Jump to content
Join the Alien Search, login or register FREE on Aliens and Space Forum
Members Can Post Anonymously On This Site

Ocean Worlds Planetary Scientist Dr. Lynnae Quick

NASA

By NASA
in NASA

 Share

Recommended Posts

  • Publishers
NASA Mentor

NASA

Posted
  • Publishers
Posted
A woman that's standing in the woods wearing a red blouse and red suit jacket smiles widely at the camera.

“I was not interested in science until I got to high school, and I didn’t find what I wanted to focus on as far as what I liked the most about science until I was in grad school. I spent a summer doing an internship at Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab focused on Jupiter’s moon Europa, completely fell in love with Europa, and completely fell in love with planetary science. 

“I found it amazing that this world was covered in ice and had an ocean underneath. I was mapping this area on Europa called Conamara Chaos, where we believe that the surface is locally heated. Because of this, there are ginormous icebergs that broke off and floated around in this slushy ice, so I learned to map [that part of the surface]. Having my physics and math background and thinking about a world with a subsurface ocean, I was like, ‘OK, this is a good marriage of fluid mechanics and heat transfer. Europa is a nice world to study that will combine my background with this new planetary science thing that I love.’

“What happened with Europa Clipper was I decided to do my dissertation topic on [the moon]. We’d seen images of these beautiful south polar plumes on Enceladus, these geyser-like plumes, but Europa is much bigger. It has much more water and receives much more tidal heating. Why didn’t the Galileo spacecraft see plumes on Europa? Why don’t we see geysers?

“My dissertation focused on what it would take to have this geyser activity on Europa and for spacecraft cameras to image it. I remember defending my dissertation well but sitting there thinking, ‘People will think I’m a quack because we’ve never seen geysers on Europa.’ That was in May, and by December, LorenzRoth’s paper came out that Hubble may have detected geysers on Europa. That’s when I was like, ‘Oh yes, I might actually have a career!’

“Shortly after that, the call came out for instrument proposals. Zibi Turtle [Principal Investigator for the Europa Imaging System] met me at a conference and said, ‘We’re writing a proposal for a camera for the Europa mission. Would you want to be on it?’ At that point, I was a year out of my Ph.D. and was like, ‘Are you kidding me?’ Because that usually never happens. Usually, the people on these instrument teams are more senior. They’ve been around longer, so it’s very rare to be just finishing up your Ph.D. and someone asks you. I felt like it was the best thing in the world because Europa was already my favorite place in the solar system. It would be like a dream to be on the team that will send a spacecraft there to study it. That doesn’t happen very often. So, I said, ‘Sure. I would love to.’

“Our camera got selected, and is an instrument on the Europa Clipper mission, and my role on the team is to look for those geysers! I’ve come a long way from thinking, ‘Well, I did this whole dissertation on geysers, what it would take for them to erupt, for a spacecraft to see them, and that people might not take me seriously as a scientist because of it,’ to being on the Europa Clipper camera team involved in investigating these plumes and ensuring we can image them if they’re there. It’s a full-circle moment.” 

– Dr. Lynnae Quick, Ocean Worlds Planetary Scientist, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

Image Credit: NASA/Thalia Patrinos
Interviewer: NASA/Tahira Allen

Check out some of our other Faces of NASA. 

View the full article

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Similar Topics

    • NASA
      Discovery Alert: Scientists Spot a Planetary Carousel
      By NASA
      This artist’s concept animation shows the orbital dynamics of KOI-134 system which, in 2025, a paper revealed to have two planets: KOI-134 b and KOI-134 c. NASA/JPL-Caltech/K. Miller (Caltech/IPAC) The Planets
      KOI-134 b and KOI-134 c 
      This artist’s concept shows the KOI-134 system which, in 2025, a paper revealed to have two planets: KOI-134 b and KOI-134 c. NASA/JPL-Caltech/K. Miller (Caltech/IPAC) The Discovery
      A new investigation into old Kepler data has revealed that a planetary system once thought to house zero planets actually has two planets which orbit their star in a unique style, like an old-fashioned merry-go-round. 
      Key Facts
      The KOI-134 system contains two planets which orbit their star in a peculiar fashion on two different orbital planes, with one planet exhibiting significant variation in transit times. This is the first-discovered system of its kind. 
      Details 
      Over a decade ago, scientists used NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope to observe the KOI-134 system and thought that it might have a planet orbiting, but they deemed this planet candidate to be a false positive, because its transits (or passes in front of its star) were not lining up as expected. These transits were so abnormal that the planet was actually weeded out through an automated system as a false positive before it could be analyzed further. 
      However, NASA’s commitment to openly sharing scientific data means that researchers can constantly revisit old observations to make new discoveries. In this new study, researchers re-analyzed this Kepler data on KOI-134 and confirmed that not only is the “false positive” actually a real planet, but the system has two planets and some really interesting orbital dynamics! 
      First, the “false positive” planet, named KOI-134 b, was confirmed to be a warm Jupiter (or a warm planet of a similar size to Jupiter). Through this analysis, researchers uncovered that the reason this planet eluded confirmation previously is because it experiences what are called transit timing variations (TTVs), or small differences in a planet’s transit across its star that can make its transit “early” or “late” because the planet is being pushed or pulled by the gravity from another planet which was also revealed in this study. Researchers estimate that KOI-134 b transits across its star as much as 20 hours “late” or “early,” which is a significant variation. In fact, it was so significant that it’s the reason why the planet wasn’t confirmed in initial observations. 
      As these TTVs are caused by the gravitational interaction with another planet, this discovery also revealed a planetary sibling: KOI-134 c. Through studying this system in simulations that include these TTVs, the team found that KOI-134 c is a planet slightly smaller than Saturn and closer to its star than KOI-134 b. 
      This artist’s concept shows the KOI-134 system which, in 2025, a paper revealed to have two planets: KOI-134 b and KOI-134 c. NASA/JPL-Caltech/K. Miller (Caltech/IPAC) KOI-134 c previously eluded observation because it orbits on a tilted orbital plane, a different plane from KOI-134 b, and this tilted orbit prevents the planet from transiting its star. The two orbital planes of these planets are about 15 degrees different from one another, also known as a mutual inclination of 15 degrees, which is significant. Due to the gravitational push and pull between these two planets, their orbital planes also tilt back and forth. 
      Another interesting feature of this planetary system is something called resonance. These two planets have a 2 to 1 resonance, meaning within the same time that one planet completes one orbit, the other completes two orbits. In this case, KOI-134 b has an orbital period (the time it takes a planet to complete one orbit) of about 67 days, which is twice the orbital period of KOI-134 c, which orbits every 33-34 days. 
      Between the separate orbital planes tilting back and forth, the TTVs, and the resonance, the two planets orbit their star in a pattern that resembles two wooden ponies bobbing up and down as they circle around on an old-fashioned merry go round. 
      Fun Facts
      While this system started as a false positive with Kepler, this re-analysis of the data reveals a vibrant system with two planets. In fact, this is the first-ever discovered compact, multiplanetary system that isn’t flat, has such a significant TTV, and experiences orbital planes tilting back and forth. 
      Also, most planetary systems do not have high mutual inclinations between close planet pairs. In addition to being a rarity, mutual inclinations like this are also not often measured because of challenges within the observation process. So, having measurements like this of a significant mutual inclination in a system, as well as measurements of resonance and TTVs, provides a clear picture of dynamics within a planetary system which we are not always able to see. 
      The Discoverers
      A team of scientists led by Emma Nabbie of the University of Southern Queensland published a paper on June 27 on their discovery, “A high mutual inclination system around KOI-134 revealed by transit timing variations,” in the journal “Nature Astronomy.” The observations described in this paper and used in simulations in this paper were made by NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope and the paper included collaboration and contributions from institutions including the University of Geneva, University of La Laguna, Purple Mountain Observatory, the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, the Georgia Institute of Technology, the University of Southern Queensland, and NASA’s retired Kepler Space Telescope.
      View the full article
    • NASA
      By Air and by Sea: Validating NASA’s PACE Ocean Color Instrument
      By NASA
      6 min read
      Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
      NASA Ames research scientist Kristina Pistone monitors instrument data while onboard the Twin Otter aircraft, flying over Monterey Bay during the October 2024 deployment of the AirSHARP campaign. NASA/Samuel Leblanc In autumn 2024, California’s Monterey Bay experienced an outsized phytoplankton bloom that attracted fish, dolphins, whales, seabirds, and – for a few weeks in October – scientists. A team from NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley, with partners at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), and the Naval Postgraduate School, spent two weeks on the California coast gathering data on the atmosphere and the ocean to verify what satellites see from above. In spring 2025, the team returned to gather data under different environmental conditions.

      Scientists call this process validation.

      Setting up the Campaign

      The PACE mission, which stands for Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem, was launched in February  2024 and designed to transform our understanding of ocean and atmospheric environments. Specifically, the satellite will give scientists a finely detailed look at life near the ocean surface and the composition and abundance of aerosol particles in the atmosphere.

      Whenever NASA launches a new satellite, it sends validation science teams around the world to confirm that the data from instruments in space match what traditional instruments can see at the surface. AirSHARP (Airborne aSsessment of Hyperspectral Aerosol optical depth and water-leaving Reflectance Product Performance for PACE) is one of these teams, specifically deployed to validate products from the satellite’s Ocean Color Instrument (OCI).

      The OCI spectrometer works by measuring reflected sunlight. As sunlight bounces off of the ocean’s surface, it creates specific shades of color that researchers use to determine what is in the water column below. To validate the OCI data, research teams need to confirm that measurements directly at the surface match those from the satellite. They also need to understand how the atmosphere is changing the color of the ocean as the reflected light is traveling back to the satellite.

      In October 2024 and May 2025, the AirSHARP team ran simultaneous airborne and seaborne campaigns. Going into the field during different seasons allows the team to collect data under different environmental conditions, validating as much of the instrument’s range as possible.

      Over 13 days of flights on a Twin Otter aircraft, the NASA-led team used instruments called 4STAR-B (Spectrometer for sky-scanning sun Tracking Atmospheric Research B), and the C-AIR (Coastal Airborne In-situ Radiometer) to gather data from the air. At the same time, partners from UCSC used a host of matching instruments onboard the research vessel R/V Shana Rae to gather data from the water’s surface.

      Ocean Color and Water Leaving Reflectance

      The Ocean Color Instrument measures something called water leaving reflectance, which provides information on the microscopic composition of the water column, including water molecules, phytoplankton, and particulates like sand, inorganic materials, and even bubbles. Ocean color varies based on how these materials absorb and scatter sunlight. This is especially useful for determining the abundance and types of phytoplankton.

      Photographs taken out the window of the Twin Otter aircraft during the October 2024 AirSHARP deployment showcase the variation in ocean color, which indicates different molecular composition of the water column beneath. The red color in several of these photos is due to a phytoplankton bloom – in this case a growth of red algae. NASA/Samuel Leblanc
      The AirSHARP team used radiometers with matching technology – C-AIR from the air and C-OPS (Compact Optical Profiling System) from the water – to gather water leaving reflectance data.

      “The C-AIR instrument is modified from an instrument that goes on research vessels and takes measurements of the water’s surface from very close range,” said NASA Ames research scientist Samuel LeBlanc. “The issue there is that you’re very local to one area at a time. What our team has done successfully is put it on an aircraft, which enables us to span the entire Monterey Bay.”

      The larger PACE validation team will compare OCI measurements with observations made by the sensors much closer to the ocean to ensure that they match, and make adjustments when they don’t. 

      Aerosol Interference

      One factor that can impact OCI data is the presence of manmade and natural aerosols, which interact with sunlight as it moves through the atmosphere. An aerosol refers to any solid or liquid suspended in the air, such as smoke from fires, salt from sea spray, particulates from fossil fuel emissions, desert dust, and pollen.

      Imagine a 420 mile-long tube, with the PACE satellite at one end and the ocean at the other. Everything inside the tube is what scientists refer to as the atmospheric column, and it is full of tiny particulates that interact with sunlight. Scientists quantify this aerosol interaction with a measurement called aerosol optical depth.

      “During AirSHARP, we were essentially measuring, at different wavelengths, how light is changed by the particles present in the atmosphere,” said NASA Ames research scientist Kristina Pistone. “The aerosol optical depth is a measure of light extinction, or how much light is either scattered away or absorbed by aerosol particulates.” 

      The team measured aerosol optical depth using the 4STAR-B spectrometer, which was engineered at NASA Ames and  enables scientists to identify which aerosols are present and how they interact with sunlight.

      Twin Otter Aircraft

      AirSHARP principal investigator Liane Guild walks towards a Twin Otter aircraft owned and operated by the Naval Postgraduate School. The aircraft’s ability to perform complex, low-altitude flights made it the ideal platform to fly multiple instruments over Monterey Bay during the AirSHARP campaign. NASA/Samuel Leblanc
      Flying these instruments required use of a Twin Otter plane, operated by the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS). The Twin Otter is unique for its ability to perform extremely low-altitude flights, making passes down to 100 feet above the water in clear conditions.

      “It’s an intense way to fly. At that low height, the pilots continually watch for and avoid birds, tall ships, and even wildlife like breaching whales,” said Anthony Bucholtz, director of the Airborne Research Facility at NPS.

      With the phytoplankton bloom attracting so much wildlife in a bay already full of ships, this is no small feat. “The pilots keep a close eye on the radar, and fly by hand,” Bucholtz said, “all while following careful flight plans crisscrossing Monterey Bay and performing tight spirals over the Research Vessel Shana Rae.”

      Campaign Data

      Data gathered from the 2024 phase of this campaign is available on two data archive systems. Data from the 4STAR instrument is available in the PACE data archive  and data from C-AIR is housed in the SeaBASS data archive.

      Other data from the NASA PACE Validation Science Team is available through the PACE website: https://pace.oceansciences.org/pvstdoi.htm#
      Samuel LeBlanc and Kristina Pistone are funded via the Bay Area Environmental Research Institute (BAERI), which  is a scientist-founded nonprofit focused on supporting Earth and space sciences.
      About the Author
      Milan Loiacono
      Science Communication SpecialistMilan Loiacono is a science communication specialist for the Earth Science Division at NASA Ames Research Center.
      Share
      Details
      Last Updated Jun 26, 2025 Related Terms
      Ames Research Center's Science Directorate Ames Research Center Earth Earth Science Earth Science Division PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, Ocean Ecosystem) Science Mission Directorate Explore More
      2 min read NASA Citizen Scientists Find New Eclipsing Binary Stars
      When two stars orbit one another in such a way that one blocks the other’s…
      Article 32 minutes ago 4 min read NASA-Assisted Scientists Get Bird’s-Eye View of Population Status
      NASA satellite data and citizen science observations combine for new findings on bird populations.
      Article 22 hours ago 2 min read Live or Fly a Plane in California? Help NASA Measure Ozone Pollution!
      Ozone high in the stratosphere protects us from the Sun’s ultraviolet light. But ozone near…
      Article 2 days ago View the full article
    • European Space Agency
      New ESA gravity mission to detect weakening ocean conveyor
      By European Space Agency
      At the Living Planet Symposium, attendees have been hearing how ESA’s Next Generation Gravity Mission could provide the first opportunity to directly track a vital ocean circulation system that warms our planet – but is now weakening, risking a possible collapse with far-reaching consequences.
      View the full article
    • NASA
      Europa: Ocean World
      By NASA
      Explore This SectionScience Europa Clipper Europa: Ocean World Europa Clipper Home MissionOverview Facts History Timeline ScienceGoals Team SpacecraftMeet Europa Clipper Instruments Assembly Vault Plate Message in a Bottle NewsNews & Features Blog Newsroom Replay the Launch MultimediaFeatured Multimedia Resources About EuropaWhy Europa? Europa Up Close Ingredients for Life Evidence for an Ocean   To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
      Scientists think there is an ocean within Jupiter’s moon Europa. NASA-JPL astrobiologist Kevin Hand explains why scientists are so excited about the potential of this ice-covered world to answer one of humanity’s most profound questions. Scientists think there is an ocean within Jupiter’s moon Europa. NASA-JPL astrobiologist Kevin Hand explains why scientists are so excited about the potential of this ice-covered world to answer one of humanity’s most profound questions.
      Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA
      Europa Clipper Resources
      Jupiter
      Jupiter Moons
      Science Missions
      View the full article
    • NASA
      Alien Ocean
      By NASA
      Explore This SectionScience Europa Clipper Alien Ocean Europa Clipper Home MissionOverview Facts History Timeline ScienceGoals Team SpacecraftMeet Europa Clipper Instruments Assembly Vault Plate Message in a Bottle NewsNews & Features Blog Newsroom Replay the Launch MultimediaFeatured Multimedia Resources About EuropaWhy Europa? Europa Up Close Ingredients for Life Evidence for an Ocean   To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
      Could a liquid water ocean beneath the surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa have the ingredients to support life? Here’s how NASA’s mission to Europa would find out. Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA
      Europa Clipper Resources
      Jupiter
      Jupiter Moons
      Science Missions
      View the full article

  • Check out these Videos

×
×
  • Create New...