Dr Aubrey Zerkle

Dr Aubrey Zerkle

Honorary Reader

Researcher profile

Email
az29@st-andrews.ac.uk

 

Teaching

Module coordinator, ES3011: Global Biogeochemical Cycling, ES5012: Biogeochemistry

Additional modules: ES1001 (biosphere), ES2003 (geomicrobiology, elemental cycling), ES5005 (stable isotope geochemistry), co-leader of Rio Tinto field trip (BSc EES and MSc Geochem)

Research areas

I am a stable isotope geochemist and geobiologist with primary research interests in the early Earth and extraterrestrial environments. I'm the lead PI of the quadruple sulfur isotope anaytical facilities in the St Andrews Stable Isotope Group, and Co-PI of the inter-disciplinary Peter James Clark Centre for Philosophical Geobiology. 

Research in my group focuses on understanding the co-evolution of life with planetary environments over geologic timescales. We utilize a multi-disciplinary approach, including stable isotope geochemistry, microbiology, and numerical modeling, to examine these interactions and possible feedbacks in modern and paleo-environments. Current research projects revolve around three broad areas:

  1. Establishing and evaluating stable isotope biosignatures for microbial activity, on Earth and beyond;

  2. Examining biogeochemical cycling in extreme environments that act as modern "analogues" to ancient Earth and Martian systems (e.g., euxinic and acidic environments);

  3. Investigating feedbacks between the geosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere during important transitions in Earth history, including the Great Oxidation Event and mass extinction events. 

Selected publications

 

See more publications