EAST TENNESSEE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY

April 2026 Virtual Meeting

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Monday, April 13, 2026
6:00 - 7:30 pm

Note: ETGS members will receive an email with info for logging into the meeting.
 

April Presentations

Award Winning Student Presentations


Boots on the Ground - Exploring the Moon's South Pole

By

Thomas Frueh

"Bob, this is Gene, and I'm on the surface; and, as I take man's last step from the surface, back home for some time to come - but we believe not too long into the future - I'd like to just (say) what I believe history will record. [...] we leave as we came and, God willing, as we shall return, with peace and hope for all mankind." -- Eugene Cernan, during Apollo 17's final moments on the lunar surface.

With these words, humanity left the Moon for what has now been over 50 years. In recent years, the Moon has once again become the focus of international robotic and human exploration, frontmost by the Artemis missions. Unlike the Apollo program, which studied the young, volcanic terrains of the lunar nearside, the Artemis astronauts will explore the ancient south pole of the Moon. This region is characterized by rugged, heavily cratered landscapes, where extreme topography, illumination, and temperature conditions pose significant challenges but also stunning views. It is a region where water ice is hidden in permanent shadows, where we might study the largest and oldest lunar basin, where we might sample material from deep lunar interior, and where we hope to gain new insights into the formation and early evolution of the Moon itself. In this talk, I will explore why the lunar south pole is of such interest. We will consider what the future astronauts will experience in this unique environment, the types of rocks they are likely to collect, and the scientific questions these samples may help us answer.
 

Biography

I am second-year Ph.D. Student in the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, working with Dr. Bradley J. Thomson. I earned my Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Geology from the University of Munster, Germany, in 2021 and 2024, respectively. My theses focused on the timescales and driving forces of lunar tectonism under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Harald Hiesinger. During a graduate internship at the Lunar and Planetary Institute (Houston) with Dr. David Kring in 2023, my research shifted toward future human exploration of the Moon and impact cratering. In my Ph.D. thesis, I focuses on the potential provenance of samples collected at the lunar south pole to support landing site selection and the analysis of future returned samples.

 

Plastic Degradation in Freshwater Environments

By

Jillian Verble

Plastic pollution is an increasing concern in freshwater ecosystems, yet the roles of polymer chemistry, environmental context, and microbial communities in governing degradation remain poorly resolved. This study examined plastic-microbe interactions across river, creek, and pond environments using mass loss measurements, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Four polymer types were evaluated: biodegradable polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) and polylactic acid (PLA), and conventional low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Although microbial colonization occurred rapidly on all plastics, measurable degradation was strongly polymer dependent. PHA exhibited substantial mass loss across environments, while LDPE, PET, and PLA showed limited degradation despite extensive biofilm formation. Environmental conditions influenced degradation intensity, with flowing systems enhancing degradation processes, but only when polymer chemistry allowed breakdown. Microbial community composition differed between plastics and controls, with shared taxa enriched across polymer types. Variation among polymers was primarily in the magnitude of enrichment rather than community identity, and community composition alone did not predict degradation outcomes. Overall, plastic degradation in freshwater systems was primarily controlled by polymer chemistry and slightly by environmental conditions, with microbial communities playing a secondary role. These findings highlight the need to distinguish surface colonization from true biodegradation and to experimentally validate the functional capabilities of plastisphere taxa..
 

Biography

Jillian Verble is a Master of Science candidate in Geology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where she studies microbial interactions with plastics in freshwater systems. Her research combines field sampling, water quality monitoring, microscopy, and microbial community analysis to better understand how plastics behave in aquatic environments. In addition to her research, Jillian has worked as a teaching assistant, lab manager, and environmental laboratory technician. She is passionate about freshwater ecology, environmental restoration, and communicating science in ways that connect research to real-world environmental issues.

 

 

Greetings, and welcome to the April 13, 2026 ETGS virtual meeting.
 

This meeting will be attended via Zoom and as a courtesy please mute your cell phone or the microphone in your laptop/tablet to minimize background noise and feedback echos. We will also make an effort to mute all participants - at least until the presentation is finished. Please use the chat feature to type any comments or questions you may have. We recommend that you send questions for the speaker to "everyone" so all participants can see the question. In the interest of time, we may hold the Q&A at the end of the presentation.

We will create a virtual attendance list. It is not always possible to tell who is participating on-line, especially for those joining by phone, so please email etgs@live.com to be listed on the attendance sheet. Let us know exactly how your name should appear on the list. We will add a note explaining the lack of signatures due to remote participation and have an ETGS officer sign as usual.

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we continue with this online format. As always, we welcome and appreciate your feedback and suggestions for improvement.

 

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President
Tony McClain

Vice President
David Carlone

Secretary
J. Brad Stephenson

Treasurer
Seaira Stephenson

Webmaster/Social Media Coordinator
Bob Gelinas

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Page updated March 30, 2026