PTYS/LPL Faculty
Timothy Swindle
Director, Department Head
Cosmochemistry, Lunar Studies, Small Bodies, Theoretical Astrophysics Research
Ph.D., 1986, Washington University
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Kuiper 323
Years with LPL: 1986 to present
Dr. Swindle uses measurements of the noble gases in extraterrestrial materials (lunar samples and meteorites) to study the evolution of the solar system.
His research projects include using 40Ar-39Ar dating to determine the timing of impact events on the Moon and on asteroids, and studying Martian meteorites to understand the history of the Martian atmosphere and its interaction with surface materials. Past research projects have included using I-129, and its decay product Xe-129, to study the timing of the formation of the earliest solids in the solar nebula, and working on developing techniques to use instruments on spacecraft to measure ages of planetary surfaces in situ.
View LPL Evening Lecture from October 30, 2013, The Status of Searches for Martians on the 75th Anniversary of "The War of the Worlds"
Current Grants
- Arizona Space Grant Consortium: NASA Space Grant
- Inner Solar System Impact Processes: An Integrated Analysis Using Extraterrestrial Samples, Astronomical Observations, and Modeling: NASA Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute
Current Spacecraft Involvement
- OSIRIS-REx, collaborator
Student Collaborations/Advising
Former Students
- Sky Beard, 2018 (Ph.D. PTYS)
- Kristin Block, 2011 (M.S. PTYS)
- John Weirich, 2011 (Ph.D. PTYS)
- Barbara Cohen, 2000 (Ph.D. PTYS)
- Michael Burkland, 1998 (Ph.D. Physics)
Former Postdocs
- Don Musselwhite
- John Weirich
Complete publications list available from: NASA ADS Author search: T. D. Swindle
Refereed publications (NASA ADS): Calendar Years 2017 and 2018
U. Ott, T. D. Swindle, and S. P. Schwenzer (2017) Noble gases in Martian meteorites: Budget, sources, sinks, and processes. In Volatiles in the Martian Crust (J. Filiberto and S. P. Schwenzer, eds.; Elsevier), pp. 35-70. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-804191-8.00003-9
Beard, S. P., Swindle, T. D. Search for evidence of source event grouping among ureilites 2017M&PS...52.2343B
Swindle, T. D. Book Review: In search of stardust: Amazing micrometeorites and their terrestrial imposters, by Jon Larsen. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Voyageur Press, 2017, 152 p., hardcover (ISBN-13: 978-0760352649, ISBN-10: 076035264X). 2017M&PS...52.2285S
Zega, T. J., Massani, B. B., Chang, Y. J., Domanik, K., Nebesny, K., Wallace, P., Armstrong, N. R., Corral, E., Lauretta, D. S., Swindle, T. D., Wang, W., Howe, J. Y., Hanawa, A., Inada, H. A New Core Facility For Electron And Ion Microscopy At The University Of Arizona 2017MiMic..23S..64Z
Schmieder, M., Kring, D. A., Swindle, T. D., Bond, J. C., Moore, C. B. The Gao-Guenie impact melt breccia—Sampling a rapidly cooled impact melt dike on an H chondrite asteroid? 2016M&PS...51.1022S
| Available files | Size | Created |
|---|---|---|
 Swindle CV 2018_1.pdf | 58.19 KB | December 15, 2018 |
| Semester | Course | Day/Time | Location | Resources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring 2021 | PTYS 342 -001 | |||
| Spring 2020 | PTYS 342 -001 | |||
| Spring 2019 | PTYS 342 -001 | WF 12:30-1:45p.m. | Kuiper 312 |
Syllabus Course Page |
| Fall 2019 | PTYS 407-001 | MWF 10:00-10:50a.m. | Kuiper 312 | |
| Spring 2018 | PTYS 342 -001 | WF 12:30 - 1:45p.m. | Kuiper 312 |
Syllabus Course Page |
| Spring 2017 | PTYS 542-001 | MW 11:00-12:15pm | Kuiper 312 | Course Page |