing course content, sample access, and created digital resources for students to better engage with the material.

Department of Astronomy
Columbia University
Undergraduate Teaching Assistant

  • ASTR C1453 Another Earth
  • ASTR C1610 Theories of the Universe

Research Advising & Mentoring Experience

AMNH REU student Julia Gonzales giving her final project presentation in August 2019.

My involvement in the AMNH REU program has provided me with extensive research mentorship experience.

Physical Sciences REU Program
American Museum of Natural History
Research Mentor
Mentees:

  • Rheanna Fleming (2021; Primary Mentor)
    •   Williams College
      Project: Variations in Mineral Abundance and Morphology of LL3 Ordinary Chondrites

  • Darby McDaniel (2020; Co-mentor)
    •   Arizona State University
      Project: Improving Efficiency of Laser-Ablation Mass Spectrometry Data Reduction for Chondritic Meteorites

  • Julia Gonzales (2019; Primary Mentor)
    •   University of California, Los Angeles
      Project: Methods in Assessing Trace Element Distributions in CV Chondrites
      (now a graduate student with our group at Columbia University/AMNH)

  • Alexander Kling (2018; Co-mentor)
    •   Stony Brook University
      Project: Modal and Mineral Abundance Analysis of Enstatite Chondrites Using Electron Microprobe X-Ray Mapping
      (now a graduate student at Purdue University)

Women in Science at Columbia (WISC) Undergraduate Mentoring Program
Columbia University
Graduate School/Career Mentor

REU Mentoring Program
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
Graduate School/Career Mentor

Professional Experience

Lunar Graduate Conference (LunGradCon)
Conference Organizer
Organizer for the annual LunGradCon, a conference run by graduate students, for graduate students studying the moon and small bodies. Precedes the annual NASA Exploration Science Forum at NASA Ames.

#HackTheSolarSystem Hackathon @ AMNH
Scientific Advisor/Project Stakeholder
Scientific advisor for the ”Meteorite Mineral Mapping” project at AMNH’s annual hackathon.

UCLA Ion Microprobe Student Workshop (2020)
Participant in the 2020 UCLA Ion Microprobe Workshop, where I learned about sample preparation, data reduction practices, and applications for Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS).

International Summer School for Astrobiology
NASA Summer School Scholar (2017)
Participant in the 2017 International Summer School for Astrobiology, which explored the theme of "exoplanet habitability" and the many fields of study that contribute to our understanding of it.