A Missouri S&T researcher who studies the geology of regions affected by ancient earthquakes has been selected as a Fulbright U.S. Scholar. 
 
Dr. Jonathan Obrist-Farner, an associate professor of earth sciences and engineering, will travel to the University of Innsbruck in Austria in spring 2026 to collaborate with researchers and study how often large earthquakes occur and how fault zones behave over time to better understand when and where earthquakes are likely to happen.  
 
“Receiving this Fulbright award is a significant honor, and I’m proud to be selected,” Obrist-Farner says. “This will allow me to experience a different university system, work more closely with colleagues I’ve long hoped to collaborate with and continue building international partnerships through meaningful research.” 
 
Obrist-Farner has been a member of the Missouri S&T faculty since 2016. In 2021, he was awarded the National Science Foundation’s Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award to research the history of earthquakes in the region where the North American and Caribbean tectonic plates meet. 
 
Obrist-Farner will join the ranks of more than 400,000 participants who have conducted research, taught or studied abroad since the Fulbright Program began in 1946.  
 
Over 800 scholars are selected annually as Fulbright U.S. Scholars. The effort is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and operates in over 160 countries. 
 
Past Fulbright Scholars have included Nobel Laureates, Pulitzer Prize winners, MacArthur Fellows and heads of state.  
 
For more information about Obrist-Farner’s research and Missouri S&T’s earth sciences and engineering programs, visit ese.mst.edu.

About Missouri S&T

Missouri University of Science and Technology is a STEM-focused research university of over 7,000 students located in Rolla, Missouri. Part of the four-campus University of Missouri System, Missouri S&T offers over 100 degrees in 40 areas of study and is among the nation’s top public universities for salary impact, according to The Wall Street Journal. For more information about Missouri S&T, visit www.mst.edu.