Roger M. Hart

Bio

Dr. Hart loves teaching astronomy, geology, oceanography, and physics! He is passionate about engaging students through exploration, investigation, and discovery. He joined the Community College of Rhode Island (CCRI) as a full-time faculty member in the Department of Physics and Engineering in 2018.

As a geophysicist, Dr. Hart is broadly interested in understanding the physical processes and properties of the Earth, other planets, and their surrounding space environments through quantitative analysis. Dr. Hart's research primarily focuses on exploring environments within our Solar System and on exoplanets, studying planetary habitability and striving to answer one of astronomy's most fundamental questions: “Are we alone?” Additionally, he is interested in applying science to practical avenues that benefit the local community.

Join the adventure! Find Dr. Hart's Spring 2025 courses here, all are welcome!

Office Hours

Spring 2025 Student Help Hours:

TBD 

Education

B.S. in Geology, University of Massachusetts Amherst

M.S. in Environmental Sciences, University of Rhode Island

M.S. in Physics, Texas A&M University-Commerce

Ph.D. in Environmental Sciences, University of Rhode Island

Learning Resources

Take a look at free textbooks here!

Selected Publications

Hart, R., & Cardace, D. (2023). Mineral Indicators of Geologically Recent Past Habitability on Mars. Life, 13(12), 2349.

Research Focus

Project funding has been generously supported, especially student projects, by the NASA RI Space Grant Consortium. Contact [email protected] for more information if you'd like to get involved! I use comparative planetary science to understand the habitability of planets and worlds by investigating planetary analog field sites, making astronomical observations, and running computer simulations. Here are some recent works:

1. Hart, R., & Cardace, D. (2023). Mineral Indicators of Geologically Recent Past Habitability on Mars. Life, 13(12), 2349.
2. Hart, R., Cardace, D. , and Kennedy, H. (2023). Preliminary Magnetic Analysis of Variably Serpentinized Ultramafic Sites in Diverse Tectonic Settings. GP21A-0531. AGU, 2023.
3. Hart, R., & Cardace, D. (2023). Preliminary Models of Mineralogies from Near-Surface Water-Rock Simulations at The Nili Fossae Region, Mars. NEGSA, 2023.
4. Hart, R., & Cardace, D. (2022). The Case for Inferring Martian Paleo-groundwater Compositions from Trace Minerals in Ultramafic Regolith Contexts. AbSciCon, 2022.
5. Hart, R., & Britton, B. (2019). Modeling The Interior of A Super-Earth Candidate From Stellar Metallicities To Infer Geophysical Properties. Bulletin of the American Physical Society, 64.
6. Hart, R. & Cardace, D. (2018) Serpentinization-Driven Habitability in Terrestrial Planet Mélange. Terrains. Goldschmidt Abstracts, 2018 956
7. Hart R and Cardace D, Modeling Late-State Serpentinization on Enceladus and Implications for Methane-Utilizing Microbial Metabolisms, Abstract P43B-2885, presented at 2017 Fall Meeting, AGU, New Orleans, LA, 11-15 Dec.
8. Hart R and Cardace D, Terrestrial Planet Serpentinization in Mélange Terrains, Planetary Geology (Posters), Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 49, No. 2 doi:10.1130/abs/2017NE-291088
9. The Early Triassic Sulfur Isotope Curve of Seawater Sulfate from Marine Carbonates in the Neo- Tethys
Stebbins A, Algeo T, Hart R, Krystyn L, Williams J, Brookfield M & Hannigan R (0) Goldschmidt Abstracts, 2015 2976

Additional Information (Links)

Keep the adventure going and explore our planet and the universe! 

Students at CCRI who are interested in majoring in either Geology or Physics and want to remain instate can transfer to the University of Rhode Island. There is a Joint Admissions Agreement (JAA) with URI in both Geology and Geological Oceanography and Physics.The first two years of your Bachelor's degree will be completed at CCRI all while earning your Associate degree. Once transferred to RIC or URI, JAA students receive the following benefits:

• Up to 30% discounted tuition at RIC or URI depending on your CCRI GPA
• Waived application fee
• Conditional acceptance to URI or RIC
• Personalized advising at CCRI, URI, and RIC
• More than 60 majors to choose from
• Transfer seamlessly as a junior in your major