Fall

Linae Larson

Linae is an Astronomy major with minors in Planetary Sciences, Astrobiology, and Chemistry. Linae chose Planetary Sciences as a minor because it complemented the Astrobiology minor. She enjoyed taking PTYS 411: Geology and Geophysics of the Solar System with Associate Professor Christopher Hamilton. The class focused on the diversity of processes that shape planetary surfaces, topics of interest to Linae, who didn’t have any prior experience with geology. She also appreciated that Dr. Hamilton was open to questions and could provide applications to the topic at hand. One of Linae’s in-class questions became the foundation of her Space Grant research project!

Linae plans to graduate in Spring 2026 and then pursue a Ph.D. in astronomy or planetary sciences. Her goal is to be a mission scientist on an astrobiology-focused mission such as Dragonfly, which is visiting Saturn's moon Titan in 2034. Linae is a Space Grant intern working with Dr. Christopher Hamilton on a new mechanism of ocean mixing for icy moons like Europa and Enceladus. The shockwave produced by asteroid impacts on icy moons could cause chunks of ice to fragment on the underside of the icy shell and be ejected into the ocean. This would cause ocean mixing that otherwise would not occur, affecting chemical abundances and habitability. She is using geophysics and finite-element modeling to explore the feasibility and consequences of this process. In addition, she is currently working with LPL Research Scientist Dr. Michael Phillips to use spectroscopy of Mars massifs, ancient mountains formed during giant impact events, to reveal the early history of Mars and its mantle overturn event. She uses GIS software to describe and highlight individual features and then creates scientific figures in Python.

When Linae is not doing homework or working on research, she enjoys hanging out with friends for movie nights or trivia. She also designs and builds dynamic LEGO models, like a rotating asteroid Bennu or flying Santa's reindeer. She also enjoys the challenge of playing competitive indoor power soccer in sports wheelchairs with her team the Minnesota Northern Lights at regional and national tournaments.