Melissa Parks

Melissa received full funding for her graduate studies through the National Science Foundation ($30,000 a year for three years) as well as access to inspiring research opportunities available only to NSF fellows. Thanks to this funding she was able to dedicate her entire summer to fieldwork for her thesis project: a study of the effects of geothermal activity on the glacier contained in the Sherman Crater (Mount Baker's active crater). She and her team climbed to the crater six times in one summer, heavy geophysical gear in tow. She was able to attend the Geological Society of America's annual conference to present her initial findings, predominantly key features under the ice that her team uncovered with the use of ground-penetrating radar. They were able to quantify the depth of the ice in the crater (67 meters) for the first time and found what could be a sub-glacial lake at the bottom. Melissa closed her Fellowship optimistic about what other sub-glacial treasures her research might yield.