J. M. Christoph, Ph.D.

My work encompasses space, geology, materials, transportation, and the systems we build and use to interface with them.

​

I hold a PhD in Exploration Systems at Arizona State University, focusing on planetary materials. My research investigates the surface properties of metallic and metal-rich asteroids. I perform a variety of laboratory experiments on meteorite samples to study processes in space that modify asteroid surfaces over geologic time. The goal is to predict how an object thoroughly weathered by the space environment would appear to remote sensing instruments on telescopes and spacecraft.

​

My other career interest is the built environment: cities, transportation, land use, and sustainable development thereof. I have campaigned to elect politicians and pass ballot measures for improving public transit, walkability, and ending car-dependence, including with the Urban Phoenix Project and All Aboard Arizona. I have served three terms on the Transportation Commission for the City of Tempe, AZ: an advisory and oversight body making recommendations to Mayor and City Council on infrastructure projects and transit services.