Ph.D. - Earth Sciences
UC San Diego - 1979
Robert Stern
Professor - Geosciences
Graduate Student Advisor
972-883-2442
ROC1.102
Google Scholar
Geoscience Studios YouTube Channel
Wikipedia page
RJStern Publications
Permian Basin Research Lab
ORCID
Not currently accepting undergraduate students
Professional Preparation
B.Sc. - Geology
University of California at Davis - 1974
University of California at Davis - 1974
Research Areas
Research Interests
My research interests include:- Evolution of the continental crust as approached by tectonic, chemical, and isotopic studies of modern processes and ancient products. Geographic foci of such studies include Izu-Bonin-Mariana island arc system in the Western Pacific, Neoproterozoic crust of NE Africa and Arabia, China, and Iran. These processes and products are studied using a wide range of analytical techniques, including major and trace element analyses, and radiogenic isotopic compositions of Sr, Nd, and Pb, and U-Pb zircon geochronology.
- Geologic evolution of thickly sedimented basins, including the Gulf of Mexico, the Aleutian Basin, and the Permian Basin of W. Texas and SE New Mexico
- Geology of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.
- Geoscience videos and animations
- Meteorites
Publications
A reinterpretation of the past 2.5 billion years of Earth’s tectonic history: Two episodes each of plate and single-lid tectonics 2025 - Journal Article
Molybdenum isotope evidence for subduction-modified mantle beneath mid-ocean ridges 2025 - Journal Article
The importance of continents, oceans and plate tectonics for the evolution of complex life: implications for finding extraterrestrial civilizations 2024 - Journal Article
Late Cryogenian and early Ediacaran rare-metal rich granites in the Eastern Desert of Egypt: constraints from zircon ages and whole-rock Sr- and Nd- and feldspar Pb-isotopic compositions 2024 - Journal Article
A HIMU-like component in Mariana Convergent Margin magma sources during initial arc rifting revealed by melt inclusions 2024 - Journal Article
Bringing the Submarine Mariana Arc and Backarc Basin to Life for Undergraduates and the Public 2024 - Journal Article
Appointments
Tectonics Observatory Fellow
California Institute of Technology [2006–2006]
California Institute of Technology [2006–2006]
Blaustein Fellow
Stanford University [2005–2005]
Stanford University [2005–2005]
Head
The University of Texas at Dallas [1997–2005]
The University of Texas at Dallas [1997–2005]
Professor with Tenure
The University of Texas at Dallas [1991–Present]
The University of Texas at Dallas [1991–Present]
Associate Professor with Tenure
The University of Texas at Dallas [1987–1991]
The University of Texas at Dallas [1987–1991]
Assistant Professor
The University of Texas at Dallas [1982–1987]
The University of Texas at Dallas [1982–1987]
Post-doctoral fellow
Carnegie Institution of Washington [1979–1981]
Carnegie Institution of Washington [1979–1981]
Additional Information
SOCIETIES
- American Geophysical Union (Fellow)
- Geological Society of America (Fellow)
- American Association for the Advancement of Science (Fellow)
Departmental and University Committee & Service
- UTD Freshman Advisor (1990-1991)
UTD Committee on Educational Policy (1990-1992); (1995-1998)
UTD Academic Senate (1991-1993; 2008- )
UTD Program Review Committee (1992-1996); Committee on Committees (1994-1995)
UTD Committee on Committees (1994-1995)
UTD Committee on Educational Policy, Vice-Chair (1995-1996)
UTD Committee on Educational Policy, Chair (1996-1998)
UTD Committee on Student Scholarships (1998- 2000)
Departmental Management Advisory Committee (1984-1985)
Geosciences Seminar Chairman (Spring, 1986; 1993-1994)
University Safety Committee (1986-1988)
Geosciencess Undergraduate Advisor (1987-1990)
Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, Natural Sciences and Mathematics (1989)
Chairman, Geosciences Undergraduate Curriculum Committee (1990)
Geosciences Department Head (1997- 2005)
Geosciences Graduate Advisor (1995-1997; 2006- )
Review committee for Dept. of Math and Science Ed (2006)
Ad Hoc Committee for Dr. Homer Montgomery (2006-2007)
Review committee for School of General Studies (2007)
MSET Building committee (2007-2008 )
UTD Institutional Compliance Committee (2007)
UTD GIS Search Committee for GIS Program Head (2007-2008)
UTD Geosciences Search Committee for Geosciences Dept. Head (2007-2008)
UTD Geosciences Search Committee (2008-2009)
UTD Geosciences Search Committee (2018-2019)
UTD Committee on Academic Integriity (2019-2020)
UTD Geosciences Search Committee (2018-2019)
UTD NS&M Dean Search Committee (2020)
Ad Hoc Committee for Yongwan Chun (EPPS 2020)
UTD Accessibility Committee Chair (2021- )
NSM Graduate Affairs Committee (2021 - )
Graduate Students Supervised
K. Massey (M.S. awarded Dec. 1984)D. Voegeli (M.S. awarded Aug. 1985)
J. Reilly, II (M.S. awarded Dec. 1987)
P.-N. Lin (Ph.D. awarded Aug. 1989)
E. Best (M.S. awarded August 1989)
T. Webb (M.S. awarded August 1992)
M.G. Abdel-Salam (Ph.D. awarded 1993)
R. Gribble (Ph.D. awarded Dec. 1995)
J. Lee (Ph.D. awarded Aug. 1995)
J. Winkler (M.S. awarded Dec. 1995)
C.-H. Sun (Ph.D. awarded August 1999)
S. Danishwar Khan (Ph.D. awarded 2001)
J. Volesky (Ph.D. awarded 2002)
A.Thurmond (M.S. awarded 2002)
U. S. Hargrove III (Ph.D. awarded 2006)
N. Basu (MS awarded 2006)
K. Ali (PhD awarded 2008)
S. Mukherjee (PhD awarded 2008)
U. Raye (PhD awarded 2011)
J. Ribiero (PhD awarded 2012)
Erika Jordan (PhD in progress)
M. George (MS awarded 2016)
J. Cuyler (MS awarded 2016)
Warren Lieu (PhD awarded 2019)
Kaitlyn Stacey (MS awarded 2019)
Arman Boskabadi (PhD awarded 2020)
Diluni Ayeshika W Hetti Pathirannehelag (PhD awarded 2020)
Jordan Newman (PhD in progress)
Ning Wang (PhD in progress)
Siloa Willis (PhD in progress)
Clinton Crowley (PhD in progress)
News Articles
Professor Journeys Once More Into the Deep
No strangers to the craggy landscape of undersea volcanoes, Geosciences Professor Dr. Robert J. Stern and graduate student Julia Ribeiro are once again on their way to the Western Pacific Ocean near Guam. With funding from the National Science Foundation, Stern and Ribeiro will study submarine volcanoes in the Mariana Islands in early February. The region includes the U.S. territory of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The team sets sail from Guam aboard the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology Research Vessel Natsushima and will take along an unmanned, tethered submarine robot called a HYPER-DOLPHIN. Such sophisticated “remotely operated vehicles (ROVs)” allow researchers to study the sea floor and collect rock samples. ROVs allow a team of scientists to observe the sea floor, a distinct advantage over more limited manned submersibles.
UT Dallas Geoscientist Stern to Help Lead International Field Conference in Egypt
University of Texas at Dallas geoscientist Dr. Robert J. Stern will help lead an international field conference in the Eastern Desert of Egypt Feb. 17-24. Nineteen scientists from eight countries are expected to participate in the conference, the aim of which is to advance the study of the region’s continental crust, known as the Arabian-Nubian Shield, and how it was formed 800 million to 500 million years ago. Stern is the former head of the UT Dallas Geosciences Department and remains a professor in that department. His research interests include the evolution of the continental crust, the layer of rocks which forms the continents and the adjoining continental shelves, both in the Arabian-Nubian Shield and in the island arcs in the Western Pacific Ocean. Stern and two scientists from Sweden will lead the trip. The field conference is financed in part by a grant from the Swedish International Development Agency for the Middle East and North Africa.
Geoscientist Finds Surprise Hidden in the Pacific
UT Dallas geoscientist Dr. Robert J. Stern and former master’s student Neil Basu were part of a research team that discovered and studied an extinct underwater volcano near the southern Mariana islands, near Guam, in the western Pacific Ocean. The volcano lies more than 300 meters below the ocean surface and contains a large volcanic depression, or caldera, that is comparable in size to better-known examples Krakatoa (Indonesia) and Crater Lake, Ore. It was named “West Rota Volcano” because of its proximity to the island of Rota in the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The results of the research were published in a recent edition of the scientific journal The Island Arc.
Researcher Discusses Continental Shelf Formation
Dr. Robert Stern, a professor and researcher in the Center for Lithospheric Studies and Department of Geosciences, delivered a keynote address at a recent conference on continental shelf formation. Stern’s talk, given in collaboration with geoscientists from University of Arizona and Missouri State University, discussed the early evolution of the Texas-Louisiana margin and continental shelf. The conference, titled “Rift Renaissance: Stretching the Crust and Extending Exploration Frontiers,” was held in Houston. The conference explored aspects of how continents break apart to form new oceans and continental margins in terms of new geodynamic models. The agenda included presentations from leading geoscientists, as well as reports from major energy companies.Geosciences Professor Garners International Prize
Dr. Robert Stern, professor of geosciences in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, has been awarded the 2019 International Prize of the Geological Society of Japan for his contributions to geological research.The citation for the award notes Stern’s status as a world leader in the fields of geology, petrology, geochemistry and geochronology. The award recognizes his outstanding contributions to the geoscience community in Japan through research exchange and academic cooperation.
A fellow of the Geological Society of America and of the American Geophysical Union, Stern has studied complex geological systems from the Pacific Ocean to the African desert. His research has led to a better understanding of how new subduction zones form and the evolution of plate tectonics throughout Earth’s history.