Author: Maya.Yanez

Issue 25-08, Apr 21, 2025

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1. MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR
2. AAS REQUEST – ASK MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO SIGN BIPARTISAN LETTER IN SUPPORT OF NASA SCIENCE
3. AAS ADVOCACY – REMINDER MEMBERS OF CONGRESS BACK IN THEIR HOME STATES/DISTRICTS BETWEEN APRIL 14-25
4. DPS 2025 ELECTION : CANDIDATE SLATE
5. IT IS NEVER TOO LATE – RENEW YOUR AAS/DPS MEMBERSHIP
6. DPS COMMITTEE SEEKS APPLICANTS FOR PUBLICATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIR TO BEGIN TERM IN FALL 2025 
7. TWO ONLINE WORKSHOPS FOR EDUCATORS IN APRIL HOSTED BY AAS
8. EPSC-DPS JOINT MEETING 2025: ABSTRACT SUBMISSION IS OPEN 
9. 2025 DPS TRAVEL GRANT APPLICATION FORM IS OPEN
10. SCIENTIFIC DATA ANALYST WITH THE MAVEN IMAGING ULTRAVIOLET SPECTROGRAPH TEAM
11. EPSC-DPS 2025 ABSTRACT SUBMISSION CALL FOR THE SESSION “SYNERGIES BETWEEN SPACE MISSIONS AND GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS”
12. EPSC-DPS 2025 ABSTRACT SUBMISSION CALL FOR THE SESSION “INTERSTELLAR OBJECTS: FROM THEORY TO OBSERVATIONS”
13. RESEARCHER POSITIONS IN THE PLANETARY ATMOSPHERES GROUP AT THE INSTITUTE FOR BASIC SCIENCE, SOUTH KOREA
14. GERALD A. SOFFEN MEMORIAL FUND SPRING 2025 TRAVEL GRANT
15. PSJ FOCUS ISSUE ON MARS RESOURCES AND SCIENCE TARGETS FOR HUMAN EXPLORATION
16. NEW HORIZONS SCIENCE SPOTLIGHT WEBINAR
17. EPSC-DPS SESSION EXOA13: BRIDGING GEOSCIENCES AND ASTRONOMY TO INTERPRET ROCKY (EXO)PLANET OBSERVATIONS
18. EUROPLANET JUICE WEBINAR
19. CURRENT TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THE PLANETARY SCIENCE JOURNAL AND ICARUS
20. JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES

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MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR

Reported unprecedented damaging cuts in the President’s 2026 budget for NASA science in Fiscal Year 2026 can only be avoided if there is a strong reaction from the space sciences community. There are several ways to register such a response. The DPS committee has issued a call for action (https://dps.aas.org/dpscom-message-apr2025-call-for-action/) and the DPS Federal Relations Subcommittee Advocacy section on our web site contains a lot of practical information on how to get involved and make a difference in these challenging times (https://dps.aas.org/public_policy). 

The DPS committee members went to meet their congressional representatives on March 6, and the DPS FRS subcommittee members will meet with additional representatives on 8 and 9 May. 

See below for additional information on AAS advocacy and some other actions proposed by the AAS. 

Athena Coustenis

DPS Chair

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AAS REQUEST – ASK MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO SIGN BIPARTISAN LETTER IN SUPPORT OF NASA SCIENCE

The American Astronomical Society is gravely concerned by the deep cuts to NASA science funding reported to be in the draft President’s Budget Request for Fiscal Year 2026. If enacted, the nearly 50% cut to the NASA Science Mission Directorate would be catastrophic to our nation’s leadership in the space sciences, damaging a broad range of research areas and significantly impacting our nation’s STEM workforce.  Read more here.  

Take Action Now by asking your members of Congress to sign a bipartisan letter in support of NASA science.  

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AAS ADVOCACY – REMINDER THAT MEMBERS OF CONGRESS ARE BACK IN THEIR HOME STATES/DISTRICTS BETWEEN APRIL 14-25

Members of Congress will be back in their home states/districts between April 14 – 25, and this will be a great opportunity to meet with your representatives and/or invite them to your institution to see all the world-leading science taking place in their state / district. AAS also encourages you to attend townhalls and open meetings with Members of Congress taking place in your district and ask questions there.  For more information about how to set up these meetings, please see these slides or contact [email protected].

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions as you schedule Zoom and/or in-district meetings with your senators and representatives. AAS would also be happy to share contact information for staff in your Congressional offices if you reach out to them at [email protected]. Please share the information about your meetings with AAS  here.

If you haven’t already, consider filling out your congressional constituent request forms here. One of the most effective ways to make your voice heard is through a constituent appropriations request — essentially, asking your congressional representative to direct funding toward a particular area.

Here are the current House and Senate members in the Commerce, Justice, and Science Subcommittees in the respective Appropriations Committees. Also, here are some useful websites to gather the impact of certain federal agencies in your state / district:

• District-level data for NSF, DOE Office of Science, NIH and USDA funding from FASEB.
• AAAS State R&D Dashboard.
• NASA State-level economic impact info sheets.

The AAS Public Policy and Education staff will be making themselves available for discussions and to provide information through regular office hours that will be updated regularly.  Upcoming offices hours will be:

• Tuesday, 22 April: 11 am-12 pm ET (register here)
• Wednesday, 30 April: 3-4 pm ET (register here)

Please feel free to reach out to AAS at [email protected] if you have any further questions, or if there is additional information we can provide. Thank you for advocacy!

For general awareness, the AAS DPS Federal Relations Subcommittee (https://dps.aas.org/leadership/frs) will also be continuing planetary science advocacy in Washington, D.C. on May 8th and May 9th, 2025. The FRS can be reached at [email protected]. 

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DPS 2025 ELECTION : CANDIDATE SLATE

The DPS Nominating Subcommittee has identified the following candidates for the 2025 DPS elections for Vice Chair and Committee Members

Vice Chair  (1 to be elected):

• Paul Hartogh – Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research
• Ralph McNutt – Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory

Committee (2 to be elected):

• Arianna Piccialli – Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy
• Carver Bierson – Scottsdale Community College
• Eddie Schwieterman – University of California at Riverside
• Stephanie Jarmak – NASA ADS

Per the DPS Bylaws, additional candidates for Vice Chair or Committee Member, supported by a petition of at least 20 DPS members, may be nominated by May 21, 2025.  Please send any nominations to DPS secretary, Denise Stephens, at [email protected]

The DPS Committee thanks the members of the Nominating Subcommittee for their dedicated service to the DPS: 

Tim Livengood (chair), Jessica Noviello, and Therese Encrenaz

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IT IS NEVER TOO LATE – RENEW YOUR AAS/DPS MEMBERSHIP

Membership in the Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) is open to all active members of the American Astronomical Society (AAS).

If you are an active AAS member, the DPS dues are $25 for Full, International Affiliate, Educator Affiliate, Alumni Affiliate, and Amateur Affiliate Members, $0 for Graduate Student and Undergraduate Student Members and Emeritus Members.  The classes and benefits of AAS membership are described here.

To join and pay by credit card (VISA, MasterCard, American Express), simply fax your request and the following card data: card number; name of card holder as it appears on card; expiration date; authorized charge amount. Please direct your transmittal to the attention of AAS Membership Services at (202) 588-1351, remembering to include a daytime telephone number for contact purposes.

To join and pay by check or money order, you may mail your request and payment drawn on a U.S. bank in U.S. currency to:

American Astronomical Society

1667 K Street NW, Suite 800

Washington, DC 20006

Checks or money orders should be payable to the American Astronomical Society.

You should allow a minimum of 5 business days for your request and payment to be processed and your DPS membership established.

If you wish to join the DPS and the AAS at the same time, download the AAS Membership Form; provide all required information; indicate your intent to join the DPS (section 8); and return your completed form and payment to the AAS.

You should allow a minimum of 5 business days for your request and payment to be processed and your AAS and DPS memberships established.

Further information regarding the AAS and AAS membership benefits is available at AAS and AAS Membership respectively. Questions regarding joining the DPS as an AAS member should be directed to the AAS Membership Department.

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DPS COMMITTEE SEEKS APPLICANTS FOR PUBLICATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIR TO BEGIN TERM IN FALL 2025

The Publications Subcommittee Chair will serve a three-year term starting with the EPSC-DPS meeting in September 2025. The Publications Subcommittee is responsible for managing the relationship between DPS and its designated publications, Icarus and the Planetary Science Journal, and also stays aware of issues in planetary science publications more generally. The Publications Subcommittee regularly reviews the publication policies of journals that the DPS endorses and supports.

If you’re interested, please send a CV and a brief statement of interest to [email protected]

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TWO ONLINE WORKSHOPS FOR EDUCATORS IN APRIL HOSTED BY AAS

The AAS is co-hosting two online workshops for educators in the astronomy and physics communities: “Intro to Equity-Minded Mentoring”  on April 22 and “How to Design a Curriculum for the Modern World” on April 29.

https://aas.org/posts/news/2025/04/two-online-workshops-educators-april

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EPSC-DPS JOINT MEETING 2025: ABSTRACT SUBMISSION IS OPEN 

The EPSC committee, the DPS Committee, the Scientific Organizing Committee and Copernicus Meetings invite the world-wide community of planetary scientists to submit an abstract for presentation of their recent work at the EPSC-DPS2025 meeting, which will take place at the Finlandia Hall Helsinki, Finland, 7–12 September 2025. EPSC-DPS2025 will be organised as a fully hybrid meeting and will allow virtual access to all oral and poster sessions.  EPSC-DPS2025

We are looking forward to meeting everyone in person this year in Helsinki. The ethos for EPSC-DPS2025 is to create a simple, flexible, and inclusive meeting that provides multiple opportunities for interaction, scientific discussion, and networking. The programme of the congress will contain oral and poster sessions, as well as workshops and panel discussions.

The current list of sessions is organised around the following Programme Groups:

• Terrestrial Planets (TP)
• Outer Planet Systems (OPS)
• Missions, Instrumentation, Techniques, Modelling (MITM)
• Small Bodies (comets, KBOs, rings, asteroids, meteorites, dust) (SB)
• Exoplanets, Origins of Planetary Systems and Astrobiology (EXOA)
• Outreach, Diversity, Amateur Astronomy (ODAA)

Submit your abstract now by accessing the scientific programme and the abstract submission tool. Please browse the list of sessions and identify the session that most closely matches your area of interest; your abstract can be submitted directly to that session.

Abstract deadline: 7 May 2025, 13:00 CEST.

For future deadlines including (early) registration, refer to the deadlines & milestones of the conference.  Information on registration and social events, as well as a separate online form for requesting splinter meetings & workshops will also be available soon on the meeting website.

We look forward to seeing you in Helsinki!

• Lena Noack & Noah Jäggi on behalf of the EPSC committee
• Athena Coustenis & Scott Murchie on behalf of the DPS committee
• Stavro Ivanovski, Ákos Kereszturi, Connor Nixon, and James Roberts
  on behalf of the Scientific Organizing Committee
• Katrin Krüger on behalf of Copernicus Meetings

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2025 DPS TRAVEL GRANT APPLICATION FORM IS OPEN

The DPS Travel Grant application form is open to support participation in the joint meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and DPS (EPSC-DPS 2025) in Helsinki, Finland 7-12 September 2025, or the National Society of Black Physicists- National Society of Hispanics Physicists annual meeting, via the Hartmann and the Under-Represented Minority (URM) Travel grants.

The Hartmann Student Travel Grant supports student presentations at the annual DPS-EPSC meeting. (Postdoctoral scholars may also be eligible, but students are prioritized.)

The Underrepresented Minority (URM) Communities in Planetary Science Travel Grant supports attendance by students and professionals who are members of groups that have had inadequate access to the planetary science community, in an effort to ensure broad engagement and access to planetary science.  Applications are especially encouraged from members of group(s) whose contributions to STEM may have been overlooked, students and professionals hailing from colleges and non-R1 academic or research institutions* that have not traditionally benefited from connections to the planetary science community, and/or students and professionals with degrees in broader STEM disciplines (e.g., chemistry, physics, engineering, mathematics) who are new to the planetary science community  — to support in-person or virtual attendance at the joint DPS-EPSC or joint NSBP-NSHP meetings.

* Relevant institutions include small colleges and universities, primarily undergraduate institutions, and minority serving institutions (MSIs), including but not limited to Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Native American-Serving Non-Tribal Institutions, and Tribal Colleges and Universities.“

Apply here to both/either type of DPS grant: https://dps.aas.org/news/dps-travel-grants-application/ The deadline is July 3.

Note: Members of Europlanet should apply for Europlanet awards through the abstract submission form.

Community donations are critical for the health of these awards. Instructions to donate are linked at https://dps.aas.org/news/dps-travel-grants-application/

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SCIENTIFIC DATA ANALYST WITH THE MAVEN IMAGING ULTRAVIOLET SPECTROGRAPH TEAM

The Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph (IUVS) team on the MAVEN mission is seeking a talented data analyst. IUVS has made important discoveries about the Mars atmosphere, including escape and evolution, aurora, nightglow, photochemistry, composition, dynamics and cloud formation, and more discoveries are anticipated with your help. Responsibilities include: Data analysis and interpretation, scientific programming, interpretation, presentation of results at conferences and in publications. Mentoring junior team members and software support. Mission operations. Position requirements include: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in astronomy, physics, earth science, computer science or related area. Experience in scientific programming in python. Work with remote sensing data, retrievals, image processing. Experience with graphical data representation and scientific visualization. Desired qualifications include: Familiarity with planetary science, earth science or astrophysics through coursework or experience, and best practices for version control for code and data products. Inquiries to [email protected]

Please apply by 2 May through https://jobs.colorado.edu/jobs/JobDetail/?jobId=63235

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EPSC-DPS 2025 ABSTRACT SUBMISSION CALL FOR THE SESSION “SYNERGIES BETWEEN SPACE MISSIONS AND GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS”

The next EPSC-DPS Joint Meeting 2025 (EPSC-DPS2025) will take place at the  Finlandia Hall Helsinki, Finland 7–12 September 2025. The abstract submission is now open, with submission deadline on 7 May 2025, 13:00 CEST.

We encourage you to submit an abstract to the session:  “Synergies between space missions and ground-based observations” as part of the “Missions, Instrumentation, Techniques, Modelling” program. Detailed information about the session can be found at:

https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EPSC-DPS2025/session/55125.

Space missions to study bodies throughout the Solar System up-close have led to significant advances in understanding how our planetary system formed and evolved. A host of current and upcoming missions will further revolutionise our knowledge of the Solar System’s structure and history e.g. the characterisation of numerous Jupiter Trojans by the Lucy flybys, the Hera mission to assess the Didymos-Dimorphos system following the DART impact, and the first ever

up-close study of a long period comet by Comet Interceptor. In addition to these small-body missions, there are missions flying or in development to visit all the major planets from Mercury to Jupiter, and discussions about future missions to the ice giants. Each of these

missions are greatly enhanced by the support of ground-based facilities to provide necessary context through remote sensing and target characterisation. This session invites contributions from researchers undertaking telescopic observations related to mission targets, including pre-encounter characterisation, parallel ground and space observations, or follow up studies.

Best regards,

Abbie Donaldson, Colin Snodgrass, Richard Binzel, Zuri Gray, Matthew

Knight, Cecilia Tubiana

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EPSC-DPS 2025 ABSTRACT SUBMISSION CALL FOR THE SESSION “INTERSTELLAR OBJECTS: FROM THEORY TO OBSERVATIONS”

The next EPSC-DPS Joint Meeting 2025 (EPSC-DPS2025) will take place at the  Finlandia Hall Helsinki, Finland 7–12 September 2025. The abstract submission is now open, with submission deadline on 7 May 2025, 13:00 CEST.

We encourage you to submit an abstract to the session:  “Interstellar objects: from theory to observations” as part of the “Small Bodies (comets, KBOs, rings, asteroids, meteorites, dust)”

program. Detailed information about the session can be found at:

https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EPSC-DPS2025/session/55013.

Interstellar objects (ISOs) have become a novel field of Galactic small body studies, connecting the formation history of our Solar System to the processes of planetesimal creation and evolution that play out in planetary systems across the Milky Way.

The known population of ISOs is expected to increase soon, following 1I/`Oumuamua in 2017 and 2I/Borisov in 2019, as the planetary science community reaps the benefits of a new generation of survey telescopes. At the given epoch, the intrinsic ISO population remains observationally unconstrained; theoretical predictions are equally influential as observed physical characteristics on our understanding.

This session explores the past, present, and future research on interstellar objects, and is therefore open to contributions from a wide range of topics, including (but not limited to):

• Planetesimal formation and ejection mechanisms
• ISO dynamics in the Galaxy
• Evolutionary processing of small bodies e.g. in the interstellar medium or tidal disruption
• The relationships of Solar System populations to ISOs
• Observational characterisation of the known ISO population, 1I and 2I
• Population modelling & predictions for future ISO discoveries
• Mission concepts for in-situ ISO observation

Best regards,

Michele Bannister, Rosemary Dorsey, Chris Lintott, Susanna Pfalzner,

Matthew M. Knight, Darryl Seligman, Cyrielle Opitom, Colin Snodgrass

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RESEARCHER POSITIONS IN THE PLANETARY ATMOSPHERES GROUP AT THE INSTITUTE FOR BASIC SCIENCE, SOUTH KOREA

The Planetary Atmospheres Group (PAG) invites researchers with a high motivation for Venus atmospheric research. The position is initially two years long, with a possible extension. The deadline for the application is May 8, 2025 (KST).

The work involves leading remote sensing data analysis or numerical modeling. Successful applicants are also expected to support the CubeSat Project of PAG as team members and will have opportunities to collaborate with the international consortium of PAG. Our research focus will be on the atmosphere of Venus below 100 km altitude.

AAS job information:  https://aas.org/jobregister/ad/2f9eba7f

Link to the official announcement:  https://tinyurl.com/5fhk8hdr

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GERALD A. SOFFEN MEMORIAL FUND SPRING 2025 TRAVEL GRANT

The Gerald A. Soffen Memorial Fund is pleased to announce the Spring 2025 Travel Grant application opportunity for undergraduate and graduate students pursuing studies in fields of space science and engineering.

The Travel Grants enable student recipients to attend professional conferences to present their research. Recipients may use the Grant for either virtual or in-person conferences. The Soffen Fund will award up to $1000 in total, with no individual award greater than $500, to cover expenses related to presenting research at either a virtual or in-person conference. The number of awards will depend on applicants’ needs.

The Spring 2025 Travel Grant application deadline is April 25, 2025. Jerry Soffen, a biologist by training, led a distinguished career in NASA, including serving as the Project Scientist for Viking and as an architect for the NASA Astrobiology Institute. The Travel Grant continues Jerry’s dedication to educating and involving future generations in space science and engineering pursuits.

The electronic application materials and instructions are located on the Soffen Fund website:

https://soffenfund.org

Questions regarding the application or application process may be sent to:  [email protected]

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PSJ FOCUS ISSUE ON MARS RESOURCES AND SCIENCE TARGETS FOR HUMAN

EXPLORATION

A new Planetary Science Journal focus issue entitled “Human Exploration of Mars: Resources and Science Targets” is now accepting contributions. This focus issue highlights Mars research that seeks to understand potential resources to sustain human missions, as well as pinpointing scientifically intriguing targets that would benefit from direct human exploration on the Martian surface. Contributions to the issue are intended to include a diverse array of data analyses,

modeling, field-analog, and conceptual studies, all geared towards advancing the scientific exploration of Mars.

Human Exploration of Mars: Resources and Science Targets – IOPscience

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NEW HORIZONS SCIENCE SPOTLIGHT WEBINAR

Join us on 24 April 2025, 2:30-3pm EDT (11:30-12 PDT,12:30-1pm MDT, 1:30-2pm CDT)

New Horizons continues its operation, now at 61au from the Sun. Since 2015 it has made ground-breaking discoveries of the Pluto-Charon system, flown past the small contact KBO binary Arrokoth and collected phase and light curve data for some three dozen additional KBOs and the ice giants. It has also been sampling dust density throughout the Solar System and studying the cosmic optical background. To raise awareness of New Horizon’s scientific impact we are beginning a new spotlight seminar series (30 min, fourth week each month) which we invite you to attend online, or watch recorded at your convenience.

Our speaker will be Al Emran, JPL, and he will be speaking on: 

“Kiladze Caldera: A Possible Cryovolcano on Pluto”

Connection Link:

https://zoom.us/j/97317697636?pwd=MTAzMjJmNThTeFppR3JoYzlkUXVCQT09

Meeting ID: 973 1769 7636

Calendar for future seminars:

https://tinyurl.com/4f57yka4

Recordings are archived and posted at:

https://pluto.jhuapl.edu/News-Center/index.php#Spotlight-Presentations

For questions, contact New Horizons CoI Susan Benecchi, [email protected]

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EPSC-DPS SESSION EXOA13: BRIDGING GEOSCIENCES AND ASTRONOMY TO

INTERPRET ROCKY (EXO)PLANET OBSERVATIONS

The coming years will be revolutionary for rocky planet research, with JWST, ELT, ARIEL, and PLATO providing unprecedented observations of rocky exoplanets in our galaxy. At the same time, BepiColombo, the Mars sample return mission, and the Decade of Venus missions will

greatly enhance our understanding of the rocky bodies within the Solar System. This session aims to bring together scientists from astronomy, geosciences, and planetary sciences, to explore how interior-atmosphere interaction shapes rocky (exo)planet surfaces and atmospheres. We welcome contributions spanning experimental work, observational efforts, and modelling studies. By combining insights from exoplanets, which serve as a natural laboratory for rocky world diversity, and Solar System planets, which provide the detailed observations needed to build and validate models, we can develop a robust framework for interpreting observations of any rocky body. We encourage discussions that span all related fields, fostering new collaborative approaches to studying rocky planet evolution.

Submit abstracts (deadline May 7):

https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EPSC-DPS2025/session/55189

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EUROPLANET JUICE WEBINAR

25 April at 11am CEST (9am UTC): Couplings in the Jovian System: What We Expect to Find With Juice

In this Europlanet Juice webinar, Juice Project Scientist Olivier Witasse (ESA) will present the status of the mission after two years in space, and with the Venus Gravity Assist coming up at the end of August 2025. After that, Michel Blanc (IRAP, Toulouse, France) will talk about the many different couplings – gravitational, magnetospheric – that are at work in the Jovian system, why they are so interesting and how Juice will decipher them.

Register here:

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_XGYQscIgSmKffl8yR4DJEA

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CURRENT TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THE PLANETARY SCIENCE JOURNAL AND ICARUS

The current issues for both DPS-affiliated journals are here:

The Planetary Science Journal:

Issue 4 – Volume 6 – The Planetary Science Journal – IOPscience

Icarus:

Icarus | Vol 430, In progress (April 2025) | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier

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JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES

Job seekers and employers are encouraged to browse DPS’s job listings and advertise open positions **for free** on the DPS job board.

Full details for several new positions can be found on the DPS job board.

A summary of recent job announcements and postdoc opportunities are listed below.

1. ESA Archival Research Visitor Programme – Due Apr 30, 2025

To increase the scientific return from its space science missions, the European Space Agency (ESA) welcomes applications from scientists interested in pursuing research projects based on data publicly available in the ESA Space Science Archives (https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/esdc).

The ESA Archival Research Visitor Programme is open to scientists, at all career levels, affiliated with institutes in ESA Member States and Collaborating States, although we will also consider strong applications from outside those states. Early-career scientists (within 10 years of the PhD) and PhD students are particularly encouraged to apply. We encourage applications from women and minorities. The peer-review evaluation process is anonymised to ensure equal opportunities for all applicants.

Applications received before 1 May 2025 will be considered for visits in autumn and winter 2025/2026.

For further details, including areas of research and contact information, please refer to:
https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/esdc/visitor-programme  or write to the programme coordinators at [email protected]

2. Full-time staff scientist to work with Roman team at IPAC 

IPAC, part of the Physics, Math, and Astronomy Division at Caltech, provides science operations, user support, data and archive services, and scientific vision to enhance discovery with observatories both in space and on the ground. IPAC invites applications from highly qualified individuals for a full-time position at the junior scientist level to work with the Roman team at IPAC.

The Roman Space Telescope is a NASA observatory designed to address key questions in the areas of dark energy, exoplanets, and infrared astrophysics. It is slated for launch in late 2026. The Roman Science Support Center (SSC) at IPAC is part of the Roman Ground Data System, providing algorithm and software development and data processing for the Galactic Bulge Time Domain Survey and all Roman spectroscopic data. In addition, the SSC will support the operations of the Coronagraph Instrument, manage the Roman General Investigator Program proposal solicitations and related data analysis funding, and provide community support for exoplanet and wide-field spectroscopy science with Roman.

For more details, see: https://roman.ipac.caltech.edu

Link to the full job description: https://dps.aas.org/7526/

3. Postdoctoral Scholar: Asteroid Radar – University of Central Florida

The incumbent will be expected to participate in data analysis, physical and dynamical characterization of near-Earth asteroids using radar and optical data, and support archiving asteroid shape models in the Planetary Data System (PDS). This position is open until filled.

Postdoctoral scholar: asteroid radar

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Send submissions to: Denise Stephens, DPS Secretary, at this address  [email protected]

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To unsubscribe from this list please go to https://lists.aas.org/confirm/?u=IcltVLtaBw4O1qXm6Duwv1XeRxoPdch3

Issue 25-07, Apr 13, 2025

+————————————CONTENTS—————————————-+

1. 2025 DPS PRIZE NOMINATIONS CLOSING APRIL 15, 2025
2. ABSTRACT SUBMISSION OPEN EPSC-DPS JOINT MEETING 2025
3. 2025 DPS TRAVEL GRANT APPLICATION FORM IS OPEN
4. CHANGED ABSTRACT DEADLINE FOR PROGRESS IN UNDERSTANDING THE PLUTO SYSTEM: 10 YEARS AFTER FLYBY MEETING
5. AGU 2025 SESSION PROPOSALS NOW OPEN
6. TEAM-UP TOGETHER SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
7. ABSTRACT SUBMISSION EPSC-DPS 2025 SESSION “ICY MOONS AND OCEAN WORLDS IN THE ERA OF JUICE AND EUROPA CLIPPER”
8. ABSTRACT SUBMISSION EPSC-DPS 2025 SESSION “EXOA16: ADVANCES IN TERRESTRIAL PLANET FORMATION: A COMPARISON OF THE THREE CURRENTLY LEADING SCENARIOS
9. INTRODUCTION TO ARCGIS PRO FOR PLANETARY SCIENCE WORKSHOPS
10. HOW TO SUBMIT GUEST OBSERVER PROPOSALS FOR CHEOPS STEP BY STEP
11. SPRING PLANETARY DATA TRAINING WORKSHOP IN TEMPE, ARIZONA
12. ANNOUNCING THE 33RD COMMUNITY MEETING OF THE NASA SMALL BODIES ASSESSMENT GROUP (SBAG), JUNE 24-25, 2025
13. DRAGONFLY STUDENT AND EARLY CAREER INVESTIGATOR PROGRAM
14. NEW HORIZONS SCIENCE SPOTLIGHT WEBINAR
15. EXPLOITING GAIA TO STUDY MINOR BODIES OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM: RESULTS, CHALLENGES, AND PERSPECTIVES
16. MENTOR BOYS & GIRLS CLUB STUDENTS
17. NASA L’SPACE PROGRAM – SUMMER 2025
18. NASA PLANETARY DATA TRAINING WORKSHOP – REGISTER BY APRIL 15, 2025
19. CURRENT TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR ICARUS AND THE PLANETARY SCIENCE JOURNAL
20. JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES

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2025 DPS PRIZE NOMINATIONS CLOSING APRIL 15, 2025

Every year the DPS recognizes exceptional achievement in our field. Please consider nominating a respected colleague for one of the annual DPS prizes. The 2025 Prize Nominations are due by April 15, 2025.

The DPS sponsors six prizes:

• The Gerard P. Kuiper Prize [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/kuiper] recognizes and honors outstanding contributors to the field of planetary science.
• The Claudia J. Alexander Prize [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/alexander] recognizes excellence and achievements by a mid-career scientist.
• The Harold C. Urey Prize [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/urey] recognizes and encourages outstanding achievements in planetary research by an early-career scientist.
• The Harold Masursky Award [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/masursky] recognizes and honors individuals who have rendered outstanding service to planetary science and exploration through – but not limited to – engineering, managerial, programmatic, editorial, or public service activities.
• The Carl Sagan Medal [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/sagan] recognizes and honors outstanding communication by an active planetary scientist to the general public.
• The Jonathan Eberhart Planetary Sciences Journalism Award [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/eberhart] recognizes and stimulates distinguished popular writing on planetary sciences.

DPS members and the planetary science community-at-large are encouraged to submit nominations for DPS prizes.

A complete nomination submitted by the deadline will be considered by the DPS Prize subcommittee for 3 years (i.e. for this year’s award, next year’s award, and the year after that), or for the duration of a candidate’s eligibility, whichever is less. Please fill out the nomination form [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/nomination-form], and it will be submitted to the prize subcommittee. The Eberhart Award has different rules and procedures than the other DPS 

Prizes, please see its page [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/eberhart-nomination-form] for more information.

 Scroll to the bottom of https://dps.aas.org/prizes for rules and procedures.

 Questions: Email [email protected]

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ABSTRACT SUBMISSION OPEN EPSC-DPS JOINT MEETING 2025

The EPSC committee, the DPS Committee, the Scientific Organizing Committee and Copernicus Meetings invite the world-wide community of planetary scientists to submit an abstract for presentation of their recent work at the EPSC-DPS2025 meeting, which will take place at the Finlandia Hall Helsinki, Finland, 7–12 September 2025. EPSC-DPS2025 will be organised as a fully hybrid meeting and will allow virtual access to all oral and poster sessions.  EPSC-DPS2025

We are looking forward to meeting everyone in person this year in Helsinki. The ethos for EPSC-DPS2025 is to create a simple, flexible, and inclusive meeting that provides multiple opportunities for interaction, scientific discussion, and networking. The programme of the congress will contain oral and poster sessions, as well as workshops and panel discussions.

The current list of sessions is organised around the following Programme Groups:

• Terrestrial Planets (TP)
• Outer Planet Systems (OPS)
• Missions, Instrumentation, Techniques, Modelling (MITM)
• Small Bodies (comets, KBOs, rings, asteroids, meteorites, dust) (SB)
• Exoplanets, Origins of Planetary Systems and Astrobiology (EXOA)
• Outreach, Diversity, Amateur Astronomy (ODAA)

Submit your abstract now by accessing the scientific programme and the abstract submission tool. Please browse the list of sessions and identify the session that most closely matches your area of interest; your abstract can be submitted directly to that session.

Abstract deadline: 7 May 2025, 13:00 CEST.

For future deadlines including (early) registration, refer to the deadlines & milestones of the conference.  Information on registration and social events, as well as a separate online form for requesting splinter meetings & workshops will also be available soon on the meeting website.

We look forward to seeing you in Helsinki!

• Lena Noack & Noah Jäggi on behalf of the EPSC committee
• Athena Coustenis & Scott Murchie on behalf of the DPS committee
• Stavro Ivanovski, Ákos Kereszturi, Connor Nixon, and James Roberts
  on behalf of the Scientific Organizing Committee
• Katrin Krüger on behalf of Copernicus Meetings

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2025 DPS TRAVEL GRANT APPLICATION FORM IS OPEN

The DPS Travel Grant application form is open to support participation in the joint meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and DPS (EPSC-DPS 2025) in Helsinki, Finland 7-12 September 2025, or the National Society of Black Physicists- National Society of Hispanics Physicists annual meeting, via the Hartmann and the Under-Represented Minority (URM) Travel grants.

The Hartmann Student Travel Grant supports student presentations at the annual DPS-EPSC meeting. (Postdoctoral scholars may also be eligible, but students are prioritized.)

The Underrepresented Minority (URM) Communities in Planetary Science Travel Grant supports attendance by students and professionals who are members of groups that have had inadequate access to the planetary science community, in an effort to ensure broad engagement and access to planetary science.  Applications are especially encouraged from members of group(s) whose contributions to STEM may have been overlooked, students and professionals hailing from colleges and non-R1 academic or research institutions* that have not traditionally benefited from connections to the planetary science community, and/or students and professionals with degrees in broader STEM disciplines (e.g., chemistry, physics, engineering, mathematics) who are new to the planetary science community  — to support in-person or virtual attendance at the joint DPS-EPSC or joint NSBP-NSHP meetings.

* Relevant institutions include small colleges and universities, primarily undergraduate institutions, and minority serving institutions (MSIs), including but not limited to Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Native American-Serving Non-Tribal Institutions, and Tribal Colleges and Universities.“

Apply here to both/either type of DPS grant: https://dps.aas.org/news/dps-travel-grants-application/ The deadline is July 3.

Note: Members of Europlanet should apply for Europlanet awards through the abstract submission form.

Community donations are critical for the health of these awards. Instructions to donate are linked at https://dps.aas.org/news/dps-travel-grants-application/

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CHANGED ABSTRACT DEADLINE FOR PROGRESS IN UNDERSTANDING THE PLUTO SYSTEM: 10 YEARS AFTER FLYBY MEETING

The “Progress in Understanding the Pluto System: 10 Years after Flyby” meeting will be held July 14–18, 2025 at the Kossiakoff Conference Center of The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland.

NASA’s New Horizons mission conducted the first and only exploration flyby of the Pluto system, culminating at the closest approach on July 14, 2015. This meeting will assess advances made since then using New Horizons and all other data (ground-based, JWST, HST, etc.), as well as theory and modeling regarding all aspects of the Pluto system and the dwarf planets of the Kuiper Belt. Session topics will include: Pluto, Charon, Pluto’s Small Satellites, Kuiper Belt Dwarf Planets, Pluto and Satellite System Origins, and Past and Future Exploration of Pluto, the Kuiper Belt, and the Outer Solar System.

Abstract submission is open now, with a revised deadline of Friday April 25th:

For more information and abstract submission please see https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/plutosystem2025/

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AGU 2025 SESSION PROPOSALS NOW OPEN

This December, AGU25 returns to New Orleans, Louisiana with the theme: Where Science Connects Us. We invite you to propose a Planetary Science focused session.

Whether through collaborative research, innovative technologies, or shared experiences, your session can inspire and advance our collective understanding. Submit your proposal by April 23 (23:59 EDT/03:59 +1 GMT)

https://www.agu.org/annual-meeting/present#overview

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TEAM-UP TOGETHER SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

The TEAM-UP Together Scholarship is now open for 2025, supporting students in physics and astronomy, including those who face the starkest barriers, by helping remove financial barriers to degree completion.

By offering financial support to promising undergraduates, including those who face the starkest barriers, we seek to encourage more students to follow their passion for science.

Scholarship Details:

• Open to undergraduate physics & astronomy students with financial need and a demonstrated understanding of issues related to enhancing access and opportunities for all physics & astronomy students, including those facing the starkest barriers
• Awards of $10,000 help students persist and complete their degrees
• Application deadline: 23 May, 2025

For further guidance, visit teamuptogether.org/scholarship or contact us at [email protected].

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ABSTRACT SUBMISSION EPSC-DPS 2025 SESSION “ICY MOONS AND OCEAN WORLDS IN THE ERA OF JUICE AND EUROPA CLIPPER”

Dear Colleagues,

The next EPSC-DPS Joint Meeting 2025 (EPSC-DPS2025), which will take place at the  Finlandia Hall Helsinki, Finland 7–12 September 2025, is slowly approaching. The abstract submission is now open, with submission deadline on 7 May 2025, 13:00 CEST.

We would like to bring to your attention and invite you to submit abstract to the session:

 “Icy Moons and Ocean Worlds in the Era of Juice and Europa Clipper” as part of the “Outer Solar systems” program. Detailed information about the session can be found at: https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EPSC-DPS2025/session/55078.

In preparation for the arrival of ESA Juice and NASA Europa Clipper missions to the Jupiter system, this session invites contributions from across the planetary science community that will advance our understanding of topics relevant to the Galilean moons and maximize the scientific return of the missions. 

This session welcomes presentations concerning laboratory experiments, numerical modeling, terrestrial analog studies, and Earth-based observations (such as those from JWST, ALMA, or HISAKI), as well as analyses of past or ongoing mission data and comparative investigations of icy moons across systems. Topics of interest include the surface geology and composition of the icy Galilean moons, their interior structures and subsurface ocean dynamics, their interactions with Jupiter’s magnetosphere, surface weathering processes, and the formation, structure, and composition of their exospheres. The detection and characterization of potential Europa plumes is also highly relevant. We additionally welcome discussions on the recent Juice Moon-Earth flyby and the Europa Clipper Mars flyby, examining how these events inform upcoming observations at Jupiter.

The deadline for abstract submission is 7 May 2025, 13:00 CEST.

Best regards

Cecilia Tubiana, Samantha Trumbo, Kristian Chan, Wes Patterson, Gabriel Tobie

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ABSTRACT SUBMISSION EPSC-DPS 2025 SESSION “EXOA16: ADVANCES IN TERRESTRIAL PLANET FORMATION: A COMPARISON OF THE THREE CURRENTLY LEADING SCENARIOS

Dear Colleagues,

It gives us the greatest pleasure to announce the EPSC/DPS session:

EXOA16: Advances in Terrestrial Planet Formation: A Comparison of the Three Currently Leading Scenarios

The past few years have witnessed major developments in the field of terrestrial planet formation. Thanks to the advances in computational technology, the three leading scenarios, namely, the traditional model, pebble accretion, and formation in rings, have become more complex, and have demonstrated their expansive success. How these approaches compare and contribute to developing a comprehensive model are among outstanding questions in planetary astrophysics. This session aims at introducing each scenario and assessing their capabilities by comparing their results to our knowledge of terrestrial planets in our solar system. We also organize a press conference or town hall, where experts from each scenario will answer questions from the press and audience.

We cordially invite abstracts for oral and poster contributions in all areas of theoretical, observational, and experimental studies of terrestrial planet formation.

Abstracts can be submitted using the link below. The deadline is 7 May 2025, 13:00 CEST.

https://www.epsc-dps2025.eu/programme/how-to-submit.html

We strongly encourage contributions from early career scientists.

Looking forward to seeing you in Helsinki.

Convenors: Nader Haghighipour, Jeffrey Sudol, Nikolaos Georgakarakos

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INTRODUCTION TO ARCGIS PRO FOR PLANETARY SCIENCE WORKSHOPS

The Planetary Data Training Workshops program is pleased to announce our next Introduction to ArcGIS Pro for Planetary Science workshops, facilitated by Cornell’s Spacecraft Planetary Image Facility (SPIF).

May 23

• Online, 10am – 6pm EDT
• Notice of Interest (deadline is May 16, required to receive the Zoom registration)
• Facebook Event

June 11-12

• In-person at Cornell
• Registration (deadline is May 28)
• Travel Grant Application (deadline is May 2, up to $1500 each)
• Day 1: ArcGIS workshop, dinner at a local restaurant
• Day 2: further ArcGIS discussion (including which topics should be covered in the next workshop we will develop as a follow-up to this one), meet with the COMPASSE research group, tour of SPIF, outreach workshop, geology tour of a local waterfall and gorge (weather permitting)
• Facebook Event

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HOW TO SUBMIT GUEST OBSERVER PROPOSALS FOR CHEOPS STEP BY STEP

The European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) Characterising Exoplanet Satellite (CHEOPS) mission opened its 6th Announcement of Opportunity (AO-6) on the 18th of March of 2025. This Call invites the submission of research proposals to the Guest Observers (GO) Programme.

Key Dates: The AO-6 Call is foreseen to close on the 8 May 2025 (12:00 CEST).

Observing Cycle: The selected proposals will be part of the observing cycle from 1 October 2025 to 30 September 2026. This period marks the last year of the first mission extension of CHEOPS.

Scientific Opportunities: CHEOPS provides observers with access to space-based pointed ultra-high precision photometry. Research areas include the observations of exoplanet transits, eclipses, occultations, and phase curves. Furthermore, the scientific scope may extend to phenomena such as exomoons, ring structures, stellar activity, trans-Neptunian objects or more.

Collaborative Synergies: The timely overlap of several space- and ground-based missions may provide exciting opportunities for synergies with NASA/ESA/CSA JWST, NASA/ESA HST, NASA TESS, ESO ground-based facilities, and more.

Novelties in cycle 6:

• More targets: only 50 GTO reserved targets, with all the rest being open to the entire community
• More time: up to 30% science observing time (around 1500 orbits) dedicated to the GO Programme
• Double-anonymous peer-review of proposals
• Zero-installation tools: cloud-based visibility, feasibility and ETC web tools

Step by step tutorial: Check our easy-to-follow tutorial of seven steps to submit a CHEOPS GO proposal without having to install anything:

Find out more about the CHEOPS mission via https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/cheops, stay up-to-date about this opportunity via https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/cheops-guest-observers-programme, and feel free to email us with any questions. We look forward to receiving your observing proposals and advancing our understanding of exoplanetary and stellar systems.

 Happy proposing!

 Contact: [email protected]

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SPRING PLANETARY DATA TRAINING WORKSHOP IN TEMPE, ARIZONA

Arizona State University is hosting our Spring Planetary Data Training Workshop in Tempe, Arizona on May 20-23, 2025.  This event is IN PERSON ONLY.  We will be providing hands-on training in JMARS, ArcGIS Pro, USGS’ ISIS3 image processing software, and an introduction to planetary geologic mapping.  We have space for 16 participants.  We also are offering two $2000 travel grants (US domestic travel only) to support development of our workforce.  Travel grant application deadline is April 16, 2025.  For access to the registration link and travel grant application, please visit this webpage:  https://rgcps.asu.edu/gis-pdtw-2025-may/

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ANNOUNCING THE 33RD COMMUNITY MEETING OF THE NASA SMALL BODIES ASSESSMENT GROUP (SBAG), JUNE 24-25, 2025

The 33rd Community Meeting of the NASA Small Bodies Assessment Group (SBAG) is scheduled for June 24–25, 2025, at the Arvada Center in Arvada, Colorado (just outside of Denver). The meeting will include opportunities for virtual participation. Please add these dates to your calendar.

Registration fees are not being collected for this meeting, but registration is required and available via the link below. Registration will be open through June 25. Before the meeting, all registrants will receive an email from Houston Meeting Info with virtual connection information.

https://www.hou.usra.edu/meeting_portal/registration/?mtg=sbagjune2025

Although registration is open, the agenda for the meeting is still being organized and the SBAG website is currently unavailable. Please stay tuned for updates.

The SBAG Steering Committee

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DRAGONFLY STUDENT AND EARLY CAREER INVESTIGATOR PROGRAM

Application Deadline: June 9

Contact: [email protected]

Set to launch in 2028, NASA’s Dragonfly mission will send a rotorcraft lander to explore a variety of locations on Saturn’s moon Titan. Graduate students are invited to apply for a two-year term to work with Dragonfly mission team members to conduct Titan research, help formulate Dragonfly mission science and operations plans, or assist in the development of instrumentation, hardware, or testing.

Applicants must be U.S. citizens pursuing a master’s or doctoral degree in the physical sciences, biological sciences, computer sciences, mathematics, or engineering. Undergraduate STEM students who will be graduating with bachelor’s degrees in May 2025 are also eligible to apply, provided that they will be enrolled in STEM graduate programs in fall 2025.

Click here for program details.

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NEW HORIZONS SCIENCE SPOTLIGHT WEBINAR

Join us on 24 April 2025, 2:30-3pm EDT (11:30-12 PDT,12:30-1pm MDT,1:30-2pm CDT)

New Horizons continues its operation, now at 61au from the Sun. Since 2015 it has made ground-breaking discoveries of the Pluto-Charon system, flown past the small contact KBO binary Arrokoth and collected phase and light curve data for some three dozen additional KBOs and the ice giants. It has also been sampling dust density throughout the solar system and studying the cosmic optical background. To raise awareness of New Horizon’s scientific impact we are beginning a new spotlight seminar series (30 min, fourth week each month) which we invite you to attend online, or watch recorded at your convenience.

Our speaker will be Al Emran, JPL  and he will be speaking on:

“Kiladze Caldera: A Possible Cryovolcano on Pluto”

Connection Link:

https://zoom.us/j/97317697636?pwd=MTAzMjJmNThTeFppR3JoYzlkUXVCQT09

Meeting ID: 973 1769 7636

Calendar for future seminars:

https://zoom.us/meeting/tJMudu6upzwsGdKrlGdxLvb2e_I91uILetOL/ics?icsToken=98tyKuCvrTotHN2SthqBRowEA4j4KO7xmGZdjad2jhPCBzh_dAGkM91ra-NqOfTV

Recordings are archived and posted at:

https://pluto.jhuapl.edu/News-Center/index.php#Spotlight-Presentations

For questions, contact New Horizons CoI Susan Benecchi, [email protected]

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EXPLOITING GAIA TO STUDY MINOR BODIES OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM: RESULTS, CHALLENGES, AND PERSPECTIVES

Are you using Gaia data for your Solar System science? Please consider submitting an abstract to this dedicated session including all aspects: astrometry, photometry, spectroscopy, and derived applications (such as stellar occultations) at the next EPSC/DPS meeting. Co-organised with the “Small Body” session category:

https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EPSC-DPS2025/session/55129

“Exploiting Gaia to study minor bodies of the Solar System: results, challenges, and perspectives”

Co-organized by SB

Convener: Paolo Tanga | Co-conveners: Daniel Hestroffer, Davide Farnocchia, Josef Durech, Julia de Leon, Karri Muinonen, Federica Spoto

The Gaia mission is publishing a large amount of data concerning the minor bodies of the Solar System, with unique properties and quality. However, peculiarities of Gaia data, consequence of the typical complexity intrinsic to space missions, make an appropriate exploitation complex. This session has the ambition of gathering the community of planetary scientists exploiting Gaia through any of its data products, for sharing and discussing results, difficulties, experiences, and future perspectives. Several publications have made use of the Data Release 3 (2022) including astrometry for more than 150 thousand asteroids at milli-arcsec level accuracy. Minor planet positions by Gaia, used alone or combined with other data sources, have led to progress in detection and modeling of subtle dynamical effects, and to changes in observational approaches, especially in the domain of stellar occultations. The Focused Product Release in 2023 extended this data set in time, up to the duration of the nominal mission (5 years), pushing the limit of investigation further. High-precision unfiltered photometry and a first batch of reflectance spectra for 60 thousand asteroids have also been made available, leading to new results by photometric inversion and taxonomic classification. Altogether, the observations by Gaia are contributing to the evolution of our knowledge of the asteroid belt, are offering renewed approaches to ground based observations, and are a precious data source for planning future in-situ space missions. Looking forward to Data Release 4, it is the appropriate time for an evaluation of the impact of Gaia on Solar System science that can also provide useful feedback for the data processing consortium.

EPSC/DPS will be in Helsinki, September 7 to 12.

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MENTOR BOYS & GIRLS CLUB STUDENTS

NASA-funded researchers who work in extreme environments are invited to become Mentors for the Virtual Trips to Extreme Environments (VIRTEX) project! With training and support, Mentors act as STEM role models as they connect with teams of students (ages 10-15) at a partnering Boys & Girls Club. We’re looking for NASA-funded scientists, engineers, and technicians (including graduate students and other early career researchers) who conduct research in exciting, “extreme” environments such as remote field locations, unique laboratory settings, aircraft, mountain tops, underwater laboratories, and more. We anticipate up to 7 hours of your time, spread across several weeks. More information and applications are at https://www.lpi.usra.edu/education/VIRTEX/mentors. 

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NASA L’SPACE PROGRAM – SUMMER 2025

Application Deadline: Sunday, May 4

Contact: [email protected]

The NASA Lucy Student Pipeline Accelerator and Competency Enabler (L’SPACE) Program is a free, online, interactive program for students interested in pursuing a career with NASA or other organizations in the space ecosystem.

L’SPACE consists of two academies: the Mission Concept Academy and the NASA Proposal Writing and Evaluation Experience Academy. Students may participate in one academy per semester. Each 15-week academy is designed to provide unique, hands-on learning and insight into the dynamic world of the space industry. Students can expect to learn NASA mission procedures and protocols from industry professionals as they collaborate with fellow team members to complete mission-related projects.

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NASA PLANETARY DATA TRAINING WORKSHOP – REGISTER BY APRIL 15, 2025

The NASA Planetary Data Training Workshops project will hold a VIRTUAL training on ASU’s Java Mission-planning and Analysis for Remote Sensing (JMARS) software on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, from 9am-1pm PDT (12-4pm EDT).  There is no registration fee for this workshop, and it will be virtual only.  JMARS is a GIS-based tool that is popular for analysis of planetary image data, and this workshop will be geared for NEW USERS.  Please register here for this Workshop by April 15, 2025:  https://forms.gle/t4UDBTLYExtuEGvZ8

 Registrants will receive the Zoom link for the Workshop several days prior.

NOTE:  Please register for a JMARS account and install the software on your own computer BEFORE the workshop at:  https://jmars.mars.asu.edu/index.php?q=user/register.  Any PC, Mac or Linux system and browser should work, but you will want to verify the install works ahead of time, as there won’t be time to troubleshoot during the Workshop.  If you have problems, please contact: [email protected].

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CURRENT TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR ICARUS AND THE PLANETARY SCIENCE JOURNAL

The current issues for both DPS-affiliated journals are here:

Icarus:

Icarus | Vol 430, In progress (April 2025) | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier

The Planetary Science Journal:

Issue 4 – Volume 6 – The Planetary Science Journal – IOPscience

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JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES

Job seekers and employers are encouraged to browse DPS’s job listings and advertise open positions **for free** on the DPS job board.

Full details for several new positions can be found on the DPS job board.

A summary of recent job announcements and postdoc opportunities are listed below.

1. ESA Archival Research Visitor Programme – Due Apr 30, 2025

To increase the scientific return from its space science missions, the European Space Agency (ESA) welcomes applications from scientists interested in pursuing research projects based on data publicly available in the ESA Space Science Archives (https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/esdc).

The ESA Archival Research Visitor Programme is open to scientists, at all career levels, affiliated with institutes in ESA Member States and Collaborating States, although we will also consider strong applications from outside those states. Early-career scientists (within 10 years of the PhD) and PhD students are particularly encouraged to apply. We encourage applications from women and minorities. The peer-review evaluation process is anonymised to ensure equal opportunities for all applicants.

Applications received before 1 May 2025 will be considered for visits in autumn and winter 2025/2026.

For further details, including areas of research and contact information, please refer to:

https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/esdc/visitor-programme  or write to the programme coordinators at [email protected]

2. Full-time staff scientist to work with Roman team at IPAC 

IPAC, part of the Physics, Math, and Astronomy Division at Caltech, provides science operations, user support, data and archive services, and scientific vision to enhance discovery with observatories both in space and on the ground. IPAC invites applications from highly qualified individuals for a full-time position at the junior scientist level to work with the Roman team at IPAC.

The Roman Space Telescope is a NASA observatory designed to address key questions in the areas of dark energy, exoplanets, and infrared astrophysics. It is slated for launch in late 2026. The Roman Science Support Center (SSC) at IPAC is part of the Roman Ground Data System, providing algorithm and software development and data processing for the Galactic Bulge Time Domain Survey and all Roman spectroscopic data. In addition, the SSC will support the operations of the Coronagraph Instrument, manage the Roman General Investigator Program proposal solicitations and related data analysis funding, and provide community support for exoplanet and wide-field spectroscopy science with Roman.

For more details, see: https://roman.ipac.caltech.edu

Link to the full job description: https://dps.aas.org/7526/

3. Postdoctoral Scholar: Asteroid Radar – University of Central Florida

The incumbent will be expected to participate in data analysis, physical and dynamical characterization of near-Earth asteroids using radar and optical data, and support archiving asteroid shape models in the Planetary Data System (PDS). This position is open until filled.

Postdoctoral scholar: asteroid radar

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Send submissions to: Denise Stephens, DPS Secretary, at this address  [email protected]

You’re receiving this email because you are a DPS member. To unsubscribe or update your information, please send your request to [email protected]. The more general AAS privacy policy is available online at https://aas.org/about/policies/privacy-policy. Current and back issues of the DPS Newsletter can be found at https://dps.aas.org/newsletters

To unsubscribe from this list please go to https://lists.aas.org/confirm/?u=WumMgxrgIYvmfnfPIPRxfPgLc6qriC4R

Issue 25-06, Mar 19, 2025

+————————————CONTENTS—————————————-+

1. DIVISION FOR PLANETARY SCIENCES COMMITTEE 2025 ADVOCACY
2. AAS POLICY TEAM ACTION ALERT 
3. RENEW YOUR AAS AND DPS MEMBERSHIP
4. SPECIAL AAS WEBINAR: ADVOCACY FOR THE ASTRONOMICAL SCIENCES
5. CHOIR MUTUAL AID FOR ASTROPHYSICS & SPACE SCIENCES
6. DPS COMMITTEE SEEKS PRESS OFFICER APPLICANTS TO BEGIN TERM IN SEPTEMBER 2025
7. CALL FOR ABSTRACTS: PROGRESS IN UNDERSTANDING THE PLUTO SYSTEM: 10 YEARS AFTER FLYBY CONFERENCE
8. 6TH ANNOUNCEMENT OF OPPORTUNITY FOR THE CHEOPS GUEST OBSERVERS PROGRAM
9. PLANETARY PROTECTION SESSION AT COSPAR 2025 SYMPOSIUM IN CYPRUS
10. STEM FACULTY PARTICIPANTS NEEDED FOR SURVEY
11. 2025 PI LAUNCHPAD: FROM SCIENCE IDEA TO NASA MISSION IN PERSON WORKSHOP
12. IN MEMORIAM OF JOSEPH BURNS SUBMITTED BY ICARUS
13. NEW HORIZONS SCIENCE SPOTLIGHT WEBINAR
14. SMASHING IT: HOW IMPACTS FORGE FORMATION, DYNAMICS, AND CLIMATES OF (EXO)PLANETS, JUNE 3-5, 2025, UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS
15. 2025B NASA IRTF CALL FOR PROPOSALS
16. INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ON INSTRUMENTATION FOR PLANETARY MISSIONS
17. POST-BACCALAURATEATE POSITIONS IN ASTROPHYSICS SCIENCE AND SOLAR SYSTEM EXPLORATION DIVISIONS AT NASA/GSFC DUE MARCH 31, 2025
18. PLANETARY RESEARCH: OPEN CALL FOR EDITORS
19. CURRENT TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THE PLANETARY SCIENCE JOURNAL AND ICARUS
20. JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES

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DIVISION FOR PLANETARY SCIENCES COMMITTEE 2025 ADVOCACY 

In early March 2025, the American Astronomical Society (AAS) Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) Committee completed a series of annual visits to Capitol Hill to discuss planetary science community priorities and funding. This year’s advocacy documents (one-pager and letter) are publicly available here: https://dps.aas.org/public_policy/communicating-congress/. 

During the numerous meetings with Congressional offices, we discussed the impact of recent Executive Orders and other Presidential Administration directives on the planetary science community, and in particular for NASA and NSF.  We emphasized the need to maintain U.S. leadership in space exploration and continued education about the Planetary Science and Astrobiology Decadal Survey, among other topics. Our messaging was well received this year by the Congress, and will be followed by continued advocacy of the AAS DPS Federal Relations Subcommittee (FRS) in early May 2025. 

Athena Coustenis, DPS committee Chair ([email protected])

Angela M. Dapremont, AAS DPS FRS Chair ([email protected]) 

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AAS POLICY TEAM ACTION ALERT 

On March 5, the AAS Policy Team issued a new Action Alert for our members to submit FY 2026 appropriations request forms for their senators and representatives. These forms are an important way for representatives to gauge what their constituents care about most.Our topline asks are for NASA SMD ($9B), NSF ($9.9B), and the DOE Office of Science ($9.5B). Please note that every representative’s request form will close at different times, but most deadlines are in March. There is a spreadsheet here where you can check on the status of your representative’s request form. 

Please note that in February the AAS also issued an original Action Alert for general support of the space sciences using our grassroots-level advocacy platform. The platform allows people to quickly craft a message and/or talking points that can easily be sent to their senators and representatives via call or email. (It would be best to use the suggested text as a start, and customize it as an email to your congressional representative, whose email address you can find here.)

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RENEW YOUR AAS AND DPS MEMBERSHIP

The DPS Committee and the AAS staff and community thank you for being an AAS/DPS member last year. For those who have not yet renewed for 2025, it’s not too late!

If you are unsure of your membership status, it’s easy to check. Go to my.aas.org and log in with your AAS username and password. Look for the framed Profile-at-a-Glance section on the right and confirm the Paid through date. If it’s 31 December 2024 or earlier, it’s time to renew.

If you have questions about your benefits or need assistance with your login or renewal, please email the membership team or call (202) 328-2010 x109. You can also send an e-mail to dpssec.org

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SPECIAL AAS WEBINAR: ADVOCACY FOR THE ASTRONOMICAL SCIENCES

Wednesday, 19 March 2025, 1:00-2:00 pm ET

Learn from the AAS public policy team about how you can take action to support the astronomical sciences! In this one-hour webinar, we will provide an overview of how Congress works, discuss how you can schedule Zoom or in-district meetings with your congressional offices to advocate on issues that are important to astronomy, and provide tips and best practices for these meetings.

Register here : https://aas-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_2XmO3DfgRjm370ZUHgg06w#/registration

Even if you can’t attend the webinar, take a few minutes today to engage in advocacy through the AAS action alerts, and reach out to [email protected] if you have any questions!

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CHOIR MUTUAL AID FOR ASTROPHYSICS & SPACE SCIENCES

In direct response to the federal funding freeze outlined by OMB Memorandum M-25-13 and any ensuing directives imposed by the current administration which may prove harmful to our space sciences community, the choir collaboration is establishing a mutual aid program to offer financial assistance to those who are negatively impacted. Many of our colleagues in physics, astronomy, and planetary sciences may find themselves without a paycheck due to these orders.

To stand with our community in physics, astronomy, and planetary science currently affected by federal grant funding freezes and cancellations (e.g., the NSF funding freeze), we with support from Black In Astro, the Astro Poverty Survey, and Movement Consulting have organized a mutual aid initiative for our colleagues.  Please join us in supporting our community by giving aid, or requesting aid.

https://www.choircollaboration.com/mutual-aid

Thank you for joining us in solidarity, hope, and building a community of care.

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DPS COMMITTEE SEEKS PRESS OFFICER APPLICANTS TO BEGIN TERM IN SEPTEMBER 2025

The Press Officer will serve a three-year term starting at the EPSC-DPS meeting in September 2025 but will start shadowing the current Press Officer imminently. The Press Officer will coordinate the DPS press conferences at the annual meetings as well as prize press releases. Candidates should be a full DPS member as of September 2025. Any questions about the position can be sent to [email protected] 

If you’re interested, please send a CV and a brief statement of interest to [email protected]

Officer responsibilities are listed here: https://dps.aas.org/leadership/officer-responsibilities

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CALL FOR ABSTRACTS: PROGRESS IN UNDERSTANDING THE PLUTO SYSTEM: 10 YEARS AFTER FLYBY CONFERENCE

NASA’s New Horizons mission conducted the first and only exploration flyby of the Pluto system, culminating at the closest approach on July 14, 2015. This meeting (see https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/plutosystem2025/) will assess advances regarding all aspects of the Pluto system and other dwarf planets of the Kuiper Belt made since then, using New Horizons and all other data (ground-based, JWST, HST, etc.), as well as through theory and modeling. Session topics include: Pluto; Charon; Pluto’s Small Satellites; Kuiper Belt Dwarf Planets; Pluto and Satellite System Origins; and Past and Future Exploration of Pluto, the Kuiper Belt, and the Outer Solar System.

The conference will be held July 14–18, 2025 at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland. Abstracts for both oral and poster presentations are being accepted through April 18th at 5 pm CDT. Oral papers can be given in person or virtually. Registration will last until the end of the meeting, with an early bird deadline for a reduced registration rate. Optional events are available for meeting attendees.

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6TH ANNOUNCEMENT OF OPPORTUNITY FOR THE CHEOPS GUEST OBSERVERS PROGRAM

We are pleased to announce that the 6th CHEOPS Guest Observers Announcement of Opportunity is now open. Please find attached the letter from the ESA Director of Science.

Key Dates: The AO-6 Call is now open and is foreseen to close on the 8 May 2025 (12:00 CEST).

Observing Cycle: The selected proposals will be part of the observing cycle from 1 October 2025 to 30 September 2026. This period marks the last year of the first mission extension of CHEOPS.

Scientific Opportunities: CHEOPS provides observers with access to space-based pointed ultra-high precision photometry. Research areas include the observations of exoplanet transits, eclipses, occultations, and phase curves. Furthermore, the scientific scope may extend to any time-domain phenomena including, but not limited to, variable stars, super-nova remnants or any other astronomical transient phenomena.

Collaborative Synergies: The timely overlap of several space- and ground-based missions may provide exciting opportunities for synergies with NASA/ESA/CSA JWST, NASA/ESA HST, NASA TESS, ESO ground-based facilities, and more.

Scope: The AO-6 and the DP calls are open to the worldwide scientific community, regardless of nationality or institutional affiliation. Undergraduate and PhD students are eligible if it is guaranteed that their supervisor can provide sufficient guidance throughout the proposal. Proposers may request as much time as scientifically needed in a single proposal. Large observing programmes which will produce high-value datasets are encouraged.

Modern and user friendly:

• More targets: only 50 GTO reserved targets, with all the rest being open to the entire community
• More time: up to 30% science observing time (around 1500 orbits) dedicated to the GO Programme
• Double-anonymous peer-review of proposals
• Zero-installation tools: cloud-based visibility and ETC web tools
• Community contributions of many useful tools 

Live hands-on tutorials: We foresee to run hands-on tutorials on March and April 2025 at various time-zones to guide you through the proposal preparation and submission process and answer all your questions. Please register at the link below if you would like to attend or watch the recordings:

https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/cheops-guest-observers-programme/hands-on-tutorials

Find out more about the CHEOPS mission via https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/cheops, read the Letter from the ESA Director of Science, and stay up-to-date about this opportunity via https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/cheops-guest-observers-programme

Feel free to email us with any questions. We look forward to receiving your observing proposals and advancing our understanding of exoplanetary and stellar systems.

Happy proposing!

Contact: [email protected]

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PLANETARY PROTECTION SESSION AT COSPAR 2025 SYMPOSIUM IN CYPRUS

3-7 November 2025: call for abstracts (deadline: 4 April)

Dear colleague,

Please consider submitting an abstract and attending the COSPAR Symposium in Cyprus (Nikosia, Νικοσία) : 3-7 November 2025. The deadline for submitting abstracts  is 4 April 2025.

See information hereafter, but note that we will have a Special Session (PPP.1) for Planetary Protection. When you submit an abstract, please login and choose Scientific Event PPP.1. 

This session will include reports on recent COSPAR Panel on Planetary Protection (PPP) activities, planetary protection studies by scientists and agencies, and colloquia/workshops with relevance to planetary protection and in general and the COSPAR Policy and implementation guidelines. The overall Policy perspective will be presented, as well as recent adaptations and updates of the Policy proposed by the PPP and validated by the COSPAR Bureau, as based on documented research and recent findings. Further, this session will cover reports on the planetary protection implementation and status of launched, ongoing and planned missions. Focus will be placed on techniques, measurements and procedures applied to spacecraft, payloads, and ground facilities to implement forward and backward planetary protection. The session will also include discussions on lessons learnt from implementing planetary protection guidelines throughout mission and industrial organisations. Finally, this session will include reports on planetary protection research and development activities of all kinds, particularly those involving challenging scientific endeavors, such as life detection and contamination testing. We will encourage presentations of research on new approaches in planetary protection as they apply to both robotic and human missions.

If you wish to submit an abstract and have not already done so, please attend to this matter at your earliest convenience and no later than 4 April, 23:59.  Information concerning the scientific program and abstract submission is at:

https://www.cospar-assembly.org

Registration, accommodation, and logistical information is at:

COSPAR 2025 Scientific Symposium

We are looking forward to seeing many of you at this important international meeting.

Best regards,

Athena Coustenis and Niklas Hedman.

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STEM FACULTY PARTICIPANTS NEEDED FOR SURVEY

My name is Dr. Katie Muenks and I am a researcher in the Educational Psychology department at UT-Austin looking for college-level instructors who are teaching at least one undergraduate Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) course in Spring 2025 to participate in a 15-minute survey on their beliefs about learning and teaching and their teaching practices (see attached flier for more details).

Participants will receive a $15 Amazon gift card.

If the hyperlink above did not work, you may copy/paste the following web address into a browser: https://tinyurl.com/UTStemFacSurvey25

I very much appreciate your time and consideration, as this research will help to develop future programs aimed at improving STEM education for all students. Please feel free to reach out to me directly at [email protected] with any questions. Thank you so much!

Sincerely,
Katie Muenks
Associate Professor, Department of Educational Psychology, UT-Austin

Website: https://sites.edb.utexas.edu/lamb/ 

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2025 PI LAUNCHPAD: FROM SCIENCE IDEA TO NASA MISSION IN PERSON WORKSHOP

Important Dates:

Applications due: April 7, 2025 11:59 PM Eastern Time

Application Instructions and Submission URL: https://go.nasa.gov/ApplyPILP25

Application Number: NNH25ZDA009L

Pre-application Virtual Information Session: February 20, 2025 2 PM Eastern Time

Workshop Dates: August 11-14, 2025

Workshop Location: Ames Research Center, Mountain View, CA

Are you thinking about developing your first flight mission proposal in the next few years but have no idea where to start? Are you working or studying in any NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) discipline? If you are a scientist who would like to submit a NASA space mission proposal in the next few years but don’t know where to start, this August workshop is for you! We are interested in expanding the pool of potential NASA space mission Principal Investigators (PIs). There is no fee to attend the in-person workshop.

PI Launchpad applications and instructions on eligibility and how to apply are available on the NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System (NSPIRES) https://nspires.nasaprs.com. All applications must be submitted via NSPIRES. To submit an application, an NSPIRES account is required. To create an NSPIRES account, visit https://nspires.nasaprs.com/external/registration/createuser!init.do.

Please email questions to the 2025 NASA PI Launch Pad Organizers at this shared address [email protected]. Do NOT submit ANY applications or other attachments to this email address. Emails with attachments will be deleted.

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IN MEMORIAM OF JOSEPH BURNS SUBMITTED BY ICARUS

Joseph A. Burns, Ph.D. ’66, emeritus professor of engineering and astronomy, former vice provost and dean of the Cornell faculty, and Editor of Icarus from 1978 to 1998, died Feb. 26 in Ithaca, New York, United States of America. He was 83.

Joseph Arthur Burns was born on March 22, 1941, in Queens, New York, and grew up in the village of Cold Spring on the Hudson River north of New York City. In 1962, he earned a bachelor’s degree in naval architecture and marine engineering at the Webb Institute on Long Island. Coming of age at the height of the space race, Burns decided to redirect his physics, engineering and applied math skills from shipbuilding to the burgeoning field of celestial mechanics.

Upon earning his PhD at Cornell University, Burns conducted postdoctoral research at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and then joined the Department of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics at Cornell. He eventually held joint appointments as the Irving Porter Church Professor of Engineering and professor of astronomy in the College of Arts and Sciences, teaching and training students interested in the dynamics of both spacecraft and natural bodies in the solar system.

Burns’ approach and scholarship earned him invitations to serve on NASA and National Research Council advisory panels, and on the imaging teams for multiple planetary exploration missions – notably on NASA’s Galileo mission to Jupiter, the NASA/ESA Cassini mission studying Saturn and its rings and satellites, and the European Space Agency-led Rosetta comet mission. In 1998 he also participated in the discovery of the first two known irregular moons of Uranus.

A former vice president of the American Astronomical Society and chair of its Division for Planetary Sciences, Burns received several NASA achievement awards for his research and was named an honorary fellow of Britain’s Royal Astronomical Society, among many honors. In 1978 he became editor of the planetary science journal Icarus – a role he took over from Carl Sagan and held until 1998. At this time, he was the sole editor, managing the communication with authors and reviewers for all manuscripts with the help of long-time editorial assistant, Cheryl Hall. For most of this double-decadal period, manuscripts were submitted on paper and all communications were by letters, sent by regular mail. This was huge amount of work. Burns helped shape the focus and publishing standards of the journal, making Icarus the reference journal in the field.

Icarus will soon publish a review of the scientific and editorial accomplishments of its beloved historical Editor.

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NEW HORIZONS SCIENCE SPOTLIGHT WEBINAR (Time-zone Correction)

Join us on 27 March 2025, 2:30-3pm EDT (11:30-12 PDT,12:30-1pm MDT, 1:30-2pm CDT)

New Horizons continues its operation, now at 61au from the Sun. Since 2015 it has made ground-breaking discoveries of the Pluto-Charon system, flown past the small contact KBO binary Arrokoth and collected phase and light curve data for some three-dozen additional KBOs and the ice giants. It has also been sampling dust density throughout the Solar

System and studying the cosmic optical background. To raise awareness of New Horizon’s scientific impact we are beginning a new spotlight seminar series (30 min, fourth week each month) which we invite you to attend online, or watch recorded at your convenience.

Our speaker will be Simon Porter of Southwest Research Institute and he will be speaking on: “Measuring the Shapes of Kuiper Belt Objects With New Horizons Photometry”

Connection Link:

https://zoom.us/j/97317697636?pwd=MTAzMjJmNThTeFppR3JoYzlkUXVCQT09

Meeting ID: 973 1769 7636

Passcode: 802327

Calendar for future seminars:

https://tinyurl.com/2dp85h2h

Recordings are archived and posted at:

https://pluto.jhuapl.edu/News-Center/index.php#Spotlight-Presentations

For questions, contact New Horizons CoI Susan Benecchi, [email protected]

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SMASHING IT: HOW IMPACTS FORGE FORMATION, DYNAMICS, AND CLIMATES OF

(EXO)PLANETS, JUNE 3-5, 2025, UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS

We invite you to join us at the international conference “Smashing It: How Impacts Forge Formation, Dynamics, and Climates of (Exo)Planets” at the University of Leeds, UK. The meeting will be held from Tuesday, June 3 to Thursday, June 5, 2025.

This workshop will bring together about 50 researchers exploring how impacts influence the formation, dynamics, and habitability of rocky (exo)planets. The program will feature a balanced schedule of contributed talks from experts in astronomy, planetary science, geoscience, meteoritics, and laboratory experiments.

To apply to attend this meeting and find more details regarding the scope, program, venue, and other practicalities, please visit our website:

https://sites.google.com/view/wg4workshop/home

The final deadline for all applications will be March 30, 2025. We expect more than 50 applications due to the broad scope of this meeting and the SOC will apply a selection procedure. This is why it is an “application” to the meeting rather than a “registration.”

Do not book nor organise any travel/accommodation until you have confirmation of acceptance of your application to attend the meeting.

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2025B NASA IRTF CALL FOR PROPOSALS

The due date for the 2025B semester IRTF proposals (August 1, 2025 to January 31, 2026) is Tuesday, April 1, 2025. See our online submission form Submitting the Observing Time Application Form to the IRTF, which is available for proposal submission from 12:00 AM on March 01, 2025 until 5:00 PM on April 01, 2025 HST. Available instruments include: (1) SpeX, a 0.7 – 5.3 micron cross-dispersed medium-resolution spectrograph (up to R=2,500) and imager; (2) MORIS, a 512×512 pixel Andor CCD camera (60″x60″ field-of-view) mounted at the side-facing window of the SpeX cryostat that can be used simultaneously with SpeX; (3) iSHELL, a 1.06 – 5.3 micron cross-dispersed echelle spectrograph (up to R=80,000) and imager; (4) MIRSI/MOC, a 5-20 micron camera and grism spectrograph, and optical imager; (5) ‘Opihi, a wide-angle finder mounted to and aligned with IRTF. Information on available facility and visitor instruments and performance can be found at: https://irtfweb.ifa.hawaii.edu/instruments. Exposure time calculators for SpeX and iSHELL are available on the respective instrument webpages.

Please see https://irtfweb.ifa.hawaii.edu/observing/callforproposals/index.php for the full text.

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INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ON INSTRUMENTATION FOR PLANETARY MISSIONS

4-6 August, 2025

Please save the date for the 2025 International Workshop for Planetary Instrumentation (IPM-2025), which will be hosted by LASP in Boulder, Colorado, on August 4-6. This workshop will convene scientists, engineers and students to discuss instrumentation and enabling

technologies that are necessary to address key questions in planetary science.

The IPM-2025 will have dedicated sessions on the Uranus Orbiter and Probe, Asteroid Exploration, and Lunar Exploration Opportunities, in addition to general sessions on planetary instrumentation and enabling technologies. Abstract submission will open in mid-March.

Contact: [email protected]

IPM-2025

Previous workshops:

https://ssed.gsfc.nasa.gov/IPM

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POST-BACCALAUREATE POSITIONS IN ASTROPHYSICS SCIENCE AND SOLAR SYSTEM EXPLORATION DIVISIONS AT NASA/GSFC DUE MARCH 31, 2025

Applications are now being accepted for short-term postbaccalaureate research positions to support the Astrophysics Science and Solar System Exploration Divisions at NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA/GSFC) in Greenbelt, MD.

The position is funded by the Southeastern Universities Research Association (SURA) through the Center for Research and Exploration in Space Science and Technology II (CRESST II). The Astrophysics Science Division conducts a broad program of research in astronomy, astrophysics, and fundamental physics. Individual investigations address issues such as the nature of dark matter and dark energy, which planets outside our solar system may harbor life, and the nature of space, time, and matter at the edges of black holes. The Solar System Exploration Division conducts theoretical and experimental research to explore the solar system and understand the formation and evolution of planetary systems. Laboratories within the division investigate areas as diverse as astrochemistry, planetary atmospheres, geochemistry, geophysics, geodynamics, space geodesy, extrasolar planetary systems, and comparative planetary studies. Positions available within the Astrophysics Science and Solar System Exploration Divisions span a variety of research areas. Successful candidates will be chosen to work on one of the research projects listed here:

https://cresst2.astro.umd.edu/opportunities/Final%202025%20Postbaccalaureate%20Positions%20at%20NASA-GSFC.pdf

To apply, each applicant should submit a cover letter describing personal background and interest in the applicants’ chosen project, Curriculum Vitae, unofficial transcript, and contact information for two references to each project of interest through the CRESST II Breezy application platform. After sponsors review applications, additional support materials may be requested which may include a work sample in the form of a report, poster, journal article, writing sample, or coding examples. 

The deadline to apply is Monday, March 31st, 2025, at 11:59pm EDT.

More information on the CRESST-II Post-bac Program can be found here: https://cresst2.umd.edu/opportunities/Postbac_program_Opp.html

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PLANETARY RESEARCH: OPEN CALL FOR EDITORS

Planetary Research is a diamond open access journal that is being developed by the planetary science community. The journal will have no article processing fees for authors and all articles will be free to access without a subscription. The journal, run as part of a non-profit organization, will operate with a transparent governance and will promote the work it publishes to the scientific community and the general public alike. Manuscript submissions are expected to open in January 2026.

The journal seeks candidates for the editorial board, including the editor-in-chief, editors, and associate editors. Interested candidates should provide a CV, a publication list, and a short letter motivating their interest in the position to the chair of the search committee ([email protected]) before July 1, 2025. Additional information about the journal and the open positions can be found on our website :  https://planetary-research.org/. 

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CURRENT TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THE PLANETARY SCIENCE JOURNAL AND ICARUS

The current issues for both DPS-affiliated journals are here:

The Planetary Science Journal:

Issue 3 – Volume 6 – The Planetary Science Journal – IOPscience

Icarus:

Icarus | Vol 429, In progress (15 March 2025) | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier

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JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES

Job seekers and employers are encouraged to browse DPS’s job listings and advertise open positions **for free** on the DPS job board.

Full details for several new positions can be found on the DPS job board.

A summary of recent job announcements and postdoc opportunities are listed below.

1. Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor Lead Scientist – Due Apr 11, 2025

IPAC at Caltech invites applications for the Lead Scientist of the team that is developing the Survey Data System for NASA’s Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor mission. As Lead Scientist you will work closely with the IPAC/NEOS Task Lead and System Architect to guide the overall development, test, and operation of the NEO Surveyor Survey Data Systems (NSDS) at IPAC.

NEO Surveyor Lead Scientist

2. ESA Archival Research Visitor Programme – Due Apr 30, 2025

To increase the scientific return from its space science missions, the European Space Agency (ESA) welcomes applications from scientists interested in pursuing research projects based on data publicly available in the ESA Space Science Archives (https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/esdc).

The ESA Archival Research Visitor Programme is open to scientists, at all career levels, affiliated with institutes in ESA Member States and Collaborating States, although we will also consider strong applications from outside those states. Early-career scientists (within 10 years of the PhD) and PhD students are particularly encouraged to apply. We encourage applications from women and minorities. The peer-review evaluation process is anonymised to ensure equal opportunities for all applicants.

Applications received before 1 May 2025 will be considered for visits in autumn and winter 2025/2026.

For further details, including areas of research and contact information, please refer to:
https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/esdc/visitor-programme  or write to the programme coordinators at [email protected]

3. Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor Survey Scientist – Due Mar 29, 2025

NASA’s Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor is a planned mission (launch: September 2027) with a goal of finding, identifying, and characterizing potentially hazardous asteroids in our Solar System.  The Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences is an academic unit within the UCLA Division of Physical Sciences.  

The NEO Surveyor survey scientist’s high-level responsibilities include:

• Assist the Principal Investigator and Science Team in developing the NEO Surveyor survey plan, which determines where the Observatory points as a function of time.
• Interface with the NEO Surveyor Science Data System (NSDS) archive to access NEO Surveyor image and catalog data, and work with the NSDS team to maximize the ability to link individual NEO Surveyor detections of small body candidates.
• Interface with the NEO Surveyor mission system team at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and the University of Colorado’s Laboratory for Astrophysics and Space Physics (LASP), and ensure that the teams at JPL and LASP produce uplink sequences that match the desired survey plan.
• Interface with the Minor Planet Center to ensure that the survey plan produces the best possible orbits for small body candidates detected by NEO Surveyor.

More information on the position, including qualifications, compensation range, benefits and how to apply are provided in the full position description: https://jobs.ucla.edu/jobs/6856

4. Postdoctoral Research Associate: (Exo)planetary Atmosphere – University of Arizona Lunar & Planetary Laboratory – Due Mar 24, 2025

The Lunar & Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona has an opening for a Postdoctoral Research Associate I in the field of modeling of planetary atmospheres. Research areas of interest include atmospheric escape from rocky planets, chemical kinetics of early Earth, Venus, Mars, and analogous exoplanets, and interior-atmosphere interactions on rocky worlds; candidates are encouraged to reach out to Prof. Ranjan in advance of their application to cooperatively identify specific research topics of mutual interest. Applicants should have previous experience modeling the atmospheres of planets or exoplanets, although a variety of backgrounds may be relevant. Candidates with expertise in 1D hydrodynamic escape of rocky planet atmospheres are especially encouraged to apply. The position is for a period of up to three years, renewable annually contingent on satisfactory performance reviews.

Position is opened until filled, and first review of applications will begin 03/24/2025. UA LPL is a world-class department and a very stimulating environment. We have strong connections to missions and the next generation of telescopes, as well as to our colleagues in Astronomy and Geoscience. Tucson is a great place to live, with excellent hiking, great food, and a low cost of living. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Prof. Ranjan with any questions!

 Link to position description and application: https://arizona.csod.com/ux/ats/careersite/4/home/requisition/21927

5. Supervisors, Astrobiology Section and Asteroids and Rocky Small Bodies Section, JHUAPL

The Small Bodies and Ocean Worlds group in the Space Exploration Sector of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHUAPL) seeks supervisors for its Astrobiology Section and its Asteroids and Rocky Small Bodies Section. The Astrobiology Section focuses on potentially habitable environments beyond Earth, laboratory studies of Earth analogs, development of instrumentation for detection of extraterrestrial biosignatures, and missions including Europa Clipper and Dragonfly that investigate environments of astrobiological interest. The Asteroids and Rocky Small Bodies Section focuses on the chemistry, physics, and geology of rocky small bodies, physical processes that affect their surfaces, development of spaceflight instrumentation to study them, and the study of meteorites that sample them.

The desired candidates will have: a doctorate in a physical or biological science relevant to the work in their section; an accomplished research program; excellent people skills; and excellent written and oral communications skills. They will be expected to provide leadership and mentorship to the half-dozen members of the section, and participate in a variety of strategic efforts.

Applications for the Astrobiology Section may be submitted at https://careers.jhuapl.edu/jobs/56619?lang=en-us and for the Asteroids and Rocky Small Bodies Section at https://careers.jhuapl.edu/jobs/56655?lang=en-us

Applications will close Monday, March 31, 2025. 

6. Senior Application Developer Caltech/IPAC – Application Deadline Mar 31, 2025

PAC at Caltech has an opening for a Senior Applications Developer with a strong background in Unix software development to lead the Data Systems development team at the NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive (IRSA). As lead of IRSA’s Data Systems Team, you will manage the activities of a group of IRSA scientists and developers who share the overarching goal of supporting community science with archival IRSA and other NASA data sets. Your development work may involve processing astrophysics space mission data, containerization & cloud technologies, large scale databases, and petabyte-scale storage. You will also work with scientists and other developers to help interpret and implement project requirements and document the work that you’ve accomplished.

Link to the full job description: https://dps.aas.org/senior-application-developer/

7. Full-time staff scientist to work with Roman team at IPAC 

IPAC, part of the Physics, Math, and Astronomy Division at Caltech, provides science operations, user support, data and archive services, and scientific vision to enhance discovery with observatories both in space and on the ground. IPAC invites applications from highly qualified individuals for a full-time position at the junior scientist level to work with the Roman team at IPAC.

The Roman Space Telescope is a NASA observatory designed to address key questions in the areas of dark energy, exoplanets, and infrared astrophysics. It is slated for launch in late 2026. The Roman Science Support Center (SSC) at IPAC is part of the Roman Ground Data System, providing algorithm and software development and data processing for the Galactic Bulge Time Domain Survey and all Roman spectroscopic data. In addition, the SSC will support the operations of the Coronagraph Instrument, manage the Roman General Investigator Program proposal solicitations and related data analysis funding, and provide community support for exoplanet and wide-field spectroscopy science with Roman.

For more details, see: https://roman.ipac.caltech.edu

Link to the full job description: https://dps.aas.org/7526/

8. Postdoctoral Scholar: Asteroid Radar – University of Central Florida

The incumbent will be expected to participate in data analysis, physical and dynamical characterization of near-Earth asteroids using radar and optical data, and support archiving asteroid shape models in the Planetary Data System (PDS). This position is open until filled.

Postdoctoral scholar: asteroid radar

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Send submissions to: Denise Stephens, DPS Secretary, at this address  [email protected]

You’re receiving this email because you are a DPS member. To unsubscribe or update your information, please send your request to [email protected]. The more general AAS privacy policy is available online at https://aas.org/about/policies/privacy-policy. Current and back issues of the DPS Newsletter can be found at https://dps.aas.org/newsletters

To unsubscribe from this list please go to https://lists.aas.org/confirm/?u=WumMgxrgIYvmfnfPIPRxfPgLc6qriC4R

Issue 25-05, Mar 12, 2025

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1. IN MEMORIAM: JOE A. BURNS, FORMER DPS CHAIR AND DDA CHAIR
2. AAS ISSUES PUBLIC POLICY GUIDANCE AND ACTION ALERTS FOR AAS MEMBERS
3. PLEASE CONTINUE TO SUPPORT MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY AFFECTED BY THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FIRE DISASTER
4. 2024 DPS PRIZE NOMINATIONS ARE OPEN
5. ANNOUNCING THE 2025 DPS-NSBP SPEAKER AWARDEE: PATRICE SMITH, STUDYING THE MOON AT UTSA
6. 2025 DPS TRAVEL GRANT APPLICATION FORM IS OPEN
7. ADVISEMENT FOR DPS SMALL EDUCATION AND OUTREACH GRANT DRAFT
8. DPS COMMITTEE SEEKS PRESS OFFICER APPLICANTS TO BEGIN TERM IN SEPTEMBER 2025
9. 2025 NASA PLANETARY SCIENCE SUMMER SCHOOL APPLICATIONS DUE MARCH 18, 2025
10. POST-BACCALAUREATE POSITIONS IN ASTROPHYSICS SCIENCE AND SOLAR SYSTEM EXPLORATION DIVISIONS AT NASA/GSFC DUE MARCH 31, 2025
11. SAVE THE DATE FOR CHEOPS GUEST OBSERVERS 6TH ANNOUNCEMENT OF OPPORTUNITY
12. 2025 PLANETARY DEFENSE CONFERENCE (PDC) COMING UP MAY 5-9, 2025
13. 2025B NASA IRTF CALL FOR PROPOSALS
14. 2025 PI LAUNCHPAD: FROM SCIENCE IDEA TO NASA MISSION IN PERSON WORKSHOP
15. PLANETARY RESEARCH: OPEN CALL FOR EDITORS
16. SAVE THE DATE: JUICE SCHOOL AT LES HOUCHES, FRANCE
17. FIRST SOCIALIZED ANNOUNCEMENT: PROGRESS IN UNDERSTANDING THE PLUTO SYSTEM: 10 YEARS AFTER FLYBY
18. CURRENT TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR ICARUS AND THE PLANETARY SCIENCE JOURNAL
19. JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES

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IN MEMORIAM: JOE A. BURNS, FORMER DPS CHAIR AND DDA CHAIR

We share the sad news that Joe Burns recently passed away at the age of 83.  Joe was a longtime professor at Cornell University, editor-in-chief of the journal Icarus, and a pioneer in the study of non-gravitational forces in solar system orbital dynamics.

Joe was a longtime citizen of the AAS Division on Dynamical Astronomy (DDA) and served as the chair of the Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) from (1983-84). He was an excellent scientist and also an excellent mentor.  He received the Brouwer Award in 2014.  He served on the DDA Committee and as DDA Chair (2000–01) and on several other committees.  Additionally, five of his students and mentees have served as DDA Chair, and another two have served as DDA Secretary.  Further information is in the obituaries linked below.

First Obituary

Second Obituary

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AAS ISSUES PUBLIC POLICY GUIDANCE AND ACTION ALERTS FOR AAS MEMBERS

AAS Public Policy staff are closely monitoring the political situation and providing guidance to AAS members on how they can support astronomical science and education. Here are various updates and action items released in the past week.

AAS has updated the community of its alarm regarding rumored deep cuts to NASA and National Science Foundation (7 March). Colin Hamill, AAS Bahcall Public Policy Fellow, writes in his 4 March Policy Update on the state of agency layoffs and related policy news. Register for a webinar on 19 March (1:00–2:00pm ET) to learn about how you can take action to support the astronomical sciences. If you have been impacted (or could be impacted) by federal changes, please share your story with AAS. Take action today to advocate for the astronomical community.  Learn how to submit an appropriation request.   If you’d like to meet with AAS Policy and Education staff, join our upcoming Office Hours (AAS member login required) on Thursday 13 March, 3-4pm ET.

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PLEASE CONTINUE TO SUPPORT MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY AFFECTED BY THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FIRE DISASTER

While the fires may be out, our community is still dealing with the devastating aftermath of the destruction caused by the California wildfires. Hundreds of people in the Caltech/JPL community have lost all their possessions and their homes. Many of our colleagues, most especially within the JPL/Caltech/Carnegie communities but also others, live and work in the affected areas and have suffered immensely from the wildfires and lost so much. This includes students, postdocs, researchers, staff members and professors, many with children. 

The community response has been amazing so far, but the need is still great. In a spirit of solidarity, may you consider donating to one of the following relief funds to help those in our community who have been impacted by this disaster. Please consider that community support is very helpful to the mental health of those affected as they face the grim task of rebuilding their lives. It continues to be a long road.

 Please consider donating if you can to one of these relief funds:

1. The Caltech-JPL Community: NASA JPL is untouched by fire due to the brave dedication of our first responders. But that community has been very seriously impacted with over 150 employees having lost their homes and many more displaced. Please consider donating to the Caltech and JPL Disaster Relief Fund.  The Caltech and JPL Disaster Relief Fund – Advancement and Alumni Relations

2. The Eaton Fire Relief and Recover Fund provides resources to community-based nonprofit agencies in support of families and individuals in Altadena, Pasadena, and Sierra Madre directly impacted by the Eaton Fire.  https://pasadenacf.org/eaton-fire-fund/

3. JPL, ROMAN, and HabWorlds gofundme campaign.. Donate to Support NASA JPL HabWorlds teammates in the Pasadena fires, organized by Jason Tumlinson [gofund.me]

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2024 DPS PRIZE NOMINATIONS ARE OPEN

Every year the DPS recognizes exceptional achievement in our field. Please consider nominating a respected colleague for one of the annual DPS prizes. The 2024 Prize Nominations are due by April 15, 2025.

The DPS sponsors six prizes:

• The Gerard P. Kuiper Prize [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/kuiper] recognizes and honors outstanding contributors to the field of planetary science.
• The Claudia J. Alexander Prize [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/alexander] recognizes excellence and achievements by a mid-career scientist.
• The Harold C. Urey Prize [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/urey] recognizes and encourages outstanding achievements in planetary research by an early-career scientist.
• The Harold Masursky Award [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/masursky] recognizes and honors individuals who have rendered outstanding service to planetary science and exploration through – but not limited to – engineering, managerial, programmatic, editorial, or public service activities.
• The Carl Sagan Medal [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/sagan] recognizes and honors outstanding communication by an active planetary scientist to the general public.
• The Jonathan Eberhart Planetary Sciences Journalism Award [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/eberhart] recognizes and stimulates distinguished popular writing on planetary sciences.

DPS members and the planetary science community-at-large are encouraged to submit nominations for DPS prizes.

A complete nomination submitted by the deadline will be considered by the DPS Prize subcommittee for 3 years (i.e. for this year’s award, next year’s award, and the year after that), or for the duration of a candidate’s eligibility, whichever is less. Please fill out the nomination form [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/nomination-form], and it will be submitted to the prize subcommittee. The Eberhart Award has different rules and procedures than the other DPS 

Prizes, please see its page [https://dps.aas.org/prizes/eberhart-nomination-form] for more information.

 Scroll to the bottom of https://dps.aas.org/prizes for rules and procedures.

 Questions: Email [email protected]

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ANNOUNCING THE 2025 DPS-NSBP SPEAKER AWARDEE: PATRICE SMITH, STUDYING THE MOON AT UTSA

We congratulate Patrice Smith as the newest DPS-NSBP Speaker Awardee, which is a part of the DPS partnership with the National Society of Black Physicists (NSBP)/Earth and Planetary Systems Sciences (EPSS) section, and DPS looks forward to supporting her attendance and presentation at the 2025 DPS-EPSC meeting. Patrice is a PhD student in physics at the University of Texas at San Antonio, working with Dr. Kurt Retherford on compositional analyses of the Moon using far-ultraviolet (FUV) measurements acquired by the Lyman Alpha Mapping Project (LAMP) instrument on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). Her work identifies the composition and abundances of atoms and molecules in the tenuous lunar atmosphere, which is needed to characterize the present lunar environment and also to generate key constraints for potential in situ resource utilization. For full details, please see the press release https://dps.aas.org/2025-dps-nsbp-speaker-awardee-patrice-smith/

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2025 DPS TRAVEL GRANT APPLICATION FORM IS OPEN

The DPS Travel Grant application form is open to support participation in the joint meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and DPS (EPSC-DPS 2025) in Helsinki, Finland 7-12 September 2025, or the National Society of Black Physicists- National Society of Hispanics Physicists annual meeting, via Hartmann and the Under-Represented Minority (URM) Travel grants.

The Hartmann Student Travel Grant supports student presentations at the annual DPS-EPSC meeting. (Postdoctoral scholars may also be eligible, but students are prioritized.)

The Underrepresented Minority (URM) Communities in Planetary Science Travel Grant supports attendance by students and professionals who are members of historically underrepresented groups—such as racial minorities, veterans, and scientists at small colleges—to support in-person or virtual attendance at the joint DPS-EPSC or NSBP-NSHP meeting.

Apply here to both/either type of DPS grant: https://dps.aas.org/news/dps-travel-grants-application/ The deadline is July 3.

Note: Members of Europlanet should apply for Europlanet awards through the abstract submission form.

Community donations are critical for the health of these awards. Instructions to donate are linked at https://dps.aas.org/news/dps-travel-grants-application/

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ADVISEMENT FOR DPS SMALL EDUCATION AND OUTREACH GRANT DRAFT

The DPS Committee invites DPS members to apply for DPS Education and Outreach Grants – with a first review on July 1st and a final review on August 1st.  

The DPS Committee is offering small grants (average amounts of $200 to $500) to support DPS members to engage in local and virtual education and public engagement activities. These grants are intended to support DPS member efforts to engage other members, students, teachers, and the public and can be used for materials, consumables, equipment but not for salary or travel to DPS meetings. Proposals are being accepted for programs that will occur by June 1, 2026. We encourage creative solutions for engagement efforts that also conform to social-distancing requirements. If you have a question about what is an acceptable cost, please contact the DPS Education Deputy Chair, Sanlyn Buxner, [email protected].

Applications will be accepted in two review cycles – the first deadline is July 1st (11:59pm in proposers’ local time), and awardees will be contacted by July 15th. The second deadline will be August 1st, and awardees will be contacted by August 15th. All proposals will be reviewed by members of the DPS education committee and the executive committee (see rubric below). Awards will be issued as a check mailed to the lead proposer. 

Each grant awardee is expected to 

1. Allow their name, institution, and program description to be posted on the DPS website.
2. Share a one-page summary of the event(s) with the DPS that includes at least one visual (you must have permission to have identifiable pictures of others), preferably a picture of you, and a summary of the event and participants. This will be shared on the DPS website.
3. Present their program as a talk or poster at the next DPS meeting they attend – please note that there is an additional abstract slot reserved for education and outreach in addition to science talks/posters at the DPS meeting. 

Applications should be no more than two pages and include the following:

1. Name, title, institution (if applicable), and contact information of the DPS member(s) applying. Emails for all are required, a phone number, and mailing address should be provided for the lead of the mini grant.
2. Short – 1 paragraph bios of the individual or team members proposing.
3. An overview of the program, including a timeline (subject to change due to ongoing worldwide events), and at least one outcome measure, articulating what the program is intended to achieve (this will be shared on the DPS website).
4. A list of any partners (e.g. museum, school), if applicable.
5. A budget of what the funding will be used for. 
6. Identified audience and any arrangements that have been made with that audience or to reach that audience.
7. An acknowledgment of the DPS expectations listed above.
8. Optional, you may include pictures or other images.

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DPS COMMITTEE SEEKS PRESS OFFICER APPLICANTS TO BEGIN TERM IN SEPTEMBER 2025

The Press Officer will serve a three-year term starting at the EPSC-DPS meeting in September 2025 but will start shadowing the current Press Officer imminently. The Press Officer will coordinate the DPS press conferences at the annual meetings as well as prize press releases. Candidates should be a full DPS member as of September 2025. Any questions about the position can be sent to [email protected] 

If you’re interested, please send a CV and a brief statement of interest to [email protected]

Officer responsibilities are listed here: https://dps.aas.org/leadership/officer-responsibilities 

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2025 NASA PLANETARY SCIENCE SUMMER SCHOOL APPLICATIONS DUE MARCH 18, 2025

Now through March 18, 2025, NASA is encouraging applications for its 37th Annual Planetary Science Summer School. Offered by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, PSSS is a 3-month long early career development experience to help prepare the next generation of planetary science and engineering mission leaders.  Participants learn the process of developing a science hypothesis-driven robotic space mission in a concurrent engineering environment while getting an in-depth, first-hand look at mission design, mission life cycle, costs, schedule and the trade-offs inherent in each.

Applicants with the following education and career experience are eligible: Science and engineering Doctoral candidates (advancement to candidacy required), recent Ph.D.’s (up to three years beyond their Ph.D.), Postdocs, Junior Faculty with a Ph.D., and non-research Engineering Master-level students within six to nine months of graduation will be considered on a space-available basis.

There is no charge to attend. Open to U.S. Citizens and legal permanent residents and a limited number of Foreign Nationals from non-designated countries living within the U.S at the time of application and during the full session. We strive to create a welcoming environment where participants’ contributions and unique perspectives are valued.

Session 1: Preparatory Sessions May 8 – July 24. 

Culminating Week with JPL’s Team X July 28 – August 1.

Session 2: Preparatory Sessions May 22 – August 7. 

Culminating Week with JPL’s Team X August 11 – 15.

PSSS is roughly equivalent in workload to a rigorous 3-credit graduate-level course, requiring an average effort of 10-12 hours per week. Participants spend the majority of the first 10 weeks in preparatory webinars acting as a science mission team, prior to spending the final culminating week being mentored by JPL’s Advance Project Design Team, or “Team X” to refine their mission concept design, then present it to a mock review board of NASA Center experts. 

To apply and learn more about the NASA Science Mission Design Schools:

http://go.nasa.gov/missiondesignschools

Joyce Armijo

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POST-BACCALAUREATE POSITIONS IN ASTROPHYSICS SCIENCE AND SOLAR SYSTEM EXPLORATION DIVISIONS AT NASA/GSFC DUE MARCH 31, 2025

Applications are now being accepted for short-term postbaccalaureate research positions to support the Astrophysics Science and Solar System Exploration Divisions at NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA/GSFC) in Greenbelt, MD.

The position is funded by the Southeastern Universities Research Association (SURA) through the Center for Research and Exploration in Space Science and Technology II (CRESST II). The Astrophysics Science Division conducts a broad program of research in astronomy, astrophysics, and fundamental physics. Individual investigations address issues such as the nature of dark matter and dark energy, which planets outside our solar system may harbor life, and the nature of space, time, and matter at the edges of black holes. The Solar System Exploration Division conducts theoretical and experimental research to explore the solar system and understand the formation and evolution of planetary systems. Laboratories within the division investigate areas as diverse as astrochemistry, planetary atmospheres, geochemistry, geophysics, geodynamics, space geodesy, extrasolar planetary systems, and comparative planetary studies. Positions available within the Astrophysics Science and Solar System Exploration Divisions span a variety of research areas. Successful candidates will be chosen to work on one of the research projects listed here:

https://cresst2.astro.umd.edu/opportunities/Final%202025%20Postbaccalaureate%20Positions%20at%20NASA-GSFC.pdf

To apply, each applicant should submit a cover letter describing personal background and interest in the applicants’ chosen project, Curriculum Vitae, unofficial transcript, and contact information for two references to each project of interest through the CRESST II Breezy application platform. After sponsors review applications, additional support materials may be requested which may include a work sample in the form of a report, poster, journal article, writing sample, or coding examples. 

The deadline to apply is Monday, March 31st, 2025, at 11:59pm EDT.

More information on the CRESST-II Post-bac Program can be found here: https://cresst2.umd.edu/opportunities/Postbac_program_Opp.html

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SAVE THE DATE FOR CHEOPS GUEST OBSERVERS 6TH ANNOUNCEMENT OF OPPORTUNITY

The European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) Characterising Exoplanet Satellite (CHEOPS) mission foresees its 6th Announcement of Opportunity (AO-6). This Call will invite the submission of research proposals to the Guest Observers (GO) Programme. 

Key Dates: The AO-6 Call is foreseen to open on the 18th of  March 2025 (12:00 CET) and close on the 8 May 2025 (12:00 CEST).

Observing Cycle: The selected proposals will be part of the observing cycle from 1 October 2025 to 30 September 2026. This period marks the last year of the first mission extension of CHEOPS.

Scientific Opportunities: CHEOPS provides observers with access to space-based pointed ultra-high precision photometry. Research areas include the observations of exoplanet transits, eclipses, occultations, and phase curves. Furthermore, the scientific scope may extend to phenomena such as exomoons, ring structures, stellar activity, trans-Neptunian objects or more.

Collaborative Synergies: The timely overlap of several space- and ground-based missions may provide exciting opportunities for synergies with NASA/ESA/CSA JWST, NASA/ESA HST, NASA TESS, ESO ground-based facilities, and more.

Novelties in cycle 6: 

• More targets: only 50 GTO reserved targets, with all the rest being open to the entire community
• More time: up to 30% science observing time (around 1500 orbits) dedicated to the GO Programme
• Double-anonymous peer-review of proposals
• Zero-installation tools: cloud-based visibility and ETC web tools

Live hands-on tutorials: We foresee to run hands-on tutorials in March and April 2025 at various time-zones to guide you through the proposal preparation and submission process and answer all your questions. Please register at the link below if you would like to attend or watch the recordings:

https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/cheops-guest-observers-programme/hands-on-tutorials

Find out more about the CHEOPS mission via https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/cheops, stay up-to-date about this opportunity via https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/cheops-guest-observers-programme, and feel free to email us with any questions. We look forward to receiving your observing proposals and advancing our understanding of exoplanetary and stellar systems.

 Happy proposing!

 Contact: [email protected]

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2025 PLANETARY DEFENSE CONFERENCE (PDC) COMING UP MAY 5-9, 2025

The International Academy of Astronautics will hold its 9th Planetary Defense Conference (PDC) May 5–9, 2025 in Stellenbosch, Cape Town, South Africa. The bi-annual conference brings together world experts to discuss the threats to Earth posed by asteroids and comets, and actions that might be taken to become better prepared to respond to and mitigate those threats. For more information and to register, please visit:  https://iaaspace.org/event/9th-iaa-planetary-defense-conference-2025/

9th IAA Planetary Defense Conference 2025

Conference topics will include:

• Ongoing and Upcoming Mission Highlights
• Hypothetical Asteroid Threat Exercise
• Key International and Policy Developments
• Near-Earth Object (NEO) Discovery
• Near-Earth Object (NEO) Characterization
• Deflection / Disruption Modeling & Testing
• Space Mission & Campaign Design
• Impact Effects & Consequences
• Disaster Management & Impact Response
• Public Education and Communication
• The Decision to Act: Political, Legal, Social and Economic Aspects

 A hypothetical asteroid impact threat scenario will also be exercised at the conference:

https://cneos.jpl.nasa.gov/pd/cs/pdc25

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2025B NASA IRTF CALL FOR PROPOSALS

The due date for the 2025B semester IRTF proposals (August 1, 2025 to January 31, 2026) is Tuesday, April 1, 2025. See our online submission form Submitting the Observing Time Application Form to the IRTF, which is available for proposal submission from 12:00 AM on March 01, 2025 until 5:00 PM on April 01, 2025 HST. Available instruments include: (1) SpeX, a 0.7 – 5.3 micron cross-dispersed medium-resolution spectrograph (up to R=2,500) and imager; (2) MORIS, a 512×512 pixel Andor CCD camera (60″x60″ field-of-view) mounted at the side-facing window of the SpeX cryostat that can be used simultaneously with SpeX; (3) iSHELL, a 1.06 – 5.3 micron cross-dispersed echelle spectrograph (up to R=80,000) and imager; (4) MIRSI/MOC, a 5-20 micron camera and grism spectrograph, and optical imager; (5) ‘Opihi, a wide-angle finder mounted to and aligned with IRTF. Information on available facility and visitor instruments and performance can be found at: https://irtfweb.ifa.hawaii.edu/instruments. Exposure time calculators for SpeX and iSHELL are available on the respective instrument webpages.

Please see https://irtfweb.ifa.hawaii.edu/observing/callforproposals/index.php for the full text.

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2025 PI LAUNCHPAD: FROM SCIENCE IDEA TO NASA MISSION IN PERSON WORKSHOP

Important Dates:

Applications due: April 7, 2025 11:59 PM Eastern Time

Application Instructions and Submission URL: https://go.nasa.gov/ApplyPILP25

Application Number: NNH25ZDA009L

Pre-application Virtual Information Session: February 20, 2025 2 PM Eastern Time

Workshop Dates: August 11-14, 2025

Workshop Location: Ames Research Center, Mountain View, CA

Are you thinking about developing your first flight mission proposal in the next few years but have no idea where to start? Are you working or studying in any NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) discipline? If you are a scientist who would like to submit a NASA space mission proposal in the next few years but don’t know where to start, this August workshop is for you! We are interested in expanding the pool of potential NASA space mission Principal Investigators (PIs). There is no fee to attend the in-person workshop.

PI Launchpad applications and instructions on eligibility and how to apply are available on the NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System (NSPIRES) https://nspires.nasaprs.com. All applications must be submitted via NSPIRES. To submit an application, an NSPIRES account is required. To create an NSPIRES account, visit https://nspires.nasaprs.com/external/registration/createuser!init.do.

Please email questions to the 2025 NASA PI Launch Pad Organizers at this shared address [email protected]. Do NOT submit ANY applications or other attachments to this email address. Emails with attachments will be deleted.

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PLANETARY RESEARCH: OPEN CALL FOR EDITORS

Planetary Research is a diamond open access journal that is being developed by the planetary science community. The journal will have no article processing fees for authors and all articles will be free to access without a subscription. The journal, run as part of a non-profit organization, will operate with a transparent governance and will promote the work it publishes to the scientific community and the general public alike. Manuscript submissions are expected to open in January 2026.

The journal seeks candidates for the editorial board, including the editor-in-chief, editors, and associate editors. Interested candidates should provide a CV, a publication list, and a short letter motivating their interest in the position to the chair of the search committee ([email protected]) before July 1, 2025. Additional information about the journal and the open positions can be found on our website :  https://planetary-research.org/. 

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SAVE THE DATE: JUICE SCHOOL AT LES HOUCHES, FRANCE

This school is targeted (but not limited) to early career scientists. It will cover the main science topics of the JUICE mission with the goal to best prepare the future exploitation and interpretation of its data. Key topics include Jupiter, its atmosphere and magnetosphere, the icy Galilean moons (with an emphasis on Ganymede), minor moons and the dust and ring system. Ground- and space- based observations recently obtained on the Jupiter system, as well as links with exoplanet science, will also be presented. The format of the school includes tutorials, seminar-like presentations, inspirational evening talks, a poster session, a workshop on science planning and archive, and a roundtable on future missions to outer planets. Deadline for

registration and request for grants: August 15, 2025

Contact: [email protected]

https://www.houches-school-physics.com/the-school

https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Juice

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FIRST SOCIALIZED ANNOUNCEMENT: PROGRESS IN UNDERSTANDING THE PLUTO SYSTEM: 10 YEARS AFTER FLYBY

The “Progress in Understanding the Pluto System: 10 Years after Flyby” meeting will be held July 14–18, 2025 at the Kossiakoff Conference Center of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland.

NASA’s New Horizons mission conducted the first and only exploration flyby of the Pluto system, culminating at the closest approach on July 14, 2015. This meeting will assess advances made since then using New Horizons and all other data (ground-based, JWST, HST, etc.), as well as theory and modeling regarding all aspects of the Pluto system and the dwarf planets of the Kuiper Belt. Session topics will include: Pluto, Charon, Pluto’s Small Satellites, Kuiper Belt Dwarf Planets, Pluto and Satellite System Origins, and Past and Future Exploration of Pluto, the Kuiper Belt, and the Outer Solar System.

To be added to the mailing list to receive information about this meeting, submit an indication of interest at https://www.hou.usra.edu/meeting_portal/) by Wednesday February 19th. Registration and abstract submission will open on Thursday February 20th. The deadline for abstract submission is Friday April 18th.

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CURRENT TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR ICARUS AND THE PLANETARY SCIENCE JOURNAL

The current issues for both DPS-affiliated journals are here:

Icarus:

Icarus | Vol 429, In progress (15 March 2025) | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier

The Planetary Science Journal:

Issue 3 – Volume 6 – The Planetary Science Journal – IOPscience

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JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES

Job seekers and employers are encouraged to browse DPS’s job listings and advertise open positions **for free** on the DPS job board.

Full details for several new positions can be found on the DPS job board.

A summary of recent job announcements and postdoc opportunities are listed below.

1. ESA Archival Research Visitor Programme – Due Apr 30, 2025

To increase the scientific return from its space science missions, the European Space Agency (ESA) welcomes applications from scientists interested in pursuing research projects based on data publicly available in the ESA Space Science Archives (https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/esdc).

The ESA Archival Research Visitor Programme is open to scientists, at all career levels, affiliated with institutes in ESA Member States and Collaborating States, although we will also consider strong applications from outside those states. Early-career scientists (within 10 years of the PhD) and PhD students are particularly encouraged to apply. We encourage applications from women and minorities. The peer-review evaluation process is anonymised to ensure equal opportunities for all applicants.

Applications received before 1 May 2025 will be considered for visits in autumn and winter 2025/2026.

For further details, including areas of research and contact information, please refer to:

https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/esdc/visitor-programme  or write to the programme coordinators at [email protected]

2. Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor Survey Scientist – Due Mar 29, 2025

NASA’s Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor is a planned mission (launch: September 2027) with a goal of finding, identifying, and characterizing potentially hazardous asteroids in our Solar System.  The Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences is an academic unit within the UCLA Division of Physical Sciences.  

The NEO Surveyor survey scientist’s high-level responsibilities include:

• Assist the Principal Investigator and Science Team in developing the NEO Surveyor survey plan, which determines where the Observatory points as a function of time.
• Interface with the NEO Surveyor Science Data System (NSDS) archive to access NEO Surveyor image and catalog data, and work with the NSDS team to maximize the ability to link individual NEO Surveyor detections of small body candidates.
• Interface with the NEO Surveyor mission system team at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and the University of Colorado’s Laboratory for Astrophysics and Space Physics (LASP), and ensure that the teams at JPL and LASP produce uplink sequences that match the desired survey plan.
• Interface with the Minor Planet Center to ensure that the survey plan produces the best possible orbits for small body candidates detected by NEO Surveyor.

More information on the position, including qualifications, compensation range, benefits and how to apply are provided in the full position description: https://jobs.ucla.edu/jobs/6856

3. Postdoctoral Research Associate: (Exo)planetary Atmospheres – University of Arizona Lunar & Planetary Laboratory – Due Mar 24, 2025

The Lunar & Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona has an opening for a Postdoctoral Research Associate I in the field of modeling of planetary atmospheres. Research areas of interest include atmospheric escape from rocky planets, chemical kinetics of early Earth, Venus, Mars, and analogous exoplanets, and interior-atmosphere interactions on rocky worlds; candidates are encouraged to reach out to Prof. Ranjan in advance of their application to cooperatively identify specific research topics of mutual interest. Applicants should have previous experience modeling the atmospheres of planets or exoplanets, although a variety of backgrounds may be relevant. Candidates with expertise in 1D hydrodynamic escape of rocky planet atmospheres are especially encouraged to apply. The position is for a period of up to three years, renewable annually contingent on satisfactory performance reviews.

Position is opened until filled, and first review of applications will begin 03/24/2025. UA LPL is a world-class department and a very stimulating environment. We have strong connections to missions and the next generation of telescopes, as well as to our colleagues in Astronomy and Geoscience. Tucson is a great place to live, with excellent hiking, great food, and a low cost of living. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Prof. Ranjan with any questions!

 Link to position description and application: https://arizona.csod.com/ux/ats/careersite/4/home/requisition/21927

4. Supervisors, Astrobiology Section and Asteroids and Rocky Small Bodies Section, JHUAPL

The Small Bodies and Ocean Worlds group in the Space Exploration Sector of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHUAPL) seeks supervisors for its Astrobiology Section and its Asteroids and Rocky Small Bodies Section. The Astrobiology Section focuses on potentially habitable environments beyond Earth, laboratory studies of Earth analogs, development of instrumentation for detection of extraterrestrial biosignatures, and missions including Europa Clipper and Dragonfly that investigate environments of astrobiological interest. The Asteroids and Rocky Small Bodies Section focuses on the chemistry, physics, and geology of rocky small bodies, physical processes that affect their surfaces, development of spaceflight instrumentation to study them, and the study of meteorites that sample them.

The desired candidates will have: a doctorate in a physical or biological science relevant to the work in their section; an accomplished research program; excellent people skills; and excellent written and oral communications skills. They will be expected to provide leadership and mentorship to the half-dozen members of the section, and participate in a variety of strategic efforts. The positions will be open until filled, and first review of applications will be completed by March 24, 2025.

Applications for the Astrobiology Section may be submitted at https://careers.jhuapl.edu/jobs/56619?lang=en-us and for the Asteroids and Rocky Small Bodies Section at https://careers.jhuapl.edu/jobs/56655?lang=en-us

5. Senior Application Developer Caltech/IPAC – Application Deadline Mar 31, 2025

PAC at Caltech has an opening for a Senior Applications Developer with a strong background in Unix software development to lead the Data Systems development team at the NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive (IRSA). As lead of IRSA’s Data Systems Team, you will manage the activities of a group of IRSA scientists and developers who share the overarching goal of supporting community science with archival IRSA and other NASA data sets. Your development work may involve processing astrophysics space mission data, containerization & cloud technologies, large scale databases, and petabyte-scale storage. You will also work with scientists and other developers to help interpret and implement project requirements and document the work that you’ve accomplished.

Link to the full job description: https://dps.aas.org/senior-application-developer/

6. Full-time staff scientist to work with Roman team at IPAC 

IPAC, part of the Physics, Math, and Astronomy Division at Caltech, provides science operations, user support, data and archive services, and scientific vision to enhance discovery with observatories both in space and on the ground. IPAC invites applications from highly qualified individuals for a full-time position at the junior scientist level to work with the Roman team at IPAC.

The Roman Space Telescope is a NASA observatory designed to address key questions in the areas of dark energy, exoplanets, and infrared astrophysics. It is slated for launch in late 2026. The Roman Science Support Center (SSC) at IPAC is part of the Roman Ground Data System, providing algorithm and software development and data processing for the Galactic Bulge Time Domain Survey and all Roman spectroscopic data. In addition, the SSC will support the operations of the Coronagraph Instrument, manage the Roman General Investigator Program proposal solicitations and related data analysis funding, and provide community support for exoplanet and wide-field spectroscopy science with Roman.

For more details, see: https://roman.ipac.caltech.edu

Link to the full job description: https://dps.aas.org/7526/

7. Postdoctoral Scholar: Asteroid Radar – University of Central Florida

The incumbent will be expected to participate in data analysis, physical and dynamical characterization of near-Earth asteroids using radar and optical data, and support archiving asteroid shape models in the Planetary Data System (PDS). This position is open until filled.

Postdoctoral scholar: asteroid radar

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Send submissions to: Denise Stephens, DPS Secretary, at this address  [email protected]

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