Chi Ma
Chi Ma | |
|---|---|
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| Alma mater | University of Auckland Australian National University |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Mineralogy |
| Institutions | California Institute of Technology |
| Doctoral advisor | Richard A (Tony) Eggleton |
Chi Ma is a mineralogist and Director of the Analytical Facility in the Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences at the California Institute of Technology.[1] known for his discovery and characterization of new mineral phases in meteorites.
Education
[edit]Ma received a Bachelor of science degree in Geology from China University of Geosciences in 1989 where he studied the metamorphism and petrology of the Hongan Group rocks in central China.
He then moved to New Zealand where he graduated with a Master of Science Degree with Distinction in Geology from the University of Auckland, and presented a thesis on the Alteration of the Huka Falls Formation in the Te Mihi area of the Wairakei geothermal system, supervised by Profesor Patrick Browne.[2][3]
He received his Ph.D. in Mineralogy from the Australian National University under Professor Richard A (Tony) Eggleton with a thesis topic involving the ultra-structure of kaolin using high resolution electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction experiments.[4][5][6][7]
Next, he moved to the United States where he was a postdoc with Mineralogy Professor George R. Rossman at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California.[8] As a postdoc at Caltech was initially involved with the characterization of colorful minerals such as rose quartz and rainbow obsidian.[9][10][11]
Career
[edit]Partway through his first year as a postdoc, he was hired to take over the electron microbeam analytical facility in the Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences at Caltech.
Research
[edit]After assuming the directorship of the analytical facilities, he turned to the analysis of small mineral components of meteorites that brought new minerals from the primordial condensation of our solar system. Many of these new minerals were phases that seldom or never survived the current weathering conditions on Earth. He worked on the Allende and Khatyrka Meteorites and on a variety of Martian meteorites such as the Tissint meteorite.[12][13]
Altogether, by the end of 2024, he has discovered and characterized 48 new minerals in meteorites, 4 new terrestrial minerals, and has collaborated with other researchers helping to characterize an additional 69 new minerals.
Honors
[edit]2016 - A new refractory mineral from the solar nebula, Machiite (Al2Ti3O9), was named after him.[14]
2017 - He was elected a Fellow of the Mineralogical Society of America.[15]
2024 - He was elected a Fellow of the Meteoritical Society.[16]
References
[edit]- ^ http://www.its.caltech.edu/~chima/
- ^ C Ma, PRL Browne, CC Harvey (1992) Crystallinity of subsurface clay minerals in the Te Mihi Sector of the Wairakei geothermal system, New Zealand. Proc. 14th New Zealand Geothermal Workshop, 267-272
- ^ Ma Chi, PRL Browne (1991) ALTERATION MINERALOGY OF SEDIMENTS IN THE HUKA FALLS FORMATION OF THE Te Mihi Area, Wairakei. Proceedings of the 13th New Zealand Geothermal Workshop, 185-191
- ^ C Ma, RA Eggleton (2000) High-Resolution TEM Investigation of Halloysite. Microscopy and Microanalysis 6 (S2), 416-417
- ^ C Ma, RA Eggleton (1999) Surface layer types of kaolinite: a high-resolution transmission electron microscope study. Clays and Clay Minerals 47 (2), 181-191
- ^ C Ma, RA Eggleton (1999) Cation exchange capacity of kaolinite. Clays and Clay minerals 47 (2), 174-180
- ^ C Ma, JD FitzGerald, RA Eggleton, DJ Llewellyn (1998) Analytical electron microscopy in clays and other phyllosilicates: Loss of elements from a 90-nm stationary beam of 300-keV electrons.
- ^ http://minerals.gps.caltech.edu/Mineralogy/Former_Group/Index.html
- ^ C Ma, JS Goreva, GR Rossman (2002) Fibrous nanoinclusions in massive rose quartz: HRTEM and AEM investigations. American Mineralogist 87, 269-276.
- ^ JS Goreva, C Ma, GR Rossman (2001) Fibrous nanoinclusions in massive rose quartz: The origin of rose coloration. American Mineralogist 86, 466-472.
- ^ C Ma, J Gresh, GR Rossman, GC Ulmer, EP Vicenzi(2006) Micro-analytical study of the optical properties of rainbow and sheen obsidians. Microscopy Today, Volume 14, Issue 1, 1 January 2006, Pages 20–23, https://doi.org/10.1017/S1551929500055140
- ^ https://spacenews.com/caltech-scientists-find-new-primitive-mineral-in-meteorite/
- ^ https://www.sci.news/geology/article00424.html
- ^ Krot, A.N., Nagashima, K., Rossman, G.R. (2020) Machiite, Al2Ti3O9, a new oxide mineral from the Murchison carbonaceous chondrite: A new ultra-refractory phase from the solar nebula. American Mineralogist, 105(2), 239-243.
- ^ http://www.minsocam.org/MSA/Awards/Fellowslist.html
- ^ https://meteoritical.org/awards/fellows
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