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Faculty

Kate Freeman (Photo)

Kate Freeman

Email: khf4@psu.edu
Phone: 814-863-8177
Office Address: 235 Deike Building
Title: Evan Pugh University Professor of Geosciences
Unit: Department of Geosciences
Webpage: https://www.geosc.psu.edu/directory/katherine-freeman

Research Interests:

  • Organic Geochemistry
  • Isotopic Biogeochemist
  • Paleoclimate
  • Astrobiology

Research:

The NASA-funded Astrobiology Center for Isotopologue Research (ACIR) team seeks to discover and document isotope patterns in organic molecules found in meteorites, dissolved in deep Earth fluids, from individual living organisms, within microbial ecosystems, and in organics associated with minerals and ice. Employing advanced computational tools and a rich observation portfolio, they plan to build a predictive understanding of how abiotic and biotic processes and environments are encoded in the isotopes of simple to complex organic compounds.