Newsletter 21-11

Issue 21-11, May 23, 2021

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  1. DPS 2021 ELECTION: CANDIDATE SLATE
  2. NEW ICARUS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF NAMED
  3. SBAG REGISTRATION DEADLINE JUNE 2
  4. EPSC SESSION OPS1: PLANET TITAN
  5. NASA NEW FRONTIERS 5 AO RELEASE DATE DELAYS
  6. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FUNDING OPPORTUNITY: PRE-PROPOSALS DUE MAY 26
  7. ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LUNAR SCIENCE: CALL FOR AUTHORS
  8. JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES

 

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DPS 2021 ELECTION: CANDIDATE SLATE

The DPS Nominating Subcommittee has identified the following candidates for the 2021 DPS elections for Vice Chair and Committee (the Student Representative is not open again until 2022).

 

Vice Chair (1 to be elected):

Catherine Neish, U. of Western Ontario

Gonzalo Tancredi, UdelaR, Uruguay

 

Committee (2 to be elected):

Serina Diniega, JPL

Brian Jackson, Boise State U.

Joseph Masiero, Caltech/IPAC

Seth Jacobson, Michigan State U.

 

Per the DPS Bylaws, additional candidates for Vice Chair and Committee, supported by a petition of at least 20 DPS members, may be nominated by June 22nd. Please send any nominations to the DPS Secretary, Maria Womack, at [email protected].

 

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

Matthew Knight (Chair)

Desiree Cotto Figueroa

Alessondra Springmann

 

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NEW ICARUS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF NAMED

 

Dr. Alessandro Morbidelli became the new Editor-in-Chief of Icarus on May 1, 2021. We are extremely grateful to Dr. Rosaly Lopes for her service to Icarus over the past three years as its Editor-in-Chief, and wish her all the best in her new position at JPL.

 

Dr. Morbidelli is a planetary scientist working at Observatoire de la Cote d’Azur in Nice, France. He has 30 years experience in the field, working primarily in the field of planetary dynamics. He received his Masters degree in Physics from the University of Milan in 1988, and his PhD in Mathematics from the University of Namur in 1991. He also received the Urey award from the DPS in 2000. In addition, he has served as an Associate Editor of Icarus since 2000, having editorial responsibility for ~1400 manuscripts over the last 21 years. We welcome Dr. Morbidelli to his new role at Icarus.

 

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SBAG REGISTRATION DEADLINE JUNE 2

 

A reminder that the due date for registering for the Small Bodies Assessment Group (SBAG) meeting June 7-8 is June 2, 2021:

 

https://www.lpi.usra.edu/sbag/meetings/

 

Bonnie Buratti (SBAG Steering Committee Chair)

 

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EPSC SESSION OPS1: PLANET TITAN

 

Please consider submitting an abstract to the EPSC session OPS1: Planet Titan.

 

This will be a virtual meeting held from September 13-24, 2021.

 

Saturn’s moon Titan, despite its satellite status, has nothing to envy to planets: it has planetary dimensions, a substantial and dynamic atmosphere, a carbon cycle, a variety of geological features (dunes, lakes, rivers, mountains and more), seasons, and a hidden ocean. It even now has its own mission: Dragonfly, selected by NASA in the frame of the New Frontiers program.

 

In this session, scientific presentations are solicited to cover all aspects of current research on Titan: from its interior to its upper atmosphere, using data collected from the Cassini-Huygens mission (2004-2017) and/or from ground-based telescopes (e.g., ALMA) and/or based on modelling and experimental efforts to support the interpretation of past and future observations of this unique world.

 

Abstract submission deadline: May 26, 2021, 13:00 CEST

https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EPSC2021/session/41676

 

Virtual meeting overview:

https://www.epsc2021.eu/virtual_meeting/overview.html

 

Convener: Anezina Solomonidou | Co-conveners: Sam Birch, Alice Le Gall, Shannon MacKenzie, Marco Mastrogiuseppe

 

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NASA NEW FRONTIERS 5 AO RELEASE DATE DELAYS

 

Beta.SAM.gov ID Number: NNH20ZDA016L

 

Estimated Release of draft AO: October 2023 (target)

Estimated Release of final AO: October 2024 (target)

Estimated Proposal due date: 90 days after AO release

 

This is a delay of approximately two years compared to the November 5, 2020 announced target date of October 2022.

 

The launch date for Dragonfly, the fourth mission in the New Frontiers Program, has been delayed to June 2027. This delay of the Dragonfly launch date is not a reflection on the progress and performance of the Dragonfly project. Rather, the delays are driven by other missions being in peak development and COVID-related challenges in the broader Planetary Science Division portfolio. The updated AO schedule estimate allows selection of the fifth New Frontiers mission at around the time of Dragonfly’s launch, thereby avoiding the budget strain of having two New Frontiers missions in development at the same time.

 

NASA SMD intends to use the results of the ongoing planetary science decadal survey, expected in early 2022, to guide the New Frontiers 5 AO.

 

https://newfrontiers.larc.nasa.gov/NF5/

 

Questions: Dr. Curt Niebur, (202) 358-0390, [email protected]

 

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SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FUNDING OPPORTUNITY: PRE-PROPOSALS DUE MAY 26

 

The Planetary Society invites proposals to its new grants program: Science and Technology Empowered by the Public (STEP) Grants. These are planetary science and/or technology grants chosen from an open, international, competed proposal process. Proposals must fit within one or more of The Planetary Society’s core enterprises (Explore Worlds, Find Life, Defend Earth). All funding will come from Planetary Society members and donors. Grant winners need to provide regular, short project updates and be willing to support The Planetary Society’s efforts to share the content and excitement of the project with members and the public. Preliminary proposals (pre-proposals) are due May 26, 2021. Based on the pre-proposal submissions, a small number of proposers will be invited to submit full proposals from which grant selections will be made. For this first round of STEP Grants, the nominal expectation is two awards at approximately the US $50,000 level each. More information can be found at:

 

http://planetary.org/stepgrants

 

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ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LUNAR SCIENCE: CALL FOR AUTHORS

 

Calling all lunar enthusiasts and planetary geologists! We are currently completing the Encyclopedia of Lunar Science and we are seeking authors for various topics on the geology of the Moon!

 

Topics to be written for our collection include: Tectonics, basalt, breccia, early bombardment, weathering, albedo, and much more!

 

This is first come, first serve. Easy submission and review process, and no fees are associated with the submissions. Interested? Or have questions? We would like to hear from you!

 

Please email Dr. Brian Cudnik and Dr. Caitlin Ahrens at: [email protected], [email protected]

 

Check out our current Encyclopedia at:

https://link.springer.com/referencework/10.1007/978-3-319-05546-6

 

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JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES

 

A. The Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science (ARES) Division at NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) and the USRA’s Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI), both in Houston, Texas, invite applications for the prestigious McKay Postdoctoral Fellowship, honoring the accomplishments of Dr. Gordon A. McKay. Dr. McKay was a world-recognized authority on planetary igneous petrology and geochemistry, and was the leader of the ARES Research Office at JSC for over 20 years.

 

The McKay Fellowship recognizes and promotes excellence in research for scientists within five years of their doctorate and is intended to encourage the development of young scientists in the field of astromaterials research that involves the study of the origin, composition, structure, and evolution of the bodies of the Solar System, including the planets and their satellites, the Earth and Moon, meteorites, asteroids, comets, and dust.

 

More information can be found here:

 

http://bit.ly/2021McKay

 

B. NASA Astrophysics Data Systems (part-time)

 

A highly motivated scientist interested in performing statistical analysis and preparing datasets of enriched/tagged full text articles to be used as training and validating material for machine/deep learning models created by ADS developers. The successful candidate for this time-limited, part-time opening is a scientist (in astronomy or closely related fields), with experience publishing in astrophysics journals, familiarity with how theoretical and observational papers are typically structured, and knowledge of Python programming and data analysis. (apply here) or here: https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/about/careers/

 

C. Investigation Scientist for Extreme-Precision Radial Velocity, Jet

Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA

https://bit.ly/3yBWEsK

 

D. Ryder Fellowship Position at the Lunar and Planetary Institute

 

The USRA’s Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI) in Houston, Texas,

invites applications for the Graham Ryder Post-Doctoral Fellowship,

which honors the accomplishments and legacy of Dr. Graham Ryder. Dr.

Ryder was a world-recognized authority on lunar samples and the history

of the Moon, and was a Staff Scientist at the LPI for nearly 20 years.

This fellowship recognizes and promotes excellence in lunar petrology

and geology research for scientists within five years of their

doctorate.

 

More information can be found here:

http://bit.ly/2021Ryder

 

Questions may be directed to Lisa Gaddis at [email protected].

 

E. Postdoctoral position in space physics

 

Applications are invited for a post-doctoral position to study kinetic

processes responsible for the heating and acceleration of the solar

wind plasma. These processes will be investigated in different types

solar wind streams as well as during solar storms. The work involves

analysis and interpretation of high-resolution measurements at varying

heliocentric distances made by the recently launched Solar Orbiter and

Parker Solar Probe missions.

 

We have contributed hardware to the Radio and Plasma Waves instrument

on Solar orbiter, and actively participate in instrument operations and

data analysis.

 

The position is available at the IRF Uppsala office, Angstrom

Laboratory, Uppsala, starting during 2021. The position is funded by a

grant from the Swedish National Space Agency for two years.

 

Contact:

Dr. Emiliya Yordanova, [email protected], +46-18-471-5930

 

Applications: [email protected]

Quote reference number: 2.2.1-126/21

Last Application Date: May 31, 2021

 

https://bit.ly/2RXqCpU

 

F. Astrobiologist at JHU APL

 

https://civspace.jhuapl.edu

 

Are you motivated to understand the origin of life, the habitability of

other planets, and whether we are alone? If so, consider applying to

join our growing program in astrobiology research at JHU APL!

 

Please see here for more information:

 

https://prdtss.jhuapl.edu/jobs/astrobiologist-1346

 

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Send submissions to:

 

Maria Womack, DPS Secretary ([email protected])

 

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