Jeffrey Gillis-Davis has been promoted to research full professor effective July 1, 2021.
Gillis-Davis combines experiments, remote sensing, and sample analysis to study the geology of the Moon, Mercury, and asteroids. He has mapped the composition and morphology of the Moon and Mercury as a science team member of three NASA missions: Clementine, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Miniature Radio-Frequency team, and MESSENGER. To examine a process known as space weathering, he uses lasers to replicate the impact of dust-sized particles on the surfaces of these airless bodies.
Mark Alford, chair of the Department of Physics, said, "Professor Gillis-Davis is a leading member of our astromaterials thrust and an internationally prominent scientist. The department has benefited enormously from his prominent role in the NASA's Virtual Institute for Solar System Exploration Research, and his strong commitment to increasing diversity and equity in physics."
