The UW Department of Earth & Space Sciences Research Symposium and Gala is an annual graduate student-organized event that brings together students, faculty, alumni and supporters to celebrate our students’ groundbreaking work. This year’s Gala, held during the first week of Spring Quarter, showcased over 30 student presentations, 17 posters, a department-wide photo contest and an awards reception.

ESS students are exploring the unknowns of our planet and beyond, shaping the future of science. Whether it was an undergraduate presenting a poster for the first time, or a PhD candidate sharing the culmination of years of research, every presentation reflected the passion, curiosity and scientific excellence that defines the ESS community.

Photo Contest

The Gala Photo Contest is a visual celebration of the Earth and space sciences. This year, the featured images captured a range of landscapes and geologic processes, from glaciers, snowy peaks and floating icebergs to sandstone towers, columnar basalt cliffs and rocket launches.

“Golden Lens” – 1st Place Winner

Image titled “Piedmont Moraine” taken by ESS graduate student An Li.

“Silver Lens” – Second Place Winner

Image titled “Untitled” taken by ESS graduate student Daniel Otto.

“Bronze Lens” – 3rd Place Winner

Image titled “Train, Roswell” taken by ESS Affiliate Assistant Professor Aditya Khuller.

Highlighted Sessions and Talks

The breadth of research shared at the Gala is impressive, ranging from geohazards and astrobiology to glaciology and science communications. All of the talks exemplified the spirit of the Gala. ESS students not only are learning science but also are using it to connect, challenge and create lasting change. While it’s not possible to capture every talk here, the following highlights offer a glimpse into the range and impact of the work presented.

Best Overall Talk & Poster

This year, there was a very strong showing from the Department’s undergraduate students, who took home awards for the overall best talk and best poster.

The “Indomitable Speaker” Award for best overall talk went to ESS undergraduate student Deven Loska (UW ESS B.S. 2026) who presented on research conducted with Assistant Professor Cailey Condit, Professor Emeritus Bruce Nelson, and PhD candidate Peter Lindquist, titled “Strontium Isotopes as a Proxy for Seafloor Alteration in the Protolith of the Catalina Schist.” Shortly after formation at the mid-ocean ridge, basalts on the seafloor can be altered by seawater through chemical reactions, creating hydrous mineral phases. As these hydrated basalts are subducted to higher pressure and temperature conditions, they may undergo dehydration reactions, which release mineral-bound water that facilitates the growth of weaker minerals like chlorite and talc. The combined effects of weaker minerals and elevated pore fluid pressures can localize deformation and cause slip in deep parts of the subduction zone, potentially influencing more shallow, brittle earthquakes. Deven’s research analyzed a suite of metamorphosed basalt samples from Santa Catalina Island, which represent portions of subducted oceanic crust. She measured strontium isotope ratios in the samples using mass spectrometry, which indicate fluid-rock interactions variably altered these basalts. Deven reflects, “Preparing this presentation and engaging with others’ work at the ESS Gala was an incredibly rewarding experience. I deeply appreciate all of the support and feedback from my advisors and peers throughout the process. I am thankful to be in a department that is so creative, supportive, and collaborative.”

Since participating in shake-out drills during grade school, undergraduate student Jewel Wass de Czege, who received the “Indomitable Poster” Award for best overall poster, has been reminded that we live on active tectonic plates. They are honored to contribute to the understanding of this field through research in the Structural Petrology of the Lithosphere Lab with Assistant Professor Cailey Condit. Jewel’s research focused on examining exhumed fossils of ancient subduction zones found in the Islands of Greece, specifically Sifnos, to enhance our understanding of the Earth’s subsurface. Since subduction zones are associated with megathrust earthquakes and arc volcanism, understanding the factors that influence these geohazards is crucial. “Attending the ESS Gala reminded me how lucky I am to be around so many supportive, smart, and creative people,” Jewel shares. “This was my first time presenting to the department, so while I was nervous, the environment that’s been cultivated reassured me that everyone there truly wants to see others in their community succeed, which meant a lot.”

Rising Rockstar

Undergraduate student Filip Novak won the “Rising Rockstar” Award for best talk by an undergraduate. In his talk titled “Using Three-Dimensional Techniques to Study Sedimentary Structures: Insights into the Paleocene-Eocene of Wyoming and Aeolian Deposits on Mars”, Filip presented a novel method that he developed in collaboration with Assistant Professor Akshay Mehra, former UW Postdoctoral scholar Bolton Howes, and Professor Brady Foreman of Western Washington University. This workflow enables the three-dimensional (3D) analysis of sedimentary structures, which provide important insights into the environments they formed in. Analysis of these structures in the field is hindered by challenges such as differential weathering and a lack of measurement reproducibility. Leveraging structure from motion (SfM) photogrammetry, Filip constructed meter-scale, millimeter-resolution 3D models of geologic outcrops that enable accurate measurement of sedimentary structures through a digitized, reproducible, and verifiable workflow. He explored a case study applying this workflow to ancient river deposits from the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) of the Bighorn Basin, Wyoming. He observed that dune-scale cross-bedding preserves flashy river discharge dynamics before, during, and after the climatic changes of the PETM, showing that the rock record may be biased towards the preservation of extreme hydrologic events. At the end of the talk, he also teased some exciting next steps; he will apply his methods to imagery collected by NASA’s Curiosity Rover and explore 3.7 billion-year-old deltaic deposits from the Gale Crater on Mars. “I really enjoyed being able to present my work to an audience from different research backgrounds and receiving feedback from many diverse perspectives,” Filip said.

Geologic Hazards & Society

One standout presentation came from graduate student Julia Grossman and undergraduate students Nissa Stupakoff, Deven Loska, and Anna Frank, who won the “I Need a Hero” Award for best Geologic Hazards & Society talk. Their presentation described the graduate student-founded and led program called the Cascadia Culture & geoScience Exchange (CCASE). CCASE seeks to collectively increase coastal community resilience to geohazards through long-lasting and impactful educational partnerships with rural and tribal K-12 schools in Cascadia. Based on UW’s Riverways Education Partnerships program, CCASE team members develop week-long geohazards curricula that they then teach during UW’s spring break. Hands-on lessons integrate geoscience and indigenous knowledge, with local field trips and guest lectures from Elders providing vital place-based learning. By centering indigenous culture, histories and lived experiences, CCASE aims to empower students to pursue STEM while simultaneously providing information on Earth Science careers and pathways. During spring break week and on site visits throughout the school year, CCASE team members learn from students, partner teachers and community members who graciously share their cultural traditions, languages, histories and traditional knowledge. CCASE team members also mentor high school students through CCASE’s year-long paid internship program, which aims to create a pathway for indigenous students into the field of Earth Science.  CCASE’s Quileute (Kʷòʔlíyot’) program at Quileute Tribal School in La Push, WA is currently in its fourth year, and CCASE’s Makah (Qʷidiččaʔa·tx̌) program at Neah Bay High School in Neah Bay, WA is in its second year.  All four presenters were on the 2025-26 Neah Bay team.

Solid Earth Processes

In her talk, which won the “Shakes, Quakes, Bends & Brakes” Award for best Solid Earth Processes talk, graduate student Verónica Gaete Elgueta introduced the concept of earthquake rupture directivity and the associated risks. She took the audience to the Aleutian Subduction Zone, focusing on Cook Inlet, Alaska—one of the most seismically active regions in the United States. Verónica’s work uses telecommunication fiber-optic cables (TERRA and KKFLN) to investigate rupture directivity in moderate earthquakes across a range of depths in the forearc. Through this approach, she aims to determine whether the physics governing small-to-moderate earthquake ruptures are consistent with those of larger events, considering factors such as rupture velocity, rupture direction, and rupture type.

Ice Ice Baby

The glaciology session brought listeners to the icy places of the world, including Alaska, Greenland, and Antarctica. This year, graduate student Margot Shaya walked away with the “Ice Ice Baby” Award for her talk titled “Radar Measurements in Ice with Steeply Tilted Layers”. Ice sheets and glaciers have internal layers, which reflect the history of snow falling, compressing to ice, and flowing under the force of gravity. The age structure of these layers is important information for deciding where to drill ice cores to study the past climate signals. To understand how the ice is moving, and hence how old it might be, scientists use a method called “radar interferometry” that measures the squishing of the layers in ice over time. But this technique assumes that the layers are horizontal. Shaya studies a region of Antarctica where the internal layers are very steep because the ice is flowing up a submerged mountain. Together with collaborators, she tried a novel experiment to learn how the slope of the layers affects the radar measurement. They couldn’t change the layer angles; instead, they varied the tilt of the radar on the surface. As expected, the radar measured stronger reflections when the emitted power was at a right angle to the internal layers. Shaya plans to use these results to extend radar interferometry techniques to ice sheet areas with steep layers.

Astrobiology and Planetary Science

Graduate student Alexandra Papesh’s talk, which won the “Rocketeer” Award for best Astrobiology & Planetary Science talk, was on the research she has been doing to better understand and characterize the long term evolution and potential for past habitability of Earth’s sister planet, Venus. Venus is an enigmatic planet with extremely inhospitable modern surface conditions, however the conditions of early Venus remain poorly constrained. It is believed that during the early stages of the solar system, when the Sun was much younger and ~30% fainter, Venus may have received solar radiation just below the runaway greenhouse threshold, potentially permitting a temperate surface with lakes and oceans of liquid water. However, results from recent modeling research are unable to agree on whether the planet was ever cool enough to condense liquid surface water. Alex’s work involves using a fully coupled geochemical and atmospheric evolution model to simulate terrestrial planet evolution from a planet’s initial magma ocean state through geologic time. To focus on the evolution of Venus, Alex and her advisor, Joshua Krissansen-Totton, simulate thousands of planets, all initialized with unique initial compositions roughly consistent with the anticipated ranges of volatiles early Venus may have had, and evolve them through time for 4.5 billion years. This allows them to then isolate the planets with final atmospheric compositions that match modern Venus’ atmosphere, and analyze those planets to determine their evolutionary paths, and any trends or constraints on initial composition and final state. The preliminary results from this project suggest that early Venus could not have been habitable without the presence of significant early hazes or clouds to reflect away incoming solar radiation. Additionally, this work shows that based on their geochemical and redox evolution modeling, modern Venus may have a roughly Earth-like mantle redox state. These results may be validated by upcoming missions to Venus, like the planned DAVINCI mission, and aid in contextualizing other data retrieved from observation and measurement of modern Venus.

How can you help?

Behind every inspiring presentation is a network of support that makes student success possible. From funding student research and fieldwork, to expanding outreach and access, to supporting hands-on learning experiences, your gift invests in the next generation of Earth and space scientists. Visit our ESS giving page to explore ways to support our students and the initiatives that matter most to you.

A special thank you to the graduate student organizers for the event – Tamara Aranguiz-Rago, Paul Morgan, Sophia Johnson, Sophia Ludtke, and Michael Hemmett.

Awards and Recognition

Please see below for a list of the 2026 Gala award recipients.

• “Indomitable Speaker” award for best overall talk – Deven Loska
• “Indomitable Poster” award for best overall poster – Jewel Wass De Czege
• “Rising Rockstar” award for best talk by an undergrad – Filip Novak
• “Rising Rockstar” award for best poster by an undergrad – Sophia Robillard
• “Golden Lens” photo contest 1st place – An Li
• “Silver Lens” photo contest 2nd place – Daniel Otto
• “Bronze Lens” photo context 3rd place – Aditya Khuller
• “Quick, Quick, Do Tell Me” award for best UpGoer 5 Talk – Jess Ghent
• “Ice Mastery” award for best Glaciology talk – Margot Shaya
• “No Bones About It!” award for best Paleoclimate, Paleontology & Sedimentology talk – Hannah Cothren
• “Earth Shaker” award for best Geologic Hazards & Society talk – Julia Grossman & team
• “Smarticle Particles” award for best Geophysics talk – Manuela Köpfli
• “Rocketeer” award for best Astrobiology & Planetary Science talk – Alex Papesh
• “No Faults Here!” award for best Structure, Petrology & Tectonics talk – Veronica Gaete Elgueta
• “Elevator Pitch-er” award for best poster spiel – Scott Chang
• “Jaw-Dropping” Award for best graphics in a poster or presentation – Sophia Suhinin
• “Adam Campbell Best Figure Award” in honor of former ESS who had a knack for catchy figures best exemplified by his Snowball Earth Amoeba”
  • Filip Novak
  • Sophia Robillard