Issue 12-15, July 8, 2012
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1) REMINDER : 44TH DPS ANNUAL MEETING
2) HARTMANN TRAVEL GRANT CALL
3) REMINDER: VOTE AT THE DPS ELECTIONS
4) JOB OPPORTUNITIES
5) UPCOMING MEETINGS
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REMINDER : 44TH DPS ANNUAL MEETING
14-19 October 2012
Reno, Nevada
Grand Sierra Resort and Casino
The deadline for abstract submission is Thursday, 19 July 2012, 9:00pm ET.
Other important Dates:
Abstract Submission Deadline: 9:00 pm ET, Thursday, 19 July 2012
Regular Registration: 24 July – 3 September 2012
Late Abstract Submission Deadline: 12:00noon ET, Monday, 3 September 2012
Public Workshop Meeting Request Deadline: 3 September 2012
Late Registration: 4 – 26 September 2012
Hotel Reservations Deadline: 20 September 2012
Onsite Registration: 14 – 19 October 2012
The 44th Meeting of the DPS in Reno, NV has a great line up of Invited
talks, Workshops, and Events, and now is your chance to be a part of
it!
Full abstract instructions and submission form is available at
http://www.psi.edu/dps12/abs.shtml
Abstract correspondence originates from abstractsonline.com. Please set your spam filters to allow email from abstractsonline.com.
300-word abstracts may be submitted by uploading word processing files, cutting and pasting or typing directly into the abstract form.
Reno Hotel Information
DPS has secured fantastic hotel room rates at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino!
Your stay at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino includes complimentary transportation to/from the Reno-Tahoe International Airport. Booking within the DPS room block will ensure that your daily resort fee is waived.
Grand Sierra Guestrooms: Single and Double Rooms $94
Government Rate: Single and Double Rooms $94
Luxury Summit Guestrooms: Single and Double Rooms $120
To make a reservation, call 1-800-648-5080 and reference the “DPS Annual Meeting.” You may also use the custom online DPS reservation
page at https://resweb.passkey.com/Resweb.do?mode=welcome_ei_new&eventID=3192976.
Reservations made through the Grand Sierra homepage will not guarantee you the DPS Meeting rate.
The deadline to make reservations is 20 September 2012. Booking outside of our reserved block results in significant increase in meeting costs for everyone.
Calling all Volunteers!
Participate at the DPS Reno meeting as a volunteer for 16 hours, and receive complimentary registration. This is a great opportunity for undergrads, grads, postdocs, and local amateur astronomers at our meetings: to supervise sessions, help at registration, usher at events, and various other odd (but greatly appreciated) jobs. This is a great chance to meet and mingle with your peers, get up to date on the newest science, and pick up some cool freebies in the Exhibit Hall. Sign up today at http://aas.org/meetings/dps/volunteer_form
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HARTMANN TRAVEL GRANT PROGRAM FOR THE DPS MEETING IN RENO
Starting with a generous contribution from William K. Hartmann, followed by member contributions and matching funds from the DPS Committee, a limited number of student travel grants are made available to assist toward participating at the annual DPS meeting. Travel grants are primarily intended for students, but post-doctoral scientists without other means of support will also be considered. Travel grants for the Reno meeting will be typically no more than approximately five hundred dollars and are intended to provide a supplement that makes the difference on whether or not a student is able to attend the annual meeting. In some cases the travel grant may be requested to cover the meeting registration fee. Preference is given to students who have not received a Travel Grant in the past.
The deadline for applications will be will be 9:00 PM PDT, Monday July 9, 2012. Late applications cannot be accepted. All notifications will be made on or before July 22, 2012.
Please see the Hartmann Travel Grant page at the DPS web site (meetings/travel_grant_application) for detailed information on submittal and format.
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REMINDER: VOTE AT THE DPS ELECTIONS
PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO VOTE !!!
We would like to remind you that the 2012 election for DPS Vice-Chair and Committee is now open, and will close on July 30th 2012.
To vote, go to http://aas.org/vote/ .
You will need your AAS member login ID (which defaults to your membership number), and your password. If you haven’t registered to or renewed your DPS membership recently, please take a moment to do so now. This will allow you to vote and benefit from all membership advantages.
You should vote for one of the two candidates for Vice-Chair:
Heidi Hammel, AURA
Jeff Moore, NASA Ames
The Vice-Chair will become the DPS Chair in October 2012.
You should vote for two of the four candidates for DPS Committee:
Ross Beyer, SETI Institute
Sebastien Charnoz, AIM, Univ. Paris Diderot, France
Amanda Sickafoose Gulbis, Southern African Large Telescope
Paul Withers, Boston University
The successful candidates will serve on the committee for three years after October 2012.
The detailed vitae and position statements for each of the can be found on the main election page,
http://aas.org/vote/
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JOB OPPORTUNITIES
A) ESA POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIPS IN SPACE SCIENCE
The European Space Agency awards several postdoctoral fellowships each
year. The aim of these fellowships is to provide young scientists, holding
a PhD or the equivalent degree, with the means of performing space science
research in fields related to the ESA Science and Robotic Exploration
Programmes. Areas of research include planetary science, astronomy and
astrophysics, solar and solar-terrestrial science, plasma physics and
fundamental physics. The fellowships have a duration of two years and are
tenable at the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) in
Noordwijk, Netherlands, or at the European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC)
in Villafranca del Castillo, near Madrid, Spain.
Applications are now solicited for fellowships in space science to begin
in the fall of 2013. Preference will be given to applications submitted by
candidates within five years of receiving their PhD. Candidates not
holding a PhD yet are encouraged to apply, but they must provide evidence
of receiving their degree before starting the fellowship.
ESA fellows are enrolled in ESA’s Social Security Scheme, which covers
medical expenses, invalidity and death benefits. A monthly deduction
covers these short-term and long-term risks.
The deadline for applications is 1 October 2012.
More information on the ESA Research Fellowship programme in Space
Science, on the conditions and eligibility, as well as the application
form can be found on the world-wide web at this address:
http://www.rssd.esa.int/fellowship
Questions on the scientific aspects of the ESA Fellowship in Space Science
not answered in the above pages can be sent by e-mail to the fellowship
coordinator, Dr. Guido De Marchi, at the address [email protected]
b) SEVERAL JOB OFFERS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LIEGE, BELGIUM
1) The PPP/Palaeobiogeology Group, at the Department of Geology of the University of Liège searches for collaborators (PhDs and Postdocs) for its activities in the frame of the Interuniversity Attraction Pole « PLANET TOPERS »
(Planets: Tracing the Transfer, Origin, Preservation, and Evolution of their ReservoirS)
The positions are offered in the frame of an Interuniversity Attraction Pole « PLANET TOPERS ». http://iuap-planet-topers.oma.be provides a description of this research initiative and the partners.
The PhD contracts will be for two years renewable up to 4 years.
Send your CV with a cover letter and the names of two or three references (all in PDF format) by August 1st, 2012 to Emmanuelle Javaux ([email protected]) with copy to [email protected], Head of Operational Direction ‘Reference Systems and Planetology’ at ROB. Assessment of applications will start in early August 2012. Commencement of employment is on October 1st, 2012 or later.
2) The PPP/Palaeobiogeology Group, at the Department of Geology of the University of Liège searches for collaborators (3 PhDs, 2 Postdocs, 1 spectroscopist) for its activities in the frame of the ERC PROJECT “ELiTE”: Early Life Traces, Evolution, and Implications for Astrobiology
Thanks to major funding from the FP7 European Research Council for the period 2012-2017, scientific positions are available, starting from January 2013, to work on the early biosphere evolution, in particular early life traces and the emergence and rise of biological complexity (cyanobacteria, eukaryotes) in the Precambrian.
The PhD contracts will be for 4 years, the postdoctoral positions will be 2 years, and a (micro-FTIR & Raman) spectroscopist position for 5 years. Several starting dates are possible.
Send your CV with a cover letter and the names and contact information of two or three references (all in PDF format) by October 1st, 2012 to Emmanuelle Javaux ([email protected])
c) SEVEN PROFESSORS POSITIONS AT AALTO UNVIERSITY, FINLAND
Aalto University invites applications for seven professor (tenure track) positions in the School of Electrical Engineering.
For more information:
http://www.aalto.fi/en/current/jobs/professors/seven_tenure_track_profes…
and/or
Forwarded by :
Dr. Antti Räisänen, Professor
Aalto University
Dept. of Radio Science and Engineering
SMARAD Center of Excellence and MilliLab
PO Box 13000, FI-00076 Aalto, Finland
d) VOLCANO-LITHOSPHERE INTERACTIONS ON THE TERRESTRIAL PLANETS POST-DOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP: LUNAR AND PLANETARY INSTITUTE
The Universities Space Research Association – Houston invites
applications for a postdoctoral fellowship in geophysical studies of
the growth/evolution of large volcanic edifices and provinces on the
terrestrial planets.
The candidate will work with Dr. Patrick McGovern exploring mechanical
interactions between intrusive and extrusive volcanic edifice growth,
lithospheric flexural response, and magma ascent, using numerical
modeling techniques, including Finite Element (FEM) and Distinct
Element (DEM) Methods. Research will also entail analysis of imagery,
topography, gravity, and spectral datasets for large planetary
volcanoes in order to constrain the modeling efforts. Potential
bodies of interest include Venus, Io, the Moon, Earth, and Mars.
Requirements are a recent Ph.D. in geophysics or geology. Experience
quantitative modeling of geophysical, geological, or magmatic processes
with advanced codes as COMSOL Multiphysics (FEM) and PFC (DEM).
Programming languages, MATLAB or FORTRAN 95 desirable. The position
is two years with a possible extension to three years.
Send letter of interest, curriculum vita with a list of relevant
publications, brief statement of research interests, and three
references to [email protected]. Further information may be found
at:
The Universities Space Research Association is an Equal Opportunity
Employer.
e) PLANETARY GEOPHYSICS POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP
The Universities Space Research Association’s Lunar and Planetary
Institute (LPI), in Houston Texas, invites applications for a post-
doctoral fellowship in planetary geophysics.
The successful candidate will work with Dr. Walter Kiefer on a NASA-
funded project studying the nature of mantle convection on Mars and
its effects on the thermal evolution and volcanic history of the
planet. The candidate will also have the opportunity to conduct
research in planetary geophysics of his or her own choosing.
The position requires a Ph.D. in Planetary Science or Geophysics with
experience in computer programming and numerical modeling methods,
particularly finite elements. Experience with parallel computing in a
Linux environment will be an asset. The position will be offered for an
initial period of two years with a possible extension to a maximum of
three years.
Applicants should send a letter of interest, a curriculum vita listing
relevant publications, a brief (maximum three pages) statement of
research interests, and a list of three references to:
[email protected].
Review of candidates will begin on March 15, 2012, with a hiring
decision as soon as possible thereafter. Further information about LPI
can be found at www.lpi.usra.edu.
USRA is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
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UPCOMING MEETINGS
A planetary meeting calendar is posted at
http://planetarynews.org/meetings.html
If there is a planetary-related meeting, conference or workshop of which your colleagues should be aware, please send the date, title, URL and location to pen_editor at psi.edu.
You may also want to consult the Planetary meetings and Conferences Calendar at:
http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/
A) BIOASTRONOMY EVENTS AT THE IAU GENERAL ASSEMBLY IN BEIJING IN AUGUST; CNCC IS CHINA NATIONAL CONVENTION CENTER:
Commission 51business meeting, Monday August 27, 18:30-19:30 @ National Astronomical Observatories of China (NAOC; virtually across the street from the CNCC conference center); introduce new officers, members and Organizing Committee; report on last Bioastronomy/ISSOL conference = Origins 2011; report on next meeting =Origins 2014 in Nara, Japan
Commission 51 Science Session, Wednesday, August 29, 8:30-10:00 @ VIP4-4 in CNCC
Sue Madden, France: “Dust and PAHs in low metallicity galaxies”
Peter Jenniskens, USA: “Preliminary results from a new CM2 carbonaceous chondrite fall at Sutter’s Mill in California”
Sun Kwok, China: “Organic matter in the universe”
Nader Haghighipour, USA: “Habitable extrasolar planets”
IAU Symposium 293, Formation, Detection & Characterization of Extrasolar Habitable Planets
August 27-31 @ CNCC ; see www.ifa.hawaii.edu/iau293
IAU Special Session 16, Unexplained Spectral Phenomena in the Interstellar Medium
August 27-28 @ CNCC; see http://www.scifac.hku.hk/SpS16
b) EXOPAG MEETING IN RENO
The next ExoPAG meeting (ExoPAG-6) in conjunction with the 44th Annual DPS Meeting next October in Reno, NV (meetings). The plan is to hold the meeting on Saturday/Sunday, October 13/14, the weekend in advance of the DPS meeting. Details and the agenda for ExoPAG-6 will be posted on the ExoPAG web site (http://exep.jpl.nasa.gov/exopag/) as they become available.
c) AGU FALL 2012 SPECIAL SESSION: P007 EYES ON ENCELADUS
Enceladus appears to have all the requirements for life: energy, liquid water, organic material, nitrogen and other essential elements, making investigation of this body especially promising and urgent. In this session, we will focus on the most recent observational, theoretical and modeling results on the chemistry, state and dynamics of Enceladus’ jets and plumes, the moon’s thermal and interior state, geologic activity, as well as its astrobiological potential. New results from the recent Cassini flybys of Enceladus should be submitted to this session.
Abstract deadline: August 8, 2012, 23:59ET/3:59+1 GMT
For abstract submission policies see:
http://fallmeeting.agu.org/2012/scientific-program/abstract-submission-p…
Conveners: Chris McKay, NASA, Moffett Field, CA, United States.
Carolyn Porco, CICLOPS, SSI, Boulder, CO, United States.
d) AGU FALL 2012 SPECIAL SESSION: ON INTERNAL STRUCTURE & COMPOSITION OF SMALL SOLAR SYSTEM BODIES
Julie Castillo-Rogez & Franck Marchis are organizing a session for the AGU Fall conference entitled “Internal Structure & Composition of Small Solar System Bodies” session scheduled for the AGU Fall Conference, San Francisco, CA (Dec 3-7 2012).
The composition and physical properties of Small Solar System Bodies (SSSBs), remnants of the formation of planets, are key to better understand our solar system. Increased knowledge of their surface properties and their potential as resources are also necessary to prepare for robotic and human exploration. Hints about the internal structure and composition of SSSBs have been acquired recently thanks to flyby/rendezvous data from space missions, study of multiple asteroid systems, or close encounter between asteroids. This session welcomes abstracts on the internal structure and composition of SSSBs based on space and ground-based data, numerical models, and instrument/mission concepts for future exploration.
Your recent work on the study of SSSBs fits into the theme of this session, so we encourage you to submit an abstract keeping in mind that the deadline is on August 8 2012. Please feel free to forward this email.
e) SH017: SUN-GRAZING COMETS AS SOLAR PROBES: WHAT GOES ON BEHIND THE OCCULTER DISK?
On December 16, 2011, comet C/2011 W3 (Lovejoy) became instantly famous when it not only survived perihelion but had its journey through the corona and around the Sun observed by a large array of solar and astrophysical missions. We have now seen two comets traversing the solar corona, within 100,000 km of the surface of the Sun. However, much remains to be learned about comets and the Sun from observing the Kreutz sun-grazing family. This session solicits papers on the properties of sun-grazing comets and what their perihelion passage reveals about the Sun. Topics include observations of sun-grazing comets, the accurate determination of their orbital elements, models of the comet nucleus, coma, and tail as they pass through perihelion, the fate of the comet material in the solar corona, and the response of the coronal plasma and magnetic field.
Abstract deadline: August 8, 2012, 23:59ET/3:59+1 GMT
For abstract submission policies see:
http://fallmeeting.agu.org/2012/scientific-program/abstract-submission-p…
Conveners:
W. Dean Pesnell, NASA/GSF ([email protected])
Carey Lisse, JHU-APL ([email protected])
Matthew Knight, Lowell Observatory ([email protected])
f) THE PLUTO SYSTEM ON THE EVE OF EXPLORATION BY NEW HORIZONS: PERSPECTIVES AND PREDICTIONS
22–26 July 2013
The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Maryland, USA
In mid-2015, NASA’s New Horizons mission will conduct the first spacecraft reconnaissance of the Pluto system.
In preparation for that flyby, the New Horizons project team will hold a scientific conference at The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory 22–26 July 2013. The conference objectives are:
– To integrate information about this planet, its satellites, and their context in the Kuiper Belt.
– To encourage groundbased and spacebased proposals to provide additional context alongside the New Horizons encounter.
– To inform about the 6-month-long New Horizons encounter for those interested in proposing to the Pluto System Data Analysis Program.
The meeting’s program, invited talks, logistical information, and opportunities for contributed talks and posters and more information can be found at:
https://dnnpro.outer.jhuapl.edu/plutoscience/Home.aspx
To sign up for the meeting listserv:
http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/conference/eform/conf_info_form.php
g) IAU SYMPOSIUM 299 “EXPLORING THE FORMATION AND EVOLUTION OF PLANETARY SYSTEMS”,
2-7 June 2013 Victoria, British Columbia
URL: www.iaus299.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/376085279113847/
Email: [email protected]
Topics will include:
– Observations of protoplanetary discs, debris discs and exoplanets
– Planetesimal and planet formation
– Exoplanet atmospheres and interior structure
– Dynamics in planetary systems: migration, multiplicity and planet-disc interactions
Pre-Registration
Registration will open on 1 September 2012, but those interested in attending the meeting are welcome to submit their names to our pre-registration list. To pre-register and be placed on the mailing list, just send an email indicating your interest to the conference email: [email protected].
Financial Assistance
In keeping with the spirit of the IAU Symposia, the costs of the meeting will be kept as low as possible. In addition, financial assistance in the form of IAU Support Grants is available for those needing financial assistance to attend. All student attendees who register in the Early Registration period (1 Sept – 7 Dec 2012) will receive financial support. The deadline for submission of grant applications to the Science Organizing Committee is 7 December 2012; forms and directions are available on the symposium website, www.iaus299.org.
Key Dates
1 Sept 2012: Early Registration Opens
7 Dec 2012: Deadline for Early Registration
7 Dec 2012: Deadline for Application for IAU Support Grants
31 March 2013: Deadline for Registration
31 March 2013: Deadline for Abstract Submission
2 June 2013: Evening Reception/Symposium Begins
3-7 June 2013: Conference
Brenda Matthews
LOC Chair, on behalf of the LOC and SOC