Angela Tatsch is a Planetary Geosciences major with an additional Geosciences (Geophysics emphasis) major and a Mathematics minor. Since she was young, Angela followed NASA missions such as OSIRIS-REx, so when the new Planetary Geosciences major was announced her junior year, she quickly signed up.

Angela’s favorite class was PTYS 411: Geology and Geophysics of the Solar System, taught by Dr. Christopher Hamilton because the students learned about neighboring planetary bodies in detail. She really enjoyed the semester-long project, where she chose to learn more about the salts on Europa’s surface and how they can help constrain the tectonics and composition of this Galilean moon. The course also taught her how to write a literature review, which has aided her in other research projects.

Angela has worked on two lunar research projects under Dr. Jessica Barnes. She is also completing her internship through Arizona/NASA Space Grant, where she developed and applied advanced lab techniques to investigate potentially novel minerals in Apollo 17 samples. She has also conducted analyses of other Apollo 17 samples through the Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis program. Dr. Pranabendu Moitra has also mentored research projects with Angela.

After graduation, Angela is pursing a Masters in Applied Geophysics, a joint degree through the IDEA League, attending TU Delft, ETH Zuirch, and RWTH Aachen in the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Germany. She wants to continue pursing research as well as participating in outreach and furthering STEM accessibility.

When Angela has some free time, she sings with the University Community Chorus, attends concerts, crafts with friends, catches up with her family, explores tea and coffee shops, and plays board games at Ni Hao Tea.