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Eberly College of Arts & Sciences Department of Geology and Geography
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Kathleen Benison

Professor of Geology

Contact

kathleen.benison@mail.wvu.edu Website

Profiles and Info

WVU Experts Database

Categorized As

Role: Faculty,
Focus or Research Area: Geology,

Sedimentology, geochemistry, astrobiology, salt, brines, Mars — I am interested in understanding the systems interactions among lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere of modern and ancient acid saline lakes on Earth and Mars. This research involves fieldwork, petrography, fluid inclusion studies, sediment geochemistry, and laser Raman spectroscopy, much of it focused on salt minerals.

Education:

  • Ph.D. in Geology, University of Kansas, 1997
  • M.A. in Geology, Binghamton University, 1993

  • BS in Geology and Chemistry (double majors), Bridgewater State College, 1990

Research:

Kathy and her students use field work, core descriptions, petrography, and fluid inclusion studies to study modern acid salt lakes and their ancient counterparts. We are interested in the roles of weather and climate, water geochemistry, mineralogy, and microbiology. Active research projects involve acid salt lakes in Western Australia, Permo-Triassic evaporites and red beds, and systems on Mars.  See the Red Earth Observatory Lab website (www.kathleenbenison.com) for more information.

Teaching:

  • GEOL 101: Planet Earth
  • GEOL 311: Stratigraphy and Sedimentation
  • GEOL 404: Field Camp
  • GEOL 411W: Deep-Time Earth Systems
  • GEOL 591: Sedimentary Petrology
  • GEOL 591: Fluid Inclusions
  • GEOL 593: Chemical Sediments

Selected Recent Honors:

  • GSA James B. Thompson, Jr. International Distinguished Lecturer, 2026
  • Councilor, Geological Society of America, 2025-present
  • ICDP DeepDust drilling project, 2018-present
  • Science Editor, Geology, 2021-2025
  • Return Sample Selection Participating Scientist for Mars 2020 mission, 2019-2025
  • Erasmus Haworth Distinguished Alumni Award, The University of Kansas, 2023 
  • Member, Temperature - Time for Mars Sample Return Tiger Team, NASA, 2022 - 2023 
  • Bradley Award for best scientific talk, Geological Society of Washington (D.C.), 2020
  • Fellow, Geological Society of America, 2020    

Selected Recent Publications:

Gill, K.K., Benison, K.C., and Jagniecki, E.A., 2026, Detecting and preserving biosignatures in sulfate minerals prone to instability: American Mineralogist; v. 111 (5), p. 710-724. 

Bradford, M.Y., Benison, K.C., and Sweet, D., 2026, Saline-lake deposition and complex diagenesis in the Permian Cloud Chief Formation, Texas: Journal of Sedimentary Research, v. 96 (2), p. 260-274.

 Benison, K.C., Ellis, M.C., Prchlik, R.J., and Smith, B.A., 2025, Micron-scale crystals in halite are proxies for Permian acid brines: GSA Bulletin, v. 137, p. 4709-4720. 

Benison, K.C., Hallsworth, J.E., Zalar, P., Glavina, M., and Gunde-Cimerman, N., 2025, Extremophilic and common fungi in acid brines and their halite: Extremophiles, v. 29, article 15. 

Benison, K.C., and 31 others, 2024, Depositional and diagenetic sulfates of Hogwallow Flats and Yori Pass, Jezero crater: Evaluating preservation potential of environmental indicators and possible biosignatures from past martian surface waters and groundwaters: Journal of Geophysical  Research – Planets, v. 129. 

Gill, K.K., Jagniecki, E.A., Benison, K.C., and Gibson, M.E.*, 2023, A Mars-analog sulfate mineral, mirabilite, preserves biosignatures: Geology, v. 51, p. 818-822. 

Radwin, M.H., Bowen, B.B., Benison, K.C., and Story, S.L., 2023, Southwestern Australia acid-saline mineralogy: Observations from reflectance spectroscopy: IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, v. 61. 

Gibson, M.E. and Benison, K.C., 2023, Perspectives: It’s a trap!: Modern and ancient halite as Lagerstätten: Journal of Sedimentary Research, v. 93, p. 642-655. 

Hallsworth, J.E., Udaondo, Z., Amils, R., Benison, K.C., de Campos, C.B.L., Cordero, R.J.B., Hofer, J., Lloyd, K.G., Mancinelli, R.L., Perdros-Alio, C., and Yaokimov, M.M., 2023, Scientific novelty beyond the experiment: Microbial Biotechnology, 00:1-43. 

Simon, J.I., Hickman-Lewis, K., Cohen, B.A., Mayhew, L.E., Shuster, D.L., Debaille, V., Hausrath, E.M., Weiss, B.P., Bosak, T., Zorzano, M.-P., Amundsen, H.E.F., Beegle, L.W., Bell, J.F., III, Benison, K.C., and 54 others, 2023, Samples collected from the floor of Jezero crater with the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover: Journal of Geophysical Research – Planets, v. 128, e2022JE007474,  42 p.

 Scheller, E.L., Hollis, J.R., Cardarelli, E.L., Steele, A., Beegle, L.W., Bhartia, R., Conrad, P., Uckert, K., Sharma, S., Ehlmann, B.L., Abbey, W.J., Asher, S.A., Benison, K.C., and 45 others, 2022, Aqueous alteration processes in Jezero crater, Mars - implications for organic geochemistry: Science, v. 378, n. 6622.

 Schreder-Gomes, S.I., Benison, K.C., and Bernau, J.A., 2022, 830 million-year-old microorganisms in primary fluid inclusions in halite: Geology, v. 50, p. 918-922

 Benison, K.C., O’Neill, W., Blain, D., and Hallsworth, J.E., 2021, Water activities of acid brine lakes approach the limit for life: Astrobiology, v. 21, p. 729-740.

 Andeskie, A.S. and Benison, K.C., 2020, Using sedimentology to address the marine or continental origin of the Permian Hutchinson Salt Member of Kansas: Sedimentology, v. 67, p. 882-896.

 Benison, K.C., 2019, How to search for life in martian chemical sediments and their fluid and solid inclusions using petrographic and spectroscopic methods: Frontiers in Environmental Science, v. 7, article 108.

 

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