NASA Grant Allows UA Student to Peer into Active Volcano

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – On weekends, University of Alabama graduate student Jonathan Stone is the lead guitarist for the rock band Lunar Rain, but Monday through Friday he can be found in a lab conducting scientific research that has the potential to one day save lives. Stone’s work at UA is focused on predicting the timing and scale of a volcanic eruption.

He is studying the Okmok Volcano in Alaska, working from a UA lab on computer-based research.

Stone was recently awarded a highly competitive NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship that includes a grant of $90,000 ($30,000 annually, renewable for three years) to support his research. Through Stone’s work with NASA, he is able to access satellite images of outer volcanic activity and use mathematical analysis to predict activity on the inside of a live volcano.

“Jonathan is giving us a window to the inaccessible guts of a volcano,” said Dr. Timothy Masterlark, assistant professor of geological sciences at UA and Stone’s major professor.

Stone’s research could one day make evacuation plans more accurate for people living in the shadow of an active volcano. Scientists could determine when an eruption would take place and estimate the magnitude of danger it would bring to neighboring areas, likely saving lives.

A scientist and a musician, Stone admits to spending any free time traveling and playing in his band. He has visited all 50 states and six continents. His band, Lunar Rain, is based out of north Alabama and was started in the fall of 2009. The three-man rock band is currently recording its first album and has had its song “Deny” play in Huntsville and Atlanta.

“He has such a diverse set of interests,” Masterlark said of his student, “I consider him a true renaissance man.”

Stone is currently pursuing a master’s degree in the UA department of geological sciences, under Masterlark’s direction.

The UA student was one of 55 chosen from an applicant pool of 278 master’s and doctorate students across the nation for the NASA award. Stone and Masterlark said they were skeptical when Stone, a graduate student, applied for such a prestigious award.

“The competition was steep, I was shocked to have received the award,” Stone said.

“It is going to be hard to find another master’s student to reach this level,” Masterlark said, “Jonathan is truly remarkable.”

Stone completed his undergraduate study at Middle Tennessee University and says he chose UA for his graduate study largely because of the faculty.

This award allows the UA student to continue his research in a way that could have a long-term impact, his professor suggests. “Jonathan will revolutionize the way we think about volcanoes,” Masterlark said, “it hasn’t been proven yet, but I’m optimistic.”

The department of geological sciences is part of UA’s College of Arts and Sciences, the University’s largest division and the largest liberal arts college in the state. Students from the College have won numerous national awards including Rhodes Scholarships, Goldwater Scholarships and memberships in the USA Today Academic All American Team.