PTYS/LPL Faculty

Kuiper 522
Tom Zega
Associate Professor
Ph.D., 2003, Arizona State University
Years with LPL: 2011 to present
Cosmochemistry, Planetary materials, Astrobiology, Small Bodies
Dr. Zega applies a microscopy- and microanalysis-based approach to study the chemical and physical evolution of the early solar system and ancient stars. His efforts are focused on the origin of the circumstellar grains that formed in ancient stars, refractory inclusions that formed the first solar-system solids, primitive organic compounds, and development of analytical techniques for investigations of such materials. He uses ultrahigh-resolution ion- and electron-microscopy techniques, including focused-ion-beam scanning-electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy, to determine the composition and structure of these materials at scales ranging from millimeters down to the atomic. Knowledge of these details of planetary materials provides novel insights into the origin of our solar system and ancient stars.
View LPL Evening Lecture from October 3, 2012, Laboratory-based Astronomy at the Nanometer Scale
Current Grants
- Thermodynamic origins of refractory dust in the early solar system and ancient stars (PI; Co-Is: F. Ciesla, V. Manga, and K. Muralidharan)
- Following the Molecular History of Stellar Ejecta: Combining Observations with Laboratory Spectroscopy and Imaging (Co-I w/L. Ziurys PI)
- Earths in other solar systems: Toward forming and discovering planets with biocritical ingredients: NASA Astrobiology Institute and Nexus for Explanet System Science (Co-I w/D. Apai PI)
- Physical and chemical evolution of airless landscapes, NASA Solar Systems Workings Program (Co-I w/S. Byrne PI)
- Atomic-scale analysis of samples returned from the Hayabusa Mission and analogs of those to-be-returned by Hayabusa 2 and OSIRIS-REx, NASA Laboratory Analysis of Returned Samples Program (PI)
- Constraining asteroidal formation and alteration conditions via microstructure and elemental compositions of sulfides from returned samples, NASA Laboratory Analysis of Returned Samples Program (Co-I w/D. Schrader, PI)
- Tracing the History of Molecular Phosphorous: From Interstellar Space to Planetary Surfaces, NASA Emerging Worlds Program (Co-I w/L. Ziurys PI)
- Thermodynamic origins of refractory dust in the early solar system and ancient stars, NASA Emerging Worlds Program (PI)
- A multifaceted approach to investigating the magmatic and post-magmatic history of volatiles in basalts from the rim of sten crater, NASA ANGSA Program (Co-I w/J. Barnes PI)
Current Spacecraft Involvement
- OSIRIS-REx Collaborator
- CAESAR Co-I
Former Spacecraft Involvement
- NASA Stardust
- Tarunika Ramprasad (Materials Science & Engineering)
- Laura Seifert (PTYS)
Former Students
- Michelle Thompson, 2016 (Ph.D. PTYS)
- Diana Bolser, 2014 (M.S. Chemistry)
Current Postdocs
Pierre-Marie Zanetta
Former Postdocs
- Pierre Haenecour
- Prajkta Mane
Current Staff Scientists
- Dr. Jerry Chang
- Dr. Ken Domanik
- Dr. Juliane Weber
Based on Google Scholar and NASA ADS: NASA ADS Author search: Thomas J. Zega
Refereed publications: Calendar Years 2017 through June 2020
Haenecour, P., Floss, C., Brearley, A.J. and Zega, T.J. (2020), The effects of secondary processing in the unique carbonaceous chondrite Miller Range 07687, Meteorit Planet Sci., doi:10.1111/maps.13477
Devin L. Schrader, Thomas J. Zega, Petrographic and compositional indicators of formation and alteration conditions from LL chondrite sulfides, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Volume 264, 2019, Pages 165-179, ISSN 0016-7037, doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2019.08.015
Bernal, J. J., Haenecour, P., Howe, J., Zega, T. J., Amari, S., Ziurys, L. M. Formation of Interstellar C60 from Silicon Carbide Circumstellar Grains 2019ApJ...883L..43B
Schmidt, D. R., Woolf, N. J., Zega, T. J., Ziurys, L. M. Extreme 13C,15N and 17O isotopic enrichment in the young planetary nebula K4-47 2018Natur.564..378S
Nakamura-Messenger, K., Squyres, S. W., Pace, L. F., Messenger, S., Mitchell, D. F., Lauretta, D. S., Glavin, D. P., Houghton, M., Hayes, A. G., Nakamura, T., Dworkin, J. P., Nguyen, A., Clemett, S., Furukawa, Y., Kimura, Y., Takigawa, A., Blake, G., Zega, T. J., Mumma, M., Milam, S., Herd, C. D. K., Mitchell, J. The CAESAR New Frontiers Comet Sample Return Mission 2018MiMic..24S2104N
Seifert, L., Haenecour, P., Zega, T., Floss, C., Howe, J. Multi-keV Analyses of a Presolar Mg-Silicate Grain via SEM/STEM 2018MiMic..24S2098S
Mane, P., Wallace, S., Wallace, P., Chang, Y. J., Domanik, K., Zega, T. J. Coordinated EBSD and TEM Analysis to Decipher Shock Deformation Effects in the Oldest Solids in the Solar System 2018MiMic..24S2092M
Barnes, J. J., Thompson, M. S., McCubbin, F. M., Howe, J. Y., Rahman, Z., Messenger, S., Zega, T. Coordinated Microanalysis of Phosphates in High-Titanium Lunar Basalts 2018MiMic..24S2078B
Mane, P., Wallace, S., Bose, M., Domanik, K., Zega, T. J., Wadhwa, M. Coordinated X-ray, Ion, and Electron Microanalysis Approach Towards Understanding the Earliest-Formed Solids in the Solar System 2017MiMic..23S2136M
Zega, T. J., Manga, V., Watanabe, K., Domanik, K., Mane, P., Hanawa, A., Inada, H., Howe, J. Y., Muralidharan, K. A Combined Atomic-Resolution STEM and First-Principles Approach Towards Understanding the Origins of the First Solar-System Solids 2017MiMic..23S.396Z
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
- Mysteries Behind Interstellar Buckyballs Finally Answered - November 13, 2019
- The Origins of Buckyballs in Space - October 24, 2019
- Ion Beams and Atom Smashers: Secrets of Moon Rocks - June 18, 2019
- Ashes of a Dying Star Hold Clues about Solar System's Birth - April 29, 2019
- UA Planetary Scientist Wins Bid to Study Moon Samples - March 11, 2019
- Stellar Corpse Reveals Clues to Missing Stardust - December 19, 2018
- UA in the Running for a New NASA Mission - December 21, 2017
Semester | Course | Day/Time | Location | Resources |
---|---|---|---|---|
Spring 2021 | PTYS/MSE 526-001 | MW 12:30-1:45p.m. | Kuiper 312 |
Syllabus D2L Course Page |
Fall 2021 | PTYS 407-001 | TTH 12:30-1:45p.m. | Kuiper 312 | |
Spring 2020 | PTYS 413-001 | MW 11:00-12:15p.m. | Kuiper 312 | Syllabus |
Spring 2020 | PTYS 513-001 | MW 11:00-12:15p.m. | Kuiper 312 | Syllabus |
Fall 2019 | PTYS/MSE 526-001 | TTH 12:30-1:45p.m. | Kuiper 312 | |
Spring 2018 | PTYS 510A-001 | TTH 12:30 - 1:45p.m. | Kuiper 312 |
Syllabus Course Page |
Fall 2018 | PTYS/MSE 526-001 | TTH 11:00-12:15p.m. | Kuiper 312 |
Syllabus Course Page |
Fall 2017 | PTYS 407-001 | MW 9:00-10:15 a.m. | Kuiper 312 |
Syllabus Course Page |