MELISSA K. GIOVANNI
Department of Earth & Space Sciences
University of California Los Angeles
3806 Geology Building
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1567
(310) 403-5643
Email: giovanni@ess.ucla.edu
Ph.D. Graduate Student in Geology
Currently conducting research in the central Peruvian Andes on the Cordillera Blanca normal fault and its relation to
the Marañón fold-thrust belt, using sedimentology, thermochronology, and geologic mapping. As an undergraduate,
published research on the 2001 Peru earthquake, was a team member on the Gamma Ray Spectrometer for the 2001
Mars Odyssey and co-discovered a new class of star.
Education
2002 – present
1997 – 2002
Ph.D., Geology, University of California Los Angeles, expected 2007
B.S., Geology, University of Arizona
Experience

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES, EARTH & SPACE SCIENCES, Los Angeles, CA
Ph.D. Researcher, August 2002 & July-August 2003
2003 Research Field Season
 Organized and conducted two months of field research in central Peru.
 Responsible for all logistics including vehicle rental & drivers, food, and lodging, for a team of 3.
 Measured a stratigraphic section, collected samples for thermochronology analyses, and began
mapping a transect across the Marañón fold-thrust belt.
 Preliminary results from sedimentologic and thermochronologic analyses to be presented at the 2003
Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union, Dec. 8-12.
2002 Research Reconnaissance Field Season
 Measured a stratigraphic section and collected 12 samples for thermochronology analyses, during the
2002 Reconnaissance Field Season, in Peru.
 Identified three major goals to be addressed in future field seasons: sedimentology of the basin,
thermochronology of the Cordillera Blanca batholith, and mapping of the Marañón fold-thrust belt.

UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA, GEOSCIENCES DEPARTMENT, Tucson, Arizona
Student Researcher, August 2001 – May 2002
 Analyzed the 23 June 2001 Peru earthquake by creating computer models to determine the direction of
fault rupture.
 Created maps of the fault zone, aftershock locations, and comparisons to historic earthquakes. Results
presented at the 2001 Meeting of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) and published in 2002 in
Geophysical Research Letters.
 Worked under the supervision of Dr. Susan Beck.
Student Research Assistant, September 2001 – June 2002
 Point-counted sandstones from Alberta, Canada foreland basin, to determine provenance by QFL
composition.
 Counted 450 grains per sample for 30 samples. Became skilled using a petrographic microscope and in
identifying minerals common in foreland basin settings.
 Worked under the supervision of Dr. Peter DeCelles.
Melissa K. Giovanni (2)

UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA, LUNAR AND PLANETARY LABORATORY, Tucson, Arizona
Student Research Assistant, July 1999 – September 2001
 2001 Mars Odyssey, Gamma Ray Spectrometer team member.
 Performed data reduction and analysis of calibration spectra during instrument construction and
calibration.
 Maintained database for archived calibration data.
 Worked under the supervision of Hop Bailey.

NATIONAL OPTICAL ASTRONOMY OBSERVATORY, Tucson, Arizona
Student Research Assistant, September 1998 – May 2000
 Performed data reduction for research and development of infrared detectors, designed for
astronomical observatories.

UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA, ASTRONOMY DEPARTMENT, Tucson, Arizona
Student Research Assistant, November 1998 – October 1999
 Co-discovered the sub-dwarf B, a new class of star. These stars have light curves that show variations
on hourly timescales, suggesting “starquakes” on the star’s surface.
 Sole observer on the night of discovery (July 17-18, 1999) at the Steward Observatory 90-inch
telescope, at Kitt Peak National Observatory.
 Studied white dwarf binary systems through photometry and spectroscopy. Conducted three total
observing runs at the 90-inch and analyzed data with computer modeling.
Professional Affiliations
American Geophysical Union
Geological Society of America
Computer Skills
Operating systems: UNIX, Linux, Macintosh, Windows
Languages: HTML, C
Software: Adobe Illustrator & Photoshop, Generic Mapping Tools (GMT), Seismic Analysis Code (SAC),
Microsoft Office
Language Skills
Proficient in reading, writing, and speaking French
Basic skills in Spanish
Publications
Giovanni, M.K., Beck, S., and Wagner, L., The June 23, 2001 Peru Earthquake and the Southern Peru
Subduction Zone, Geophysical Research Letters, 30, doi: 10.1029/2002GL015774, 2002.
Presentations
Giovanni, M.K., Horton, B.K., McNulty, B., and Grove, M., Evolution of the Cordillera Blanca Normal
Fault, Central Peruvian Andes: Evidence from Basin Analysis and 40Ar/39Ar Thermochronology, EOS
Trans. AGU, 82(47), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract S41D-0114, 2003.
Giovanni, M.K., Beck, S., and Wagner, L., The June 23, 2001 Peru Earthquake and the Southern Peru
Subduction Zone, EOS Trans. AGU, 82(47), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract S51F-02, 2001.