Ken Williford

Research Investigator, Blue Marble Space Institute of Science

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My research spans geology, geochemistry and astrobiology, with a recent focus on the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover mission. I am motivated by a desire to understand the fundamental nature of life in the universe. What is life? Where is life? How have living and non-living systems evolved together? These questions lead me to rocks that preserve ancient habitats and possibly life on Mars, the earliest records of life on Earth, and times of times of great change on both planets.

selected publications

  1. Science
    Carbonated ultramafic igneous rocks in Jezero crater, Mars
    Kenneth H. Williford, Kenneth A. Farley, Briony H.N. Horgan, and 72 more authors
    Science, 2025
    DOI
  2. Nature
    Redox-driven mineral and organic associations in Jezero Crater, Mars
    Joel A. Hurowitz, M.M. Tice, A.C. Allwood, and 86 more authors
    Nature, 2025
    DOI
  3. AGU Adv.
    Astrobiological potential of rocks acquired by the Perseverance rover at a sedimentary fan front in Jezero crater, Mars
    T. Bosak, D.L. Shuster, E.L. Scheller, and 64 more authors
    AGU Advances, 2024
    DOI
  4. Science
    Aqueous alteration processes in Jezero crater, Mars – implications for organic geochemistry
    Eva L. Scheller, Joseph Razzell Hollis, Emily L. Cardarelli, and 63 more authors
    Science, 2022
    DOI
  5. Science
    Aqueously altered igneous rocks sampled on the floor of Jezero crater, Mars
    K.A. Farley, K.M. Stack, D.L. Shuster, and 111 more authors
    Science, 2022
    DOI
  6. Science
    Perseverance rover reveals an ancient delta-lake system and flood deposits at Jezero crater, Mars
    N. Mangold, S. Gupta, O. Gasnault, and 36 more authors
    Science, 2021
    DOI
  7. SSR
    Mars 2020 Mission Overview
    Kenneth A. Farley, Kenneth H. Williford, Kathryn M. Stack, and 27 more authors
    Space Science Reviews, 2020
    DOI
  8. Book Ch.
    The NASA Mars 2020 rover mission and the search for extraterrestrial life
    K.H. Williford, K.A. Farley, K.M. Stack, and 13 more authors
    In From Habitability to Life on Mars, 2018
    DOI