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Amanda M Lopez

Photo of Amanda Lopez

Address:

4800 Oak Grove Drive

Pasadena, CA 91109

Curriculum Vitae:

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Member of:

Water & Ecosystems

Postdoctoral Researcher

Employed By

A NASA Postdoctoral Program (NPP) Fellow is not an employee of any office or agency. The fellow has a guest appointment at JPL. ORAU currently administers the appointment.

Biography

Amanda (Mandy) Mulcan Lopez is a geoscience researcher in the water and ecosystems group at JPL. Her research focuses on using NASA remote sensing methods and data products to study water quality, coastal ecology, and marine resource management. Mandy joined JPL in 2021 after completing her Ph.D. in geology at the University of Houston, where she studied the biogeochemical cycling of trace metal contaminants in Galveston Bay estuary.

Education

  • Ph.D. in Geology from University of Houston 2021
  • M.S. in Environmental Science from Florida Atlantic University 2014
  • B.A. in Geological Sciences and History from University of Miami 2011

Professional Experience

  • NASA Postdoctoral Program Fellow, Water and Ecosystems Group, Jet Propulsion Laboratory 2021 – present
  • Graduate Research/Teaching Assistant, Department of Earth and Atmospheric Science, University of Houston 2016 – 2021
  • NASA Intern, Experimental Petrology Group, Johnson Space Center 2017
  • Adjunct Professor of Environmental Science, Broward College 2016
  • Adjunct Professor of Environmental Science, Lone Star College 2016
  • Project Geologist, Tierra Consulting Group, Inc. 2014 – 2015

Research Interests

Coastal geoscience, science policy, marine renewable energy, marine biogeochemistry, trace metal contaminants, science education, public outreach

Selected Awards

  • Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Galveston Bay Estuary Program Monitoring & Research Subcommittee Research Grant Award 2019 – 2021
  • University of Houston Student Research Day Conference 1st Place Oral Presentation Scholarship Award 2019
  • University of Houston 3-Minute Thesis Finalist Scholarship Award 2019
  • Florida Atlantic University Graduate Grant 2013 – 2014
  • Sigma Gamma Epsilon Earth Science Honor Society W.A. Tarr Award 2011

Selected Publications

  1. Lopez, A.M., Brandon, A.D., Fitzsimmons, J.N., Ramos, F.C., Jensen, C.C. (2021) Lead isotopes and heavy metal concentrations in Galveston Bay oyster tissues (Crassostrea virginica): Implications for estuarine heavy metal cycling. Science of the Total Environment In Review.
  2. Lopez, A.M., Fitzsimmons, J.N., Dellapenna T.M., Adams H.A., Brandon, A.D. (2021) A time-series of heavy metal geochemistry in sediments of Galveston Bay estuary, Texas, 2017-2019. Science of the Total Environment In Review.
  3. Lopez, A.M., Brandon, A.D., Ramos F.C., Fitzsimmons, J.N., Dellapenna T.M., Adams H.A. (2021) Lead geochemistry of sediments in Galveston Bay estuary, Texas. Environmental Advances 4: 100057.
  4. Mulcan, A., Mitsova, D., Hindle, T., Hanson, H., Coley, C. (2015) Marine benthic habitats and seabed suitability mapping for potential ocean current energy siting offshore southeast Florida. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 3(2): 276-298.
  5. Wdowinski, S., Hong, S.H., Mulcan, A., Brisco, B. (2013) Remote sensing monitoring of tide propagation through coastal wetlands. Oceanography 26(3): 64-69.