JPL's Dr. Katie Stack Morgan

From Pathfinder to Perseverance: A Planetary Scientist’s Journey 🔍 Origin Story: A Spark from the MuseumA childhood visit to the Air and Space Museum sparked a lifelong love of space. Inspired by the Pathfinder mission and an exhibit on the Moon. Declared: “I’m going to discover water on the Moon.” Katie determined: “I want to work on another planet.” From Caltech to JPL, now as acting project scientist for Perserverance. Katie has been working on Perseverance rover, now 4.5 years into the mission.Carries ~40 sample tubes.32 filled, 7 left—final stages of a historic sample collection.Decisions now more deliberate with remaining tubes.Once a lake with rivers, Jezero Crater offers strong evidence for past water.Home to sedimentary rocks, excellent for preserving signs of ancient environments.Special focus on carbonates—formed from surface water + CO₂:Preserve unique environmental signals.Key to understanding Mars’ paleoclimate.Sample with "leopard spots"—dark rims, light interiors.Possible signs of oxidation-reduction reactions.These could hint at the presence of microbial life.And much more ! Tune into this episode to hear more from the Acting Project Scientist for the Perserverance rover at NASA's JPL.