Sarah Stewart Johnson is an American

biologist A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual cell, a multicellular organism, or a community of interacting populations. They usually specialize in ...

geochemist Geochemistry is the science that uses the tools and principles of chemistry to explain the mechanisms behind major geological systems such as the Earth's crust and its oceans. The realm of geochemistry extends beyond the Earth, encompassing the ...

, astronomer and

planetary scientist Planetary science (or more rarely, planetology) is the scientific study of planets (including Earth), celestial bodies (such as moons, asteroids, comets) and planetary systems (in particular those of the Solar System) and the processes of their ...

. She joined Georgetown University in 2014 and is currently the Provost's Distinguished Associate Professor of Biology and the Science, Technology, and International Affairs program in the School of Foreign Service.

Early life and education

Johnson was born in Kentucky and grew up in Lexington. She received her bachelor's degree from Washington University in St. Louis, where she was an Arthur Holly Compton Fellow and majored in math and environmental studies. During college, she won a Goldwater Scholarship and a Truman Scholarship. Johnson then attended Oxford as a

Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...

where she earned bachelor's and master's degrees. In 2008, she completed a PhD in

planetary science Planetary science (or more rarely, planetology) is the scientific study of planets (including Earth), celestial bodies (such as moons, asteroids, comets) and planetary systems (in particular those of the Solar System) and the processes of their f ...

at MIT.

Career

Johnson was a Junior Fellow at Harvard University from 2008-2009 and 2011-2013. She was a White House Fellow working for the President’s Science Advisor, under the

Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

administration from 2009-2011. Johnson became a faculty member at Georgetown in 2014. Her work involves the use of analog environments to study the habitability of the surface and subsurface of Mars and

icy moon Icy commonly refers to conditions involving ice, a frozen state, usually referring to frozen water. Icy or Icey may also refer to: People * Icy Spicy Leoncie, an Icelandic-Indian musician Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ICY (band), a voca ...

s. Her lab at Georgetown is currently focused on the detection of agnostic biosignatures, sometimes referred to as "life as we don't know it". She is a visiting scientist at NASA's

Goddard Space Flight Center The Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is a major NASA space research laboratory located approximately northeast of Washington, D.C. in Greenbelt, Maryland, United States. Established on May 1, 1959 as NASA's first space flight center, GSFC empl ...

with the Planetary Environments lab. She participated in the '' Curiosity'', '' Opportunity'', and '' Spirit'' missions.

Bibliography

* '' The Sirens of Mars''

Honors

* Desert Writers Award (2013) * White House Fellow (2009) * Harvard Junior Fellow (2008) * Hugh Hampton Young Fellowship, MIT (2008) * National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship * Rhodes Scholarship (2001) * Truman Scholarship (2000) * Goldwater Scholarship (1999) * Arthur Holly Compton Fellowship, Washington University in St. Louis (1997)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Sarah Stewart Living people People from Lexington, Kentucky American Rhodes Scholars Georgetown University faculty White House Fellows Women planetary scientists Planetary scientists Year of birth missing (living people) Washington University in St. Louis alumni 20th-century American women scientists 21st-century American women scientists