MEET THE CURATOR
Denton S. Ebel, Assistant Curator, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences

Dr. Denton S. Ebel

© AMNH/Photo Studio

Denton S. Ebel is the curator of the new Arthur Ross Hall of Meteorites, which reopens to the public on September 20, 2003. His research addresses the mineral and chemical origins of solar systems, with a focus on modeling equilibria between gases, mineral solids, and molten rock at low pressures. Before becoming a curator at the Museum, he conducted a major research project in collaboration with colleagues to develop thermodynamic models describing the equilibrium distribution of elements between gas, liquid, and solid mineral phases at high temperatures. He has applied these models to describing possible outcomes of condensation, evaporation, and crystallization processes of solids and liquid droplets in the early solar nebula, and has compared them to the actual record in meteorites. Dr. Ebel continues to study the meteoritic record for evidence of these processes and to test models against observations by analyzing samples at the finest possible resolution for their chemical, isotopic, textural, and other characteristics. Dr. Ebel is a member of the Geochemical Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Meteoritical Society, and numerous other scientific organizations. He received his B.A. in sociology from Harvard College in 1982. He earned his M.S. in geology in 1988 and his Ph.D. in geology in 1993, both from Purdue University. He joined the Museum in 2001.

Read an interview with Curator Denton S. Ebel