I am a microbiology PDRA working in the AstrobiologyOU group. My research currently involves investigating the diversity and activity of microbial communities inhabiting extreme environments that are analogous to Mars and Enceladus. I also perform simulation experiments to assess the growth dynamics and survival of microbes in simulated extra-terrestrial conditions. My PhD at the University of East Anglia involved characterising the impact of plant growth on trace gas metabolising microbes in the soil environment, with a focus on stable isotope probing to identify the active organisms.