Sciences and Exploration Directorate

Tracy (She/Her) Esman

(NASA POSTDOCTORAL PROGRAM FELL)

Tracy (She/Her) Esman's Contact Card & Information.
Email: teresa.esman@nasa.gov
Org Code: 670
Address:
NASA/GSFC
 Mail Code 675
 Greenbelt, MD 20771
Employer: NPP POST-DOC CONTRACT

Brief Bio

Tracy is a NASA Postdoctoral Fellow at GSFC. She is a planetary scientist working with Mars (MAVEN, MGS) and Earth (POES, Van Allen) data. She is a member of the MAVEN MAG science team and has published papers discussing magnetic field waves at Mars.


Tracy currently works with Ionospheric-Thermospheric-Mesospheric Physics Laboratory. Under the guidance of Dr. Alexa Halford, she is studying EMIC waves and particle precipitation in the Earth's magnetosphere. Her research interests include (but are not limited to) Mars, waves, lightning, and magnetic fields.


Tracy also has been working on data accessibility by producing data products and adapting code (Python) for easier and more efficient access. This includes bringing MGS MAG data to SPDF with additional data products.


She is an ambassador for Spritacular (https://spritacular.org/).


Tracy received a Ph.D. in Planetary Science in 2022 from the University of Arizona, The Lunar and Planetary Laboratory.


Visit the link below for more information (Early Career Scientist Spotlight) and a picture of Tracy's cat:

https://science.gsfc.nasa.gov/600/ECSS/Tracy-Esman.html

Research Interests

Waves

Heliophysics: Space Weather

Wave-particle interactions, their drivers, and their resulting effects (e.g. particle precipitation) are important for understanding the plasma environment. Tracy has studied waves at both Mars and Earth.

Mars

Solar System: Mars

Tracy is a member of the MAVEN magnetometer science team. Mars has no intrinsic global magnetic field, but has an induced magnetosphere from the interaction between the solar wind and the ionosphere of Mars. Mars also has remnant crustal magnetic fields that can significantly alter the environment. From the magnetosphere to the ground, Tracy is interested in learning more!

Lightning

Solar System: Atmospheres

Lightning has been observed throughout the solar system. Lightning generates waves and can cause atmospheric chemistry changes.

Magnetic Fields

Solar System: Magnetospheres

Magnetic fields can provide important information about the plasma environment, energy transfer, momentum transfer, and more.

Current Projects

Statistical analysis of EMIC waves in the terrestrial magnetosphere

Magnetospheres

With the Van Allen Probe data, a list of EMIC wave events has been previously created (Remya Bhanu). POES data provides information about the flux of protons and electrons. When these spacecraft were on the same magnetic field line (conjunction), we investigate possible relationships between EMIC waves and particle precipitation. This investigation involves statistical analysis comparing different conditional datasets (e.g. when there are EMIC waves vs. when there are no EMIC waves and storm conditions).

Additions to Pysat and SPDF for data accessibility

Pysat is a python package used for easy access and management of satellite data. New python code is created for different datasets. New files, which follow the standards of data management of SPDF, are also created to increase public access to data.

Positions/Employment

NASA Postdoctoral Fellow

NASA/ORAU - Greenbelt, MD

October 2022 - Present

Supervisor: Dr. Alexa Halford

Research Scientist III

University of Arizona - Tucson, AZ

May 2022 - September 2022

Supervisors: Prof. Joe Giacalone and Dr. Jared Espley

Graduate Student Research Associate

University of Arizona, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory - Tucson, AZ

November 2018 - May 2022

Ph.D. advisors: Prof. Joe Giacalone and Dr. Jared Espley

Graduate Student Research/Teaching Assistant

University of Arizona, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory - Tucson, AZ

August 2015 - November 2018

Ph.D. advisors: Prof. Joe Giacalone and Dr. Jared Espley

TA to Dr. Steve Kortenkamp

NASA GSFC Intern

NASA GSFC - Greenbelt, MD

June 2014 - August 2014

Supervisor: Dr. Jared Espley

NASA GSFC Intern

NASA GSFC - Greenbelt, MD

June 2013 - August 2013

Supervisor: Dr. Conor Nixon

Education

PhD, Planetary Science 2022, The University of Arizona

(Atmospheres Minor)

Masters, Planetary Science 2018, The University of Arizona

BA Astronomy-Physics, The University of Virginia

Awards

  1. College of Science Graduate Teaching Award, April 2019, University of Arizona
  2. Graduate Teaching Assistant Excellence Award (Annual recipient), April 2019, University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
  3. Graduate Teaching Assistant Excellence (Semester recipient), Aug. 2018, University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
  4. D. Nelson Limber Prize, May 2015, University of Virginia's Astronomy Department

Publications

Refereed

2023. "Will we find Martian lightning via Schumann resonances?." Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences 10 [10.3389/fspas.2023.1162624] [Journal Article/Letter]

2022. "Martian Ionospheric Magnetic Fluctuations Below 200 km." Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics 127 (9): [10.1029/2022ja030470] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "Plasma Waves in the Distant Martian Environment: Implications for Mars' Sphere of Influence." Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics 126 (11): [10.1029/2021ja029686] [Journal Article/Letter]

2018. "Loss of the Martian atmosphere to space: Present-day loss rates determined from MAVEN observations and integrated loss through time." Icarus 315 146-157 [10.1016/j.icarus.2018.05.030] [Journal Article/Letter]

2018. "Martian Electron Temperatures in the Subsolar Region: MAVEN Observations Compared to a One-Dimensional Model." Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics 123 (7): 5960-5973 [10.1029/2018ja025406] [Journal Article/Letter]

Talks, Presentations and Posters

Invited

Martian Magnetic Waves: Upstream, Ionospheric, and the Search for Lightning

2021

A talk on my dissertation at LANL

Martian Magnetic Waves

2021

A talk on my dissertation at NRL

Other

A Statistical Analysis of EMIC waves and Particle Fluxes using POES and RBSP

2023

AGU, San Francisco, CA

Poster

Magnetic Fluctuations from the Solar Wind to the Surface of Mars

September 2023

URSI GASS, Sapporo, Japan

Poster

Additions to Pysat and CDAWeb: Availability of Datasets

July 2023

CEDAR, San Diego, CA

Talk

Low Altitude 5-16 Hz Martian Ionospheric Waves

2020

AGU, Virtual

Talk

Magnetic Waves in the Martian Ionosphere

2019

AGU, San Francisco, CA

Poster

ELF Waves in the Martian Ionosphere: Lightning, Field Line Resonances, and Instabilities?

August 2019

Ninth International Conference on Mars, Pasadena, CA

Poster

A Search for Plasma Waves in the Distant Martian Environment

2018

AGU, Washington D.C.

Poster

Charge Balance in the Martian Ionosphere

November 2016

Division for Planetary Sciences, Pasadena, CA

Poster

A Search for Lightning in the Martian Ionosphere

2014

AGU, San Francisco, CA

Poster

Contact Us

Jocelyn Lynch
Project Support Specialist
301-286-6066
jocelyn.m.lynch@nasa.gov
Ellie Jeffries
Project Support Specialist
301-286-6066
ellen.e.jeffries@nasa.gov

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