Marina Elliott

Marina Elliott is a Canadian biological anthropologist, who is known for being one of the six Underground Astronauts of the Rising Star Expedition.

Elliott holds a PhD in biological anthropology and archaeology from Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, Canada. She has excavated ancient human remains in Western Canada, the USA, Spain, Africa and Siberia. She has also assisted with modern forensic investigations in Canada, the USA and Switzerland and was a visiting scientist intern at the Office of the New York Medical Examiner in New York.

In 2013 she became one of six Underground Astronauts on the Rising Star Expedition, which excavated a new hominin species, Homo naledi, from a cave deep underground. From 2014-2019 Elliott led further excavations at the Rising Star cave site and conducted research on Homo naledi and other early hominins. Returning to Canada in 2020, Elliott is back at Simon Fraser, continuing to investigate our collective human past. She is a Fellow of the Explorers Club and a National Geographic Explorer.