Dr. Ali M. Bramson, Principal Investigator/Assistant Professor

Ali uses remote sensing observations, such as those acquired with radar and imaging systems onboard spacecraft, to understand the geomorphological and geophysical characteristics of planets. She often combines observational analyses with theoretical modeling, as well as occasional field work at terrestrial analog sites and experimental studies. She works with spacecraft operations to target sites for new data acquisition. She is also involved in projects to plan for the future of human exploration of Mars and robotic spacecraft missions across the Solar System.

Kris Laferriere, Graduate Student

Kris completed her B.S. in Astronomy and Physics from the University of Maryland, College Park and joined Purdue in Fall 2020. She is interested in volatile driven surface processes across the Solar System. Kris' research is focused on the volatile transport and climatic history on Mars through radar observations of the polar spiral troughs. Her previous research includes studying cometary comas and analyzing variability of spectral signatures for lunar hydration.

Kris' Website

Santa Lucía Pérez Cortés, Graduate Student

Santa Lucía Pérez Cortés received her BS in Geology from the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez Campus in June 2022. During her undergraduate studies, she worked on research related to eolian geomorphology looking at scouring pits in the Medusa Fossae Formation and depressions across North Polar dunes on Mars. Currently, Santa is focused on studying the formation of landslides on different planetary bodies across the Solar System. She enjoys hiking, reading, and (whenever she gets the chance to go back home) warm weather.

Sam Harris, Graduate Student

Sam Harris earned his B.S. in Geosciences in 2024 from Florida Atlantic University where he worked on projects using radar to characterize biogenic gas production within peatlands. At Purdue, Sam is interested in using radar and modeling radar data to better understand subsurface features on the Earth, Moon, and Mars. Outside of research, he enjoys playing jazz (brass and guitar) and playing basketball.

Sam's Website

Christina Sowinski, Undergraduate Researcher

Christina is a sophomore from Union City, Indiana double majoring in Planetary Science and Geology & Geophysics. She is studying scouring pits in the Medusae Fossae Formation with Santa Lucía and hopes that gaining a better understanding of these aeolian features will provide insight into the MFF's composition and origin. In her free time, Christina enjoys hiking with her dog, backpacking, and playing frisbee.

Laura Sofia Pérez Mancipe, Undergraduate Researcher

Laura is an undergraduate student at Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia, pursuing a double major in Physics and Geosciences. She first joined the group as part of the Colombia Purdue Partnership and Purdue’s Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program and has stayed on for her senior thesis. She is researching the evolution of icy scarps in the Martian mid-latitudes, investigating how sublimation-driven processes shape scarp morphology and ridge formation. Her work specifically focuses on understanding the ages of the ridges present in Martian scarps and how their morphology varies between the northern and southern hemispheres.

Isabella Shockley, Undergraduate Researcher

Bella is a Planetary Sciences and Aeronautical & Astronautical Engineering double major at Purdue. She is investigating surface and shallow subsurface properties along the Endurance mission concept’s traverse on the Moon, contributing to the Endurance-P SURP grant with NASA JPL.

Kristel Izquierdo

Current: Postdoctoral Fellow at JHU Applied Physics Laboratory

Kris' Website

Riley McGlasson

Current: Postdoctoral Research Geologist at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Center for Earth and Planetary Studies

Riley's Website