Geoscientists contribute critical insights into the processes that shape the surface of the Earth, where solid rock, water, air and life interact. Dr. Sandra Passchier's specific interests are in understanding changes in the behavior of ice-sheets and ocean circulation under different climate states using geological archives of Earth history. As a principle investigator on projects funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, she is currently targeting the stratigraphic record of West Antarctic ice behavior and its impact on sea level and ocean circulation. Under her guidance, the students in the ice and ocean sediment group carry out laboratory analyses on samples acquired through seafloor drilling.

Dr. Passchier has been a Distinguished Lecturer for the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) and an instructor in the PAIS-IODP Antarctic Summer School at Texas A&M University. She is currently part of the Science Evaluation Panel for the IODP and an Associate Editor for the international journal The Holocene. Previously she was a member of the U.S. Advisory Committee for Scientific Ocean Drilling (USAC) and the international steering committee on Antarctic Climate Evolution (SCAR-ACE)

Specific interests are in understanding changes in the behavior of ice-sheets and ocean circulation under different climate states using geological archives of Earth history. As a principle investigator on projects funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, Dr. Passchier is currently targeting the stratigraphic record of West Antarctic ice behavior and its impact on sea level and ocean circulation. 

Ocean Drilling, Polar Science, Glacial Processes, Sedimentary Geology, Continental Margins

Expert on ocean drilling, polar science, glacial processes, sedimentary geology, and continental margins.