 She obtained her B.A.in Geological Sciences in 2002 from Northwestern University, and her Ph.D. in Geology and Geophysics in 2007 from the University of Hawaii.From 2007 to 2010 she was part of Arizona State University, where she served as the Deputy Instrument Scientist for the Mercury Dual Imaging System on board the MESSENGER spacecraft at Mercury leading the in-flight calibration and co-leading the Geology Discipline Group.