Dr. Tanya Harrison

Dr. Tanya Harrison calls herself a “Professional Martian,” having worked in science and mission operations on multiple NASA Mars missions over the past 15 years, including the Perseverance, Curiosity, and Opportunity rovers. Her specialty lies in geomorphology: the study of a planet’s evolution based on its surface features. She holds a Ph.D. in Geology from the University of Western Ontario, a Masters in Earth and Environmental Sciences from Wesleyan University, and a B.Sc. in Astronomy and Physics from the University of Washington. Currently she is the Co-Founder and CEO of the Earth and Planetary Institute of Canada (EPIC), and a Fellow at the University of British Columbia's Outer Space Institute. Tanya is also an advocate for advancing the status of women and the LGBTQ+ community in science and for accessibility in the geosciences. You can find her prolifically tweeting about the Red Planet as @tanyaofmars.