Dr. Ricardo Arevalo Jr. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geology at UMD, and Director of the M-CLASS Laboratory. He has expertise in the advancement of in situ methods of chemical analysis, particularly: magnetic sector, Orbitrap, time-of-flight, and linear ion trap mass spectrometry; laser ablation and desorption sample processing; and, electron probe microanalysis (EPMA). His scientific research focuses on the analysis of planetary materials (meteorites and analog samples), establishing compositional models of planetary interiors, and characterizing the biosignature preservation potential of different mineral phases. He is the PI of the ICEE 2/CORALS, DALI/CRATER, and PICASSO/Miniature ICPMS investigations, and served as a member of the SAM Science Team and the Product Development Lead (PDL) for the mass spectrometer subsystem of the MOMA instrument on ExoMars. He maintains a role on the MOMA Science Team and the Steering Committee for the NASA Network for Life Detection (NfoLD).

Lucas earned a B.Sc. in Geology and a minor in Chemistry at the University of Florida. Now as a Ph.D. student he is interested in exploring and understanding other planetary bodies in our solar system such as the icy worlds and Earth’s Moon. His research interests include geochemistry, analytical chemistry, petrology, and astrobiology. He is also passionate in learning about spaceflight instrumentation in order to provide in-situ chemical data that will aid in the understanding of the evolution of our solar system’s bodies. Outside of work he likes to go hiking and to weightlift and he hopes to amass the best mineral and rock collection in the laboratory.

Dr. Farcy received his Ph.D from the University of Maryland in 2021, specializing in both planetary geology and instrumentation for landed spaceflight missions. Funded through the NASA PICASSO program, Dr. Farcy constructed a miniature ICP-MS (inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer) as a prototype for a spaceflight instrument for in situ geochemical analysis of trace elements on planetary surfaces. These efforts included a lunar landing site analysis, identification of science goals of a planetary mission deploying an ICP-MS to the Moon, and a proxy study of the heat-producing element (K, Th, and U) systematics of the Earth-Moon system. Dr. Farcy will be working to develop the PLASMA (Pulsed Laser Ablation and Sampling Mass Analyzer) instrument for spaceflight.Prior to joining the M-CLASS lab, Dr. Farcy received his B.S. from Indiana University and his M.S. from Southern Illinois University, both in geology. He also worked as a contractor at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center to test and develop mass spectrometers as biosignature detection methods.

Ashley Hanna received her BS in Biochemistry from Georgia Institute of Technology where she worked for two years after completing of her degree in Dr. Amanda Stockton's lab and then Dr. Britney Schmidt's lab. She was a core member of the VERNE mission concept with Dr. Schmidt for two years as an Analytical Chemist. Ashley is interested in using Mass Spectrometry to answer questions pertaining to Astrobiology and Planetary Science such as if life exists on another planet or moon in our solar system. She will be a member of the AROMA (Advanced Resolution Organic Molecular Analyzer) team working on integration and testing of the engineering unit as well as researching the relationship between minerals and organic molecules that represent potential biosignatures of life. This work will also support the Mars Organic Molecule Analyzer (MOMA) instrument on the ESA 2022 Rosalind Franklin Rover. Outside of research, Ashley competes in the USA Powerlifting Federation where she has become one of the youngest National Referees in the country. She also enjoys hiking to beautiful places with her Nikon DSLR camera.

Grace was trained as a geologist. During her Ph.D., she became interested in understanding life’s origin, distribution, and evolution in the Universe via laboratory simulation, computational modeling, and experimental observation. Her three main research areas focus on primitive Earth conditions, prebiotic processes to synthesize organic compounds, and the development of analytical techniques and operational strategies to search for life’s signatures via spaceflight instrumentations. She is passionate about navigating communications between engineering and science communities, focusing on developing operational strategies and analytical innovations that can maximize scientific return with minimum technological risks and financial costs. She loves dessert, adores chic clothes, and lives an active lifestyle. Outside of work, she is training for an ironman 70.3 and searching for delicious sweets.

Megan went to Stonehill College in Massachusetts where she got a B.S. in Earth and Planetary Science (2022) and did research searching for intermediate mass black holes in merging dwarf galaxies. She is interested in the the physical and chemical evolution of the terrestrial planets and the moon, and her research is focused on in situ geochemical measurements of the moon via space flight instrumentation. In her free time she likes to travel to national parks (her favorites are Zion and Glacier) and also play soccer. 

Maddy Raith is a senior undergraduate student at UMD, majoring in geology and minoring in planetary sciences. She is interested in studying planetary geochemistry, mineralogy, and spaceflight instrumentation. She started research with M-Class in Fall 2020 working on laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS) to investigate the concentrations of key trace elements in mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB). She has also examined the first-row transition elements to understand the composition of the depleted MORB mantle. Her senior thesis project focuses on the mineralogical effects on organic detectability in mars analog sediments from iceland. When she is not in the lab, Maddy enjoys playing ice hockey, baking, and hanging out with her cat Hazel.

Dr. Soumya Ray received her Ph.D. from Arizona State University. At ASU, Soumya was a NASA Earth and Space Science Fellow and her research involved utilizing stable isotope compositions of meteorites as proxies for planetary differentiation processes including core formation and partial melting. She has also worked on the mechanical properties of iron meteorites and their implications for asteroid (16) Psyche. At UMD, Soumya will be working on the CRATER (Characterization of Regolith and Trace Economic Resources) and CORALS (Characterization of Ocean Realms And Life Signatures) projects.

Sourabh Shubham graduated with an Integrated B.S. & M.S. degree in Applied Geology from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur, India in 2020. Sourabh’s research involves supporting the integration and testing of an instrument suite called KArLE (Potassium-Argon Laser Experiment) at NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center, which will enable in-situ chronology experiments and geochemical analysis on extraterrestrial bodies such as the Moon and Mars. His research at UMD involves implementing machine learning algorithms to classify and characterize lunar lithology, and remote sensing techniques to study lunar geochemistry. He is interested in contributing to future planetary missions, including the search for lunar and Martian exploration zones. In his free time, he enjoys creating 3D animations or playing tennis, and is a self-proclaimed chef.