George Vetushko
PhD Student
Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences
Slichter 5873
My research focuses on climate-change related trends in the coupling of anaerobic oxidation of methane and nitrate reduction in coastal wetland environments. I am additionally interested in plausible extensions to the habitability of Titan.
I received my Bachelor of Science in Astrobiology at UCLA. While at UCLA, I led an undergraduate team of students in modeling Southern Californian fugacious coastal lagoon environments from aerial data and in-field sampling as supervised by Dr. Dave Jacobs. I also was able to complete a research-oriented course in radar astronomy alongside Dr. Jean-Luc Margot parsing through potential technosignatures from SETI data and classifying patterns of radiointerference. In the Treude lab, I have had the pleasure of completing a senior undergraduate thesis on the coupling of anaerobic oxidation of methane and nitrate reduction in a Southern California wetland. I have also traveled with the lab onboard the RV Atlantis through WHOI, researching deep-sea sulfur-oxidizing mat biogeochemical activity in the Santa Barbara Basin. My time with the Treude lab has motivated me to continue in the lab to pursue a Master of Science in Geochemistry. In my free time, I enjoy reading, frequenting flea markets, travel, and excursions with friends.