Wim van Westrenen uses high-pressure, high-temperature experiments to study the evolution of rocky bodies in our own solar system and beyond. To do so, his team subjects rock samples to extreme pressure and temperature conditions in the VU Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, and measures their chemical and physical properties. Recent studies include work on the evolution of the interiors of the Earth, the Moon, Mercury, Mars, and asteroids; work on the solidification of the magma ocean covering the Moon and the role of water in its evolution; studies of the distribution of trace compounds between minerals and co-existing magma; and the development of open access codes to simulate the chemical composition and atmospheric composition of rocky exoplanets. Wim was one of the coordinators of the Dutch Research Council (NWO) funded Planetary and Exoplanetary Science (PEPSci) network in which geoscientists and astronomers collaborate. 

Wim teaches courses at the BSc and MSc level in earth materials, petrology, planetary science, mantle properties, magmatic processes, and  multidisciplinary uncertainties and was Programme Director of the VU MSc Earth Sciences programme for a total of 7 years.

Wim is a former member and former board member of the Young Academy of KNAW. In 2013, he was appointed as full professor in Planetary Evolution on a University Research Chair. He was Head of the Department of Earth Sciences between 2015 and 2020.

• Center for High Pressure Science & Technology Adv Research | Shanghai | Gastonderzoeker | 2021-04-01 - present

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