I am a Planetary Scientist working as a postdoctoral fellow for the Planetary Imaging Group (PIG) at the University of Bern, Switzerland. My research involves acquisition and analysis of spacecraft observations of solar system objects, as well as modelling of geologic processes that shape the surfaces of these objects. In particular, I study processes related to ices and volatile elements on the surfaces of solid planetary bodies, and how their physical properties and distribution may relate to a planet's climatic history. Currently, through a combination of sub-surface radar sounding and high-resolution images, I am studying the stratigraphy of the water ice deposits preserved on the polar regions of Mars, and how it relates to geologically recent climate change. I am also using images from the European Space Agency's Rosetta mission to investigate the origin of fractures on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

Contact

Space Research and Planetary Sciences
Physikalisches Institut
Universität Bern
Gesellschaftsstrasse 6
CH-3012 Bern
Switzerland 

Office: +41 31 631 48 17
email: patricio.becerra@space.unibe.ch