Dr Rob Hough: researching the properties of natural gold

Dr Rob Hough is researching the properties of natural gold and how it is deposited within the earth.

• 8 June 2011 | Updated 14 October 2011

• Current activities 
• Background 
• Academic qualifications 
• Acheivements 

Current activities

Dr Rob Hough is a research scientist with CSIRO Earth Science and Resource Engineering.

Using the largest research gold collection in Australia (valued at more than A$1 million) Dr Hough is able to study properties of gold that have previously been overlooked, ignored or were not known to have existed.

This research has allowed for a greater understanding towards the formation of gold deposits in the earth and challenges century old views of how gold nuggets are formed.

This information will lead towards improved exploration methods that can be adopted by industry worldwide to help locate new deposits.

Background

Dr Hough has enjoyed a career in Earth and Planetary Sciences both locally and in the United Kingdom (UK).

Starting out as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Planetary Sciences at The Open University in the UK, Dr Hough then came to Australia to work as a Royal Society research fellow for the Western Australian Museum. 

In 2004 he joined the CSIRO as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow, before becoming a Research Scientist in 2005.

Academic qualifications

Dr Hough has been awarded:

• Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Geology from the University of London, UK
• Doctorate in Geology from the Open University, UK.

Achievements

Dr Hough has authored publications in Nature, Geology and Science. 

He has received research funds in the form of fellowships from the Robert Blair Fellowship and the Royal Society.

In 2004 Dr Hough received the Western Australian Premier’s Award for Early Career Achievement in Science and the Perth Convention Bureau Scholarship in 2006.

Find out more about CSIRO Earth Science and Resource Engineering.