Interview with Dr. Sam Poppe

Q. What is your research focus?

A. I research how magma deforms rocks on different planetary bodies - mainly on Earth, the Moon and Mars. So both in terms of volcanism, but also tectonics and stresses that are involved in those processes of deformation.

Q. What sparked your journey into this field?

A: It’s a question with a double answer. My journey into volcanology started because I did an internship at the university in Ghent while I was doing my bachelor’s degree, which I then really liked. I then continued into a master’s degree and insisted on doing field work because I wanted to be out in the field and get my boots dirty.

So my Masters supervisor sent me to the Comoros Islands, offshore East Africa to the Karthala volcano alone as a student. It is a very active but poorly studied volcano. We hiked six hours to the summit, and seeing the crater and caldera complex was incredible. That experience completely hooked me on volcanology, and I haven’t looked back since.

My move into planetary volcanology happened after a few postdocs, when I was looking for other opportunities and found out about the Space Research Centre of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Mars Exploration Lab, where I am working now. I chatted with people there and realized there were a lot of opportunities to study volcanic features on Mars and the Moon, in ways that are not possible on Earth, and the dynamics of those systems are really underexplored. There's a lot of data available that people have not looked at from the same angle

The more I work on it, the more fascinated I become by what we know and still don’t know about the rest of the solar system.

Q. What is the most awe-inspiring moment you've had in research?

A. One moment that really stuck with me was when I understood the impact of our work on people’s lives. I was in Comoros again, and the janitor of the building where I was staying invited me to visit Singani, his village, on a Sunday. His village had been partly destroyed by a volcanic eruption in 1977, when lava flows damaged homes near Karthala volcano. He stood there with me and recounted his lived experience of that event. That moment made me understand the deeper cause and purpose of this research: understanding how volcanoes work is directly linked to people’s lives. How can we protect people better? How can we better foresee volcanic events? That experience really inspired me and gave me a deeper sense of purpose.

Q. Is there something you wish more people understood about your field?

A. For volcanology, I think it's very easy to make the case why we study volcanoes - because of the impact. But for planetary geology, even when talking to fellow scientists, there's questions about why do we need planetary science? The fundamental search for knowing and understanding - how important that is for humanity in the longer term is definitely one thing. But there is also a practical aspect - people don't realize a microwave or a smaller computer, we have those things because of Apollo, for example. We sent people to the Moon, but we actually gained some real technological progress on Earth as well. There's a lot of arguments why space science and exploration is important, but it sometimes needs a lot of explaining.

Q. What are the ingredients for success in research?

A. Motivation and passion is definitely one of them. You need to be driven. If you totally lose that and if it becomes a drag to do research, then it's probably better to re-question your purpose and maybe reorient. So, that’s one.
Resilience is another one. You're gonna have more rejections. You're gonna have more days where laboratory equipment doesn't work with you or where an analysis doesn't work out or where you write a bad piece of text. Resilience in coping with the ups and downs of the process is important. In that sense also, taking a longer-term approach is important but is also really a struggle to learn. But once you get that, it really helps setting out longer-term goals etc to work towards and that then allows the scientific discovery to follow.

Q. What advice would you give young scientists?

A. For sure, in the beginning, grab any opportunity you can. I've submitted small grants, big grants. I've spoken to people. I've gone visiting people. I've asked if I could go and visit people. I was never ashamed to go speak to someone at a conference even if they were that big name on a big paper. So, yes, grab every opportunity. I did that from the beginning and I think that networking really has brought me lots of opportunities in return that have built my long-term career.

Q. What is your perspective on the field of geoastronomy?

A. I think it's extremely important to build platforms where we can talk to each other. At the Space Research Centre, we have geodesists, geologists, engineers in robotics, electronics and optics. Very different fields coming together. We need to somehow find the common language, and it is definitely with ups and downs. Those platforms are important. Seminars where questions are asked and where there can be back and forth are absolutely important. This kind of initiative that tries to integrate these different groups is important. It requires a lot of work and time from all colleagues who participate in this, but there is definitely positive feedback. So keep going, and I am happy to be part of this initiative.

Q. What are your thoughts on science communication?

A. In my opinion, outreach and science communication is like the third pillar of academia. We need experts out there to explain things. For me, science communication is a way of improving all of your communication. Everything I have learned in talking to journalists, to the general public, in workshops and game sessions, I have also been able to use to communicate better as a scientist. It helped improve my presentation skills, my writing skills, et cetera.

On the other hand, when you do that, I think it's very important to remain careful and critical of the way you're represented. It really requires some effort and training to understand how you effectively communicate and that you avoid communication mistakes that are then exploited by journalists that make you say things that you definitely don't feel you said or didn't intend to say.

So, the message for young scientists: get into it, but also get the proper training and experience from others. It's definitely a way to improve your own communication skills. So it's not just a time sink. There's actual value for yourself as an expert there.