PNNL

Katherine Maier manages the Chemical and Biological Signatures Group, within the National Security Directorate at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL).

Dr. Maier has nearly two decades of experience in research and applied science and management. Before joining PNNL in 2024, she was the Ocean Geology group manager, project lead, and voyage lead at the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, a Crown Research Institute in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Dr. Maier also worked as a research scientist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) and the U.S. Geological Survey (Department of the Interior) in California.

Her science career has been focused on integrating geologic, geochemical, geophysical, and oceanographic data to provide scientific data for decision making. She has experience applying emerging ocean technologies, including autonomous and remotely operated marine vehicles, to study physical and biogeochemical aspects of the seafloor from shallow to deep-seabed environments.

• Project management
• Natural hazards
• Seafloor and subsurface resources
• Geochemistry and organic carbon dynamics
• Marine datasets

• PhD in geological and environmental sciences, Stanford University
• BS in marine science and geological sciences, University of Miami