Research Scientist
Lecturer, Department of Geological Sciences
PhD., Geology, California Institute of Technology, 1997M.S., Geology, California Institute of Technology, 1993
B.Sc., Electrical Engineering,Rice University, 1988
Phone: 512-471-0487
Fax: 512-471-8844
email: jack @ ig.utexas.edu
Research Interests
Dr. Jack Holt employs airborne geophysical techniques to study ice-covered regions of Earth and Mars. He has led five field expeditions to Antarctica since 1998 using a multi-instrumented Twin Otter to map the ice and features
buried beneath the ice and is currently preparing for a new expedition to
begin in December, 2008 using a new, longer-range platform, the Basler BT-67, a modernized,
turbine-powered DC-3 airframe.
In early 2007 Holt was selected as a Participating Scientist on the SHARAD
instrument team of Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. so he has
been selecting new data acquisition targets on Mars and analyzing the results
using techniques developed for UTIG’s Antarctic studies.
In Antarctica, Holt is using airborne gravity and magnetics in conjunction with subglacial topography from radar sounding to delineate crustal boundaries and characterize active tectonics in the Amundsen Sea Embayment of West Antarctica. The glaciers of this basin appear to be losing more mass as a result of climate change than any others in Antarctica. The basin is also characterized by the highest estimated geothermal flux in Antarctica, so the ice dynamical response to the geological boundary conditions of this region may dictate West Antarctica's contribution to global sea level change.
He is also using airborne geophysics in Antarctica to develop radar analysis techniques for similar environments on Mars. The first data set for this project was collected using a 60 MHz (5-meter wavelength) radar sounder, a result of the Advanced Technology Radar Sounding (ATRS) project at UTIG. This work contributes to the effort to find subsurface water on Mars, which is the highest priority for NASA and ESA missions with the goal of finding evidence for current or past life on the red planet. The next goal is to implement new radars at SHARAD and MARSIS frequencies (20 MHz and 5 MHz, respectively) to acquire data over Antarctic targets including ice cores sites to correlate internal radar layering at the different frequencies with ice dielectric properties. This should help us better understand radar data from MARS and plan for future missions.
Related to these activities, Dr. Holt is pursuing the use of radar sounding for hydrology in temperate climates. In the fall of 2008, he is co-teaching a new course at UT called Hydrogeophysics, with Dr. Jack Sharp of DGS.
And not to leave anything out, Holt is the Director of the Paleomagnetism Laboratory of the University of Texas and has recently overseen a complete upgrade of the sample handling, demagnetization and data acquisition/analysis systems in the lab.
In Antarctica, Holt is using airborne gravity and magnetics in conjunction with subglacial topography from radar sounding to delineate crustal boundaries and characterize active tectonics in the Amundsen Sea Embayment of West Antarctica. The glaciers of this basin appear to be losing more mass as a result of climate change than any others in Antarctica. The basin is also characterized by the highest estimated geothermal flux in Antarctica, so the ice dynamical response to the geological boundary conditions of this region may dictate West Antarctica's contribution to global sea level change.
He is also using airborne geophysics in Antarctica to develop radar analysis techniques for similar environments on Mars. The first data set for this project was collected using a 60 MHz (5-meter wavelength) radar sounder, a result of the Advanced Technology Radar Sounding (ATRS) project at UTIG. This work contributes to the effort to find subsurface water on Mars, which is the highest priority for NASA and ESA missions with the goal of finding evidence for current or past life on the red planet. The next goal is to implement new radars at SHARAD and MARSIS frequencies (20 MHz and 5 MHz, respectively) to acquire data over Antarctic targets including ice cores sites to correlate internal radar layering at the different frequencies with ice dielectric properties. This should help us better understand radar data from MARS and plan for future missions.
Related to these activities, Dr. Holt is pursuing the use of radar sounding for hydrology in temperate climates. In the fall of 2008, he is co-teaching a new course at UT called Hydrogeophysics, with Dr. Jack Sharp of DGS.
And not to leave anything out, Holt is the Director of the Paleomagnetism Laboratory of the University of Texas and has recently overseen a complete upgrade of the sample handling, demagnetization and data acquisition/analysis systems in the lab.
Opportunites for
Participation: I'm always looking for
enthusiastic collaborators!
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