Roberta Rudnick

Rudnick grew up in Portland, Oregon.{{Cite journal|last=Downey|first=Philip|date=2012|title=Profile of Roberta L. Rudnick|pmc=3523877|journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences|language=en|volume=109|issue=49|pages=19873–19875|doi=10.1073/pnas.1219069109|issn=0027-8424|pmid=23169649|bibcode=2012PNAS..10919873D|doi-access=free}} She completed her undergraduate studies in earth sciences at Portland State University in 1980.{{Cite web|url=https://www.geol.umd.edu/~rudnick/robertaresume.htm|title=Roberta L|website=geol.umd.edu|access-date=2018-08-12}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.pdx.edu/geology/alumni_m-z|title=Portland State College of Liberal Arts & Sciences: Department of Geology {{!}} Alumni M through Z|website=pdx.edu|language=en|access-date=2018-08-12}} She was only fifty miles from the eruption of Mount St. Helens. After graduating, Rudnick moved to Sul Ross State University for her master's degree, specialising in geology.{{Cite news|url=https://www.oaoa.com/community/good_news/article_89735bfa-9c41-5f2b-beb8-1a802f44b28c.html|title=GOOD NEWS: Sul Ross honors athletic standouts, distinguished alumni|work=Odessa American|access-date=2018-08-12}} She worked on the geochemistry of metamorphic rocks in Van Horn, Texas.{{Cite journal|last=Rudnick|first=Roberta L.|date=1983|title=Geochemistry and tectonic affinities of a Proterozoic bimodal igneous suite, west Texas|journal=Geology|language=en|volume=11|issue=6|pages=352–355|doi=10.1130/0091-7613(1983)11<352:gataoa>2.0.co;2|bibcode=1983Geo....11..352R |issn=0091-7613}} Her master's thesis was titled the Petrography, Geochemistry and Tectonic Affinities of Meta-Igneous Rocks from the Precambrian Carrizo Mountain Group.{{Cite web|url=http://libit.sulross.edu/archives/NewWebSite/commencements/Commencement_Program_1983_may.pdf|title=Sul Ross State University, Fifty-Eighth Annual Commencement|last=|first=|date=1983-05-13|website=Sul Ross University|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2018-08-11}} In 1988, Rudnick earned her PhD at the Australian National University.{{cite thesis|publisher=Australian National University|degree=PhD|year=1987|url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/8308277|title=The nature of the lower continental crust|first=Roberta L.|last= Rudnick|oclc=222186796}} Her supervisor, Stuart Ross Taylor, studied the upper continental crust. Rudnick was inspired to study the deep crust below, and chose to investigate granulites. She worked out the chemical composition and depths of xenoliths.{{Cite journal|last1=Rudnick|first1=R. L.|last2=Taylor|first2=S. R.|date=1987|title=The composition and petrogenesis of the lower crust: A xenolith study|journal=Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth|language=en|volume=92|issue=B13|pages=13981–14005|doi=10.1029/jb092ib13p13981|issn=0148-0227|bibcode=1987JGR....9213981R}} Whilst she was a student she used the Sensitive high-resolution ion microprobe (SHRIMP) to date ancient zircons.{{Cite journal|date=1987|first1=various|last1=authors|title=Dating the lower crust by ion microprobe|journal=Earth and Planetary Science Letters|language=en|volume=85|issue=1–3|pages=145–161|doi=10.1016/0012-821X(87)90028-8|issn=0012-821X|bibcode=1987E&PSL..85..145R}} She identified that granulites were depleted in soluble elements.{{Cite journal|date=1985|first1= Various| last1=authors|title=Large ion lithophile elements in rocks from high-pressure granulite facies terrains|journal=Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta|language=en|volume=49|issue=7|pages=1645–1655|doi=10.1016/0016-7037(85)90268-6|issn=0016-7037|bibcode=1985GeCoA..49.1645R}}

Rudnick was appointed a von Humboldt postdoctoral fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in 1987. She returned to the Australian National University as a research fellow in 1989. She worked with Ian Jackson and Dave Fountain on the lower continental crust.{{Cite journal|last1=Rudnick|first1=Roberta L.|last2=Fountain|first2=David M.|date=1995|title=Nature and composition of the continental crust: A lower crustal perspective|journal=Reviews of Geophysics|volume=33|issue=3|pages=267|doi=10.1029/95rg01302|issn=8755-1209|bibcode=1995RvGeo..33..267R}} In 1994 Rudnick joined Harvard University as assistant professor, before being promoted to Associate in 1997. Her work on the evolution of the continental crust has been cited over one thousand times.{{Cite journal|last=Rudnick|first=Roberta L.|date=1995|title=Making continental crust|journal=Nature|language=En|volume=378|issue=6557|pages=571–578|doi=10.1038/378571a0|issn=0028-0836|bibcode=1995Natur.378..571R|s2cid=4312218}} It explored the andesitic composition of continental crust that cannot be produced by basaltic magmatism - the building blocks of the continental crust do not match the edifice. There were several theories that explained the depletion; that the foundering of the magnesium and iron-rich lower crust occurs when tectonic plates force the deep crust to recrystallise, that exposure to air and water causes chemical weathering and that the basaltic oceanic crusts melts when it is subducted. Rudnick believes all three theories could explain the paradox of the composition of the crust. During subduction, ocean crust drops down, producing a series of volcanoes that are basaltic at first and later become non-basalt like. High magnesium rocks concentrate at the bottom.

She joined the University of Maryland, College Park, in 2000. When she arrived at Maryland she began to consider the use of lithium isotopes to study near-surface continental processes.{{Cite news|url=https://eos.org/agu-news/roberta-rudnick-receives-2017-harry-h-hess-medal|title=Roberta Rudnick Receives 2017 Harry H. Hess Medal - Eos|website=Eos.org|access-date=2018-08-12|language=en-US}} She used lithium isotopes to explore the influence of weathering on the composition of the continental crust.{{Cite journal|last1=Liu|first1=Xiao-Ming|last2=Rudnick|first2=Roberta L.|date=2011|title=Constraints on continental crustal mass loss via chemical weathering using lithium and its isotopes|pmc=3248527|journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences|language=en|volume=108|issue=52|pages=20873–20880|doi=10.1073/pnas.1115671108|issn=0027-8424|pmid=22184221|bibcode=2011PNAS..10820873L|doi-access=free}} Lithium isotopes allowed her to trace recycling in crusts and other diffusional processes in earth.{{Cite web|url=https://www.aps.org/meetings/meeting.cfm?name=SENIOR1215|title=Meeting Information|website=www.aps.org|language=en|access-date=2018-08-12}} She demonstrated that reactive transport causes kinetic isotope fractionation.{{Cite book|title=Non-Traditional Stable Isotopes|last1=Teng|first1=Fang-Zhen|last2=Watkins|first2=James|last3=Dauphas|first3=Nicolas|date=2017-03-06|publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG|isbn=9783110545630|language=en}}{{Cite journal|last1=Teng|first1=Fang-Zhen|last2=Yang|first2=Wei|last3=Rudnick|first3=Roberta L.|last4=Hu|first4=Yan|date=2013|title=Heterogeneous magnesium isotopic composition of the lower continental crust: A xenolith perspective|journal=Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems|language=en|volume=14|issue=9|pages=3844–3856|doi=10.1002/ggge.20238|issn=1525-2027|bibcode=2013GGG....14.3844T|doi-access=}} She studied ancient glacial tills and demonstrated that ancient continents were rich in iron and magnesium.{{Cite journal|date=2016-08-01|title=Compositional evolution of the upper continental crust through time, as constrained by ancient glacial diamictites|journal=Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta|language=en|volume=186|pages=316–343|doi=10.1016/j.gca.2016.03.020|issn=0016-7037|bibcode=2016GeCoA.186..316G|last1=Gaschnig|first1=Richard M.|last2=Rudnick|first2=Roberta L.|last3=McDonough|first3=William F.|last4=Kaufman|first4=Alan J.|last5=Valley|first5=John W.|last6=Hu|first6=Zhaochu|last7=Gao|first7=Shan|last8=Beck|first8=Michelle L.|url=https://cloudfront.escholarship.org/dist/prd/content/qt0tq9c1q1/qt0tq9c1q1.pdf|doi-access=free}} She also worked on geoneutrinos, helping physicists at the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory and USArray identify whether neutrinos come from the core, mantle or crust of earth.

Rudnick has served as editor-in-chief of Chemical Geology from 2000 to 2010.{{Cite web|url=https://www.elsevier.com/about/press-releases/research-and-journals/editor-in-chief-of-chemical-geology,-professor-roberta-rudnick,-elected-to-nas|title=Editor-In-Chief of Chemical Geology, Professor Roberta Rudnick, Elected to NAS|last=Elsevier|website=www.elsevier.com|language=en|access-date=2018-08-12}} In 2012 she was made Department Chair. In 2015 Rudnick joined University of California, Santa Barbara as a Professor of Earth Sciences.{{Cite web|url=http://www.geol.ucsb.edu/news/announcement/632|title=Robin Matoza and Roberta Rudnick join the Department faculty! {{!}} Earth Science - UC Santa Barbara|website=geol.ucsb.edu|language=en|access-date=2018-08-12}} There she continued work on using isotope fractionation to understand how chemical weathering of the continental crust has evolved alongside changing atmospheric chemistry.{{Cite journal|last1=Greaney|first1=Allison T.|last2=Rudnick|first2=Roberta L.|last3=Romaniello|first3=Stephen J.|last4=Johnson|first4=Aleisha C.|last5=Gaschnig|first5=Richard M.|last6=Anbar|first6=Ariel D.|date=2020-03-15|title=Molybdenum isotope fractionation in glacial diamictites tracks the onset of oxidative weathering of the continental crust|journal=Earth and Planetary Science Letters|language=en|volume=534|pages=116083|doi=10.1016/j.epsl.2020.116083|bibcode=2020E&PSL.53416083G |s2cid=212932603 |issn=0012-821X|doi-access=free}} She is working on the concentration of heat producing elements (potassium, thorium and uranium) in the continental crust to estimate the Moho temperature.{{Cite web|url=https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1650260&HistoricalAwards=false|title=NSF Award Search: Award#1650260 - U-Pb Thermochronology of Lower Crustal Xenoliths: Estimating Moho Temperature in Order to Constrain Crustal Heat Production|website=nsf.gov|access-date=2018-08-12}}

Rudnick is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a foreign member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. She has received several large grants from the National Science Foundation.rudnicks {{ORCID|0000-0003-1559-7463}} Other awards include:

• 2005 - Fellow of the American Geophysical Union
• 2006 - N. L. Bowen award of the American Geophysical Union{{Cite news|url=https://honors.agu.org/sfg-awardees/rudnick-receives-2006-n-l-bowen-award/|title=Rudnick Receives 2006 N. L. Bowen Award - Honors Program|work=Honors Program|access-date=2018-08-12|language=en-US}}
• 2010 - Member of the National Academy of Sciences{{Cite web|url=http://www.nasonline.org/member-directory/members/20011867.html|title=Roberta Rudnick|publisher=National Academy of Sciences -|website=nasonline.org|access-date=2018-08-12}}
• 2012 - Dana Medal of the Mineralogical Society of America{{Cite web|url=http://www.minsocam.org/msa/Awards/Dana.html|title=Mineralogical Society of America - Dana Medal|website=minsocam.org|access-date=2018-08-12}}{{Cite journal|last=Hofmann|first=Albrecht|authorlink= Albrecht Hofmann|date=2012|title=Presentation of the Dana Medal of the Mineralogical Society of America for 2012 to Roberta L. Rudnick|journal=American Mineralogist|language=en|volume=97|issue=10|pages=1816|doi=10.2138/am.2012.598|issn=0003-004X|bibcode=2012AmMin..97.1816H}} {{closed access}}
• 2017 - Harry H. Hess Medal of the American Geophysical Union
• 2023* - V.M. Goldschmidt Medal of the Geochemical Society

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Category:1958 births

Category:Living people

Category:21st-century American geologists

Category:American earth scientists

Category:University of Maryland, College Park faculty

Category:Harvard University faculty

Category:Sul Ross State University alumni

Category:Portland State University alumni

Category:Academic staff of the Australian National University

Category:Australian National University alumni

Category:University of California, Santa Barbara faculty

Category:Scientists from Portland, Oregon

Category:Presidents of the Geochemical Society