Lydia Bailey

I'm a final year PhD candidate working with Dr. Peter Reiners, majoring in Geology with a minor in Hydrology. I use multiple geochronological techniques (such as K/Ar, (U-Th)/He, Rb/Sr, Re/Os, and U/Pb) on a variety of minerals (apatite, Fe/Mn-oxides, clays, sulfides...), and other geochemical tools (stable and clumped isotopes, whole-rock geochemistry, reactive transport modelling), to understand how crustal fluids evolve through time in large-scale basin systems. I mostly work on rocks from the Paradox Basin, located on the Colorado Plateau. I am investigating how tectonics (faulting, earthquakes), orogenic events (e.g., the Laramide Orogeny), surface processes (erosion, river integration), and changes in climate affect the configuration, chemistry, and fluxes of subsurface flow systems. I am also currently working on a project with Dr. Jennifer McIntosh exploring how subsurface fluids affect life deep within the Earth's crust. We are investigating how the connections between fluid circulation, fluid-rock interactions, and subsurface microbial habitability have evolved through geologic time. In my spare time I love to cycle and swim!