Ghislaine Crozaz (born 1939) is a cosmochemist known for her research on the early history of the solar system through tracking trace elements in

meteorite A meteorite is a solid piece of debris from an object, such as a comet, asteroid, or meteoroid, that originates in outer space and survives its passage through the atmosphere to reach the surface of a planet or Natural satellite, moon. When the ...

Education and career

Crozaz received a B.Sc. in 1961 and a Ph.D. in 1967 from the University of Brussels. In 1967, and from 1971 to 1972, she was a visiting associate in Geochemistry at

California Institute of Technology The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...

. She moved to

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is r ...

as a postdoctoral investigator in the lab of

Robert M. Walker (physicist) Robert M. Walker (February 6, 1929 – February 12, 2004) was an American physicist, a planetary scientist, the founder and director of McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, noted for his co-discovery of the ...

. As of 2021, she is professor emerita in Earth and Planetary Sciences at

and lives in Brussels. The planet Ghislaine, discovered in 1986 by

Carolyn Shoemaker Carolyn Jean Spellmann Shoemaker (June 24, 1929 – August 13, 2021) was an American astronomer and a co-discoverer of Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9, Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9. She discovered 32 comets (then a record for the most by an individual) ...

and

Eugene Shoemaker Eugene Merle Shoemaker (April 28, 1928 – July 18, 1997) was an American geologist. He co-discovered Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 with his wife Carolyn S. Shoemaker and David H. Levy. This comet hit Jupiter in July 1994: the impact was televise ...

, is named after Crozaz.

Research

While a Ph.D. student, Crozaz pioneered the use of lead-210 to establish ages in ice cores in Antarctica and Greenland. While working in Brussels, Crozaz became interested in space science and meteorites she started working on the first lunar samples returned to Earth during the

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 (July 16–24, 1969) was the American spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module ''Eagle'' on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC, an ...

mission. She started her research in this arena by looking at fission tracks in lunar samples. These lunar samples are still serving as the basis for scientific research many years later. Crozaz went on to work with Ernest Zinner to develop an

ion microprobe A laser microprobe mass spectrometer (LMMS), also laser microprobe mass analyzer (LAMMA), laser ionization mass spectrometer (LIMS), or laser ionization mass analyzer (LIMA) is a mass spectrometer that uses a focused laser for microanalysis. It empl ...

method to measure rare earth elements in the individual crystals found in extraterrestrial and terrestrial rocks. Crozaz later participated in group efforts to sample meteorites in Antarctica, one of which was the first lunar sample found on Earth, and through this research examined the history of meteorites found in Antarctica.

Selected publications

* * * *

Personal life

Crozaz was married to Robert Walker, with whom she shared an interest in lunar materials.

Awards and honors

* Fellow,

American Geophysical Union The American Geophysical Union (AGU) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization of Earth, atmospheric, ocean, hydrologic, space, and planetary scientists and enthusiasts that according to their website includes 130,000 people (not members). AGU's act ...

(2002) * Fellow,

Meteoritical Society The Meteoritical Society is a non-profit scholarly organization founded in 1933 to promote research and education in planetary science with emphasis on studies of meteorites and other extraterrestrial materials that further our understanding of the ...

(1984)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crozaz, Ghislaine Fellows of the American Geophysical Union Université libre de Bruxelles alumni Washington University in St. Louis faculty Women geologists Space scientists Living people Scientists from Missouri 1939 births