Mather was educated at the University of Cambridge where she was awarded a Master of Science ( MSci ) degree in 1999 , a Master of Philosophy ( MPhil ) degree in 2000 and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in 2004 . As an undergraduate she studied the Natural Sciences Tripos before switching to the History and Philosophy of Science for her MPhil ( in the same MPhil class as Helen Macdonald ( writer ) ) . She spent a year working abroad before returning to science for her PhD which was completed in the Department of Earth Sciences and investigated the chemistry of volcanic plumes in the troposphere . Her PhD involved working in Chile , Nicaragua and Italy . Mather studies volcanic behaviour working to understand volcanoes as natural hazards , planetary scale processes and natural resources . Mather is a Professor of Earth Sciences at the University of Oxford . She is part of the Centre for the Observation and Modeling of Earthquakes , Volcanoes and Tectonics ( COMET ) project , which is a “ collaborative centre for understanding tectonic and volcanic processes and hazards though the integrated application of Earth Observation ( EO ) data , ground-based measurements , and geophysical models ” , the RiftVolc project , a five year long project that began in 2014 researching past and current volcanism and volcanic hazards in the main Ethiopian rift and the Natural Environment Research Council ( NERC ) and Economic and Social Research Council ( ESRC ) Strengthening Resilience in Volcanic Areas collaboration , ( STREVA ) which looked to establish a risk assessment framework for volcanoes . She is interested in the role of volcanism in planetary scale processes and serves on the board of directors of the Geochemical Society . Her research has identified that volcanic vents perform nitrogen fixation and make it available to plants . Mather 's research investigates volcanic plumes , the effects of volcanic emissions and aerosols on the environment , and the structure and stability of volcanoes . She has also studied the emissions from Buncefield fire at the Buncefield oil depot in 2005 and is interested in the mercury cycle , as well as other biogeochemical cycles
Buncefield fire
Buncefield fire
Tamsin Mather