I am a research scientist at the Planetary Science Institute in Lakewood, Colorado, where I serve as the System Scientist for the US SHARAD team and a Co-Investigator for SHARAD on Mars Reconnaissnace Orbiter.

My research focuses on sedimentary systems on Mars, especially related to the polar layered deposits, or ice caps. Primarily I use data from the shallow radar (SHARAD) instrument in Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to look for reflections beneath the surface of Mars. These reflections tell us about the geophysical makeup of the deposits and the geometry in which they were deposited. Some other instruments I use regularly are the Mars Orbiter Laster Altimeter (MOLA), the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS), the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE).

Prior Professional Experience

  • From June 2016 to July 2017 I was a postdoctoral researcher at PSI working on many projects regarding the martian poles and sedimentary structurs at Valles Marineris.
  • From May 2014 to June 2016 I worked at Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, CO, where I continued my thesis projects and developed new interests working on non-polar sedimentary systems
  • From September 2013 to May 2014 I was the recipient of an international Fulbright Fellowship. I lived and worked in Paris at Universite Pierre et Marie Curie doing research with Aymeric Spiga. At the same time I concentrated heavily on learning French.
  • In August 2013 I completed the Doctor of Philosophy in Geological Sciences from the University of Texas at Austin Jackson School of Geosciences.
  • During my PhD I held a NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship to study the spiral troughs on Mars polar layered deposits. In addition, I spent one semester at the Laboratoire de Meteorologie Dynamique in Paris, also working with Aymeric Spiga.
  • In December 2007 I completed a Masters of Science degree in physics from the University of Missouri – St. Louis.
  • From August 2006 to August 2007 time I spent one year in Stuttgart, Germany at the Universitaet Stuttgart taking physics classes towards my M.S. while learning German and practicing Spanish.
  • In May 2002 I finished a Bachelors of Science in physics with a minor in mathematics from Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas.

ibsmith@psi.edu
720-549-8837

Planetary Science Institute
1546 Cole Blvd Ste 120
Lakewoood, Colorado, USA 80401