Think it would be exciting to be a real-life Indiana Jones who also uses technology? This week’s Wednesday’s Women in STEM Series features Sarah Parcak, a space archaeologist whose work has helped to uncover many once hidden ancient structures all over the world.
Parcak received her bachelor’s degree in Egyptology and Archaeological Studies from Yale University in 2001 and her Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge. She currently works as an associate professor of Anthropology in the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
“When I was a kid we’d rent Indian Jones movies on VHS tapes. It inspired a whole generation of scholars because we saw the excitement, and the passion, and the drama. What’s amazing to me about archaeology is the stories are even better than what you see in a Hollywood movie”
Parcak uses high resolution imagery from satellites and thermal imaging to locate buried and once unknown structures. Think of it like Google Earth for ancient structures! Her works has helped uncover 17 pyramids, 1,000 tombs, and over 3,200 ancient settlements, some dating back to 3000 B.C. Sarah and her husband, Egyptologist Greg Mumford, work together on the Surveys and Excavation Projects in Egypt, which includes archaeological projects in the Delta, Sinai, and pyramid fields regions of Egypt.
In 2015, Parcak won a $1 million TED prize to find more ancient civilizations and was even interviewed by Steven Colbert on The Late Show! Sarah Parcak’s innovative approach to combine high tech imagery with archaeology has helped to unearth once hidden structures. She continues to explore and learn about what else is out there buried underground, just waiting to be discovered!