Young Geologist Aims for Mars

By Dawn Dorsey

Ulyana Horodyskyj ’07, is a perfect example of what can happen at Rice when an undergraduate is curious and hungry for educational experiences outside the classroom.

Last summer, Horodyskyj made an oral presentation at an international conference in Australia on her research comparing the ancient Earth with that of today. More recently, she presented a poster about Kilauea, the world’s most active volcano, at the annual meeting of the Geological Society of America. The poster presentation involved using volcanology to educate the geoscience community about a field camp experience for undergraduate and graduate students. The poster got even more use when Horodyskyj educated girls about science and volcanology at the Sally Ride Science Festival and the Department of Earth Science’s Girl Scout Day.

All of this came about because of a three-week geology field trip to Hawaii she took during a class with Cin-Ty Lee, assistant professor of Earth science. “I enjoyed it so much that I asked Dr. Lee if I could work with him more,” she says. “I never expected it would go this far; I just wanted some experience.”

Her research on the ancient Earth is a result of a 15-month project comparing the chemical signatures of billion-year-old metamorphic rocks from Africa and Siberia to younger rocks from the Sierra Nevada in California. “You can see similarities in the two chemistries,” Horodyskyj says. “This potentially shows us that the modern-day style of continental formation may have been operating at least in some part in ancient times.”

Horodyskyj sees her presentations as a way to return to Rice the favor of allowing her to have such rich and varied field and research experiences while still an undergraduate. In addition to going to Hawaii, she has traveled to New Mexico, Colorado, California, Alberta, British Columbia, Belize and Australia. “I believe it is the responsibility of scientists to do something with their knowledge, to give back to the community,” Horodyskyj says. “What better way to give back to Rice than to go to a conference and show how the knowledge I’ve gained here can help others?”

Horodyskyj, whose grandparents emigrated from Ukraine before her birth, is applying for Ph.D. programs in planetary science. “I want to use my background and understanding of geological terrains and volcanoes to do comparative planetology, particularly of Mars,” she says. “After graduate school, I plan to try for the astronaut corps.”

In the meantime, Horodyskyj is setting her sights on another field trip this summer—maybe to Alaska.