08/13/2018
The last six weeks have flown by so quickly. I can’t believe how much we have all grown, in our knowledge of chondrites and our friendships. Six weeks ago, my interests included only the Earth, but now my passion has been widened to include all of the solar system. The amount of information that can be extracted from millimeter size chondrules is astounding, and the stories these tiny grains can tell us are worth every effort.
Before this internship I only had experience using a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Now I have experience in clean lab work including sample decomposition for ICP-MS, column chemistry, creation of filaments for TIMS, LA-ICP-MS, and creation of phase maps through the use of EPMA. Not only have we used all of these techniques and equipment but we have processes and interpreted our data to create a comprehensive history of the alteration of our chondrules based on the data we have obtained.
Along with all of the research that was done, I had the chance to travel to Kyoto for the weekend. In Kyoto I was able to experience the Gion festival, Nishiki market, and visit some of Kyoto’s oldest and most beautiful temples and shrines. Being able to live in Misasa for six weeks was a wonderful experience as the town is home to friendly people, a beautiful river, and natural hot springs. This program not only enhanced my scientific knowledge but allowed me to fully experience Japanese culture.
Being able to collaborate with people from around the world on one common topic has been such an amazing, informative experience. My love for space materials has been cultivated through this program and I know that for the rest of my life I will continue to foster this interest, and continue to research space materials with the techniques I first learned during this program.
Being able to collaborate with people from around the world on one common topic has been such an amazing, informative experience. My love for space materials has been cultivated through this program and I know that for the rest of my life I will continue to foster this interest, and continue to research space materials with the techniques I first learned during this program.
Kyle Dayton