Min Ding @ MUST
Min Ding
Assistant Professor, 2019.9-Present
State Key Lab of Lunar and Planetary Sciences
Macau University of Science and Technology
Research Focus: Planetary Geodynamics (esp. Lithospheric Dynamics)
As a geophysicist, I am intrigued by the interaction between long-term tectonic/geologic evolution and short-term catastrophic processes on terrestrial planets (Moon, Mars and Earth). By combining computational geodynamics and geodetic observations, my research focuses on understanding the thermo-mechanical evolution of the lithosphere and its response to various internal and external loading processes (e.g., earthquakes, volcanoes, and impacts) on time scales from minutes to millions of years.
I received my Bachelor's degree from University of Science and Technology of China in 2009; and graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology / Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Joint Program in 2014, under the guidance of Prof. Jian Lin. Worked with Prof. Maria T. Zuber as a Postdoc Associate at MIT and with Prof. Qinghua Huang at Peking University.
Early Evolution of Terrestrial Planets (2020-present)
Proposed a hybrid mechanism (impact + mantle convection) to explain the compositional asymmetry of the Moon
Developed numerical viscoelastic relaxation models for impact basins using Abaqus
GRAIL Data: Using Impact Craters as Probes (2015–2021)
Provided a method to detect variations in the lunar crustal porosity using gravity signals of impact craters
Applied multiple spatial interpolation methods, including moving-window regression-kriging
Quantified the relationship between target properties and mantle uplifts under lunar impact basins
Machine Learning for Planetary Geology (2021-present)
Applied CNN to detect small craters on the Moon
Cryosphere (2018-present)
Formation of martitan polar ice deposits and its interaction with the underlying lithosphere
Attributed the diurnal change in cryo-microseismicity in Qilian Mountains to simulated thermal stress
Mars' Lithospheric Flexure (2012-2019)
Conducted admittance and correlation analysis of gravity and topography data in spherical harmonics
Focused on various tectonic regions (montes, impact basins, and plains) using spatiospectral localization technique
Applied Bayesian inference (MCMC) to solve for parameters
Shatsky Formation (2017-2019)
Seamount Subduction (2011-2016)
Considered elastoplastic deformation of the overriding plate caused by seamount movement
Simulated fault formation, and stress and energy evolution using the finite element software COMSOL
Earthquake Triggering (2010-2014)
Utilized geodetic observations (tidal gauge, leveling line, and GPS) after the 1960 Chile Earthquake
Constrained rheology in the Chile region
Calculated Coulomb stress changes (including co-seismic, post-seismic due to afterslip and viscoelastic relaxation, and tectonic stresses)
Email: miding@must.edu.mo
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=3US7qTUAAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate
Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Min_Ding6
GitHub: https://github.com/MinaDing
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