Issue 24-24, Dec 22, 2024
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- 6TH SYMPOSIUM OF THE COMMITTEE ON SPACE RESEARCH (COSPAR): SPACE EXPLORATION 2025: A SYMPOSIUM ON HUMANITY’S CHALLENGES AND CELESTIAL SOLUTIONS “COSPAR 2025”
- 46TH SCIENTIFIC ASSEMBLY OF THE COMMITTEE ON SPACE RESEARCH (COSPAR) AND ASSOCIATED EVENTS “COSPAR 2026”
- NASA PLANETARY SCIENCE DIVISION PLANETARY DATA ECOSYSTEM WEBSITE
- ANNOUNCING APOPHIS T-4 YEARS WORKSHOP
- INVITATION TO CONTRIBUTE TO EGU GA2025 PS6.1 – EMERGENCE, CHEMISTRY, AND EVOLUTION OF ORGANIC MATTER IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM
- NEW HORIZONS SCIENCE SPOTLIGHT WEBINAR
- SUBMIT A PLANETARY SESSION TO THE 2025 GSA CONNECTS ANNUAL MEETING
- LAD DISSERTATION PRIZE, DEADLINE DEC 31, 2024, 11:59 ET
- SUPERCAM MARS DATA USER WORKSHOP AT LPSC 2025
- PEN: LUNAR RECONNAISSANCE ORBITER DATA RELEASE 60
- ROSES-24 AMENDMENT 78: D.10 TESS GENERAL INVESTIGATOR PROGRAM FINAL TEXT AND DUE DATE
- (EXO-)VENUS SESSION AT EGU 2025 FROM 27 APRIL – 2 MAY, 2025
- EGU SESSION PS2.1: JUPITER’S ICY MOONS – WHERE WE ARE AND WHERE EUROPA CLIPPER AND JUICE CAN TAKE US
- EGU SESSION P2.3: TITAN EXPLORATION
- EGU GREAT DEBATE B1
- SAVE THE DATE: BINARY ASTEROIDS VI
- CALL FOR NOMINATIONS TO THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE (MEMBER AND CHAIR) OF THE EXOPLANET PROGRAM ANALYSIS GROUP (EXOPAG)
- MARS MATISSE COMMUNITY WORKSHOP
- VEXAG VENUS EXPLORATION STRATEGY RELEASED
- INITIATIVE TO CREATE A PLANETARY SCIENCE DIAMOND OPEN ACCESS JOURNAL
- IMPACT CRATERING AND ASSOCIATED RESEARCH US (ICAARUS) WORKSHOP MAY 31 – JUNE 1, 2025, FLAGSTAFF, AZ
- CURRENT TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THE PLANETARY SCIENCE JOURNAL AND ICARUS
- JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES
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6TH SYMPOSIUM OF THE COMMITTEE ON SPACE RESEARCH (COSPAR): SPACE EXPLORATION 2025: A SYMPOSIUM ON HUMANITY’S CHALLENGES AND CELESTIAL SOLUTIONS “COSPAR 2025”
Host Organizations: Cyprus Space Exploration Organization (CSEO)
Date: 3 – 7 November 2025
Place: Nicosia, Cyprus
Various sessions organized under the themes:
- Humanity’s Challenges and the Potential of Space
- Space as a Unifying Force: Fostering International Collaboration
- Space Tech for Earth and Beyond: Innovation, AI, and Sustainable Solutions
- The Ethics of Exploration: Responsible and Inclusive Space Endeavours
- Capacity Building, CubeSats and Outreach Event
- Planetary Protection
Selected papers published in Advances in Space Research and Life Sciences in Space Research, fully refereed journals with no deadlines, open to all submissions in relevant fields.
Contact: COSPAR Secretariat [email protected]
Scientific program, abstract submission – opening end December 2024 or early January 2025
Abstract Deadline: 4 April 2025
https://www.cospar-assembly.org/symposia
Registration, accommodation, etc.
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46TH SCIENTIFIC ASSEMBLY OF THE COMMITTEE ON SPACE RESEARCH (COSPAR) AND ASSOCIATED EVENTS “COSPAR 2026”
Host Organization: Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF)
Place: Florence, Italy
Date: 1 – 9 August 2026
Topics:
Approximately 150 meetings covering the fields of COSPAR Scientific Commissions (SC), Panels, and Task Groups:
- SC A: The Earth’s Surface, Meteorology and Climate
- SC B: The Earth-Moon System, Planets, and Small Bodies of the Solar System
- SC C: The Upper Atmospheres of the Earth and Planets Including Reference Atmospheres
- SC D: Space Plasmas in the Solar System, Including Planetary Magnetospheres
- SC E: Research in Astrophysics from Space
- SC F: Life Sciences as Related to Space
- SC G: Materials Sciences in Space
- SC H: Fundamental Physics in Space
- Panel on Satellite Dynamics (PSD)
- Panel on Scientific Ballooning (PSB)
- Panel on Potentially Environmentally Detrimental Activities in Space (PEDAS)
- Panel on Radiation Belt Environment Modelling (PRBEM)
- Panel on Space Weather (PSW)
- Panel on Planetary Protection (PPP)
- Panel on Capacity Building (PCB)
- Panel on Education (PE)
- Panel on Exploration (PEX)
- Panel on Interstellar Research (PIR)
- Panel on Innovative Solutions (PoIS)
- Panel on Social Sciences and the Humanities (PSSH)
- Panel on IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility) (PIDEA)
- Panel on Establishing a Constellation of Small Satellites (PCSS)
- Panel on Machine Learning and Data Science (PMLDS)
- Task Group on Establishing an International Geospace Systems Program (TGIGSP)
Selected papers published in Advances in Space Research and Life Sciences in Space Research, fully refereed journals with no deadlines open to all submissions in relevant fields.
Contact: COSPAR Secretariat, [email protected]
Scientific program, abstract submission beginning mid-August 2025
Abstract Deadline: mid-February 2026
Registration, accommodation, etc.
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NASA PLANETARY SCIENCE DIVISION PLANETARY DATA ECOSYSTEM WEBSITE
NASA’s Planetary Science Division has developed a Planetary Data Ecosystem (PDE) website as a community resource and to help increase the discoverability of and access to planetary data, tools, and related information.
On this new website, you’ll discover Planetary Science Division funded:
- Data repositories, databases, and catalogs that include data and higher-order data products from space missions and ground-based facilities and generated by research and analysis projects.
- Software and tools including applications for data processing, mission support, visualization, models and simulation tools, and data analysis tools tailored for planetary science applications.
- Standards and policies help researchers perform robust planetary science and following open science practices.
- Learning resources, such as presentations, tutorials, past workshop materials, and upcoming events, so that we remain on the cutting edge of data analysis and lower barriers for using planetary data and tools.
- Community groups focused on planetary science and exploration.
This website can be viewed at: https://planetary.data.nasa.gov/
Comments and feedback on this website are welcome and encouraged. Please email the NASA Headquarters PDE Team with any comments, additional information, or corrections at [email protected].
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ANNOUNCING APOPHIS T-4 YEARS WORKSHOP
The Apophis T-4 Years: Knowledge Opportunity for the Science of Planetary Defense workshop will be held April 9-10, 2025, at the University of Tokyo.
This workshop will focus on international collaboration opportunities for both Earth–based observations and in situ investigations, the OSIRIS–APEX mission, Destiny+, and other implementable mission or instrument concepts. There are adjacent workshops at the same location dedicated to Hera (April 7–8, 2025) and RAMSES (April 11, 2025). Apophis T–4 (April 9–10, 2025) will place the greatest emphasis on Apophis science. Hera and RAMSES Workshop information will be available soon. Both in-person and virtual attendance are anticipated.
The abstract deadline is February 3, 2025. Please register your indication of interest at the meeting website and check for ongoing updates, including details on limited travel grant support for students and early-career researchers. https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/apophis2025/
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INVITATION TO CONTRIBUTE TO EGU GA2025 PS6.1 – EMERGENCE, CHEMISTRY, AND EVOLUTION OF ORGANIC MATTER IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM
The convenor team (Nora Hänni, Niels Ligterink, Kelly Miller, Fabian Klenner, Cécile Engrand) of EGU’s session PS6.1 entitled ‘Emergence, chemistry, and evolution of organic matter in the Solar System’ is inviting your contribution. The EGU General Assembly 2025 will take place in Vienna (Austria) in a hybrid format 27 April – 2 May 2025 and we are aiming to enrich the meeting with a platform for the Solar System organics community.
The scope of our session is the following: We want to bring together scientists with backgrounds in laboratory experimentation, chemical modelling, space exploration, instrumentation, theoretical chemistry, and observations in order to share knowledge and progress our understanding of the evolution of organic chemistry in interplanetary / interstellar dust particles, meteorites, comets, asteroids, KBOs, icy moons, terrestrial planets, and planetary atmospheres and ask how future space exploration missions such as OSIRIS-REx, Hayabusa2, Europa Clipper, JUICE, Dragonfly, and Martian Moons Explorer (MMX) can push the boundaries of our current knowledge.
Key questions of our session are: How did organics in all those environments form? Was this chemical complexity inherited, did it emerge in the Solar System, or a combination of both? What do these molecules tell us about the physical conditions and formational history of planetary bodies and other objects in the Solar System? Is there a link between this organic matter and the emergence of life?
If you are interested in contributing and sharing your research in this session, you can find a more detailed session description here, where you also can submit your abstract to PS6.1:
https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU25/session/52089
EGU rules and regulations for abstract submission are compiled here:
https://www.egu25.eu/programme/how_to_submit.html
Abstracts are due Wednesday, 15 January 2025, 13:00 CET.
We thank you for considering a contribution to our session and for spreading the word to people you know may be interested.
Kind regards,
the conveners: Nora Hänni, Niels Ligterink, Kelly Miller, Fabian Klenner, Cécile Engrand
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NEW HORIZONS SCIENCE SPOTLIGHT WEBINAR
New Horizons continues its operation, now at 58.8au 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.
Calendar for future seminars:
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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SUBMIT A PLANETARY SESSION TO THE 2025 GSA CONNECTS ANNUAL MEETING
19-22 October 2025 in San Antonio, Texas
https://community.geosociety.org/gsa2025
Planetary Science will take center stage at the 2025 meeting as one of its three main themes:
From Earth to the Cosmos: Geoscience Beyond Our Planet
This theme invites exploration of planetary geoscience in its full scope, bridging terrestrial geology with the study of solid, icy, and gaseous bodies across the Solar System and extending to exoplanets. Planetary Science covers impacts, volcanism and tectonism, atmospheric,
sedimentary, and hydrologic processes, regolith formation, potential biosignatures and habitability. New frontiers include materials for In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU), such as ice and critical minerals, which are crucial for supporting future human habitation on other worlds. Through this expanded lens, geoscientists can explore not only Earth’s unique attributes but also the geological and material diversity across our Solar System, contributing to advancements in both science of planetary environments and commercial space exploration.
GSA also welcomes proposals for field trips and short courses.
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LAD DISSERTATION PRIZE, DEADLINE DEC 31, 2024, 11:59 ET
The Dissertation Prize is typically presented on an annual basis to recognize an outstanding theoretical or experimental doctoral dissertation (or the equivalent) in laboratory astrophysics. The prize is awarded to an individual who has completed their PhD or equivalent degree in any of the three calendar years immediately preceding the award year. Candidates must have already graduated before the prize deadline to be eligible.
The prize includes a cash award, a citation, and an invited lecture by the recipient at a meeting of the Laboratory Astrophysics Division.
The recipients for each year will be announced typically in January/February of that year, and they will be invited to present their prize talk at the annual LAD meeting, which is typically held jointly with the AAS Summer Meeting. Any nominee not selected will be automatically considered in the next two consecutive years, or as long as the nominee is eligible, whichever is less.
PRIZE NOMINATION PACKAGE DETAILS:
The Nomination package for the Dissertation Prize must include:
- A nomination letter, including a one-sentence proposed citation. The letter should clearly state that it is the nomination letter. Only one signator is allowed.
- Two letters of support. These are separate and distinct from the nomination letter and should clearly indicate that they are letters of support. Additional letters will not be considered. Only one signator per letter is allowed.
- A summary of the thesis (not to exceed 5 pages including figures and bibliography).
- A statement from the nominee’s university that a Ph.D. or equivalent degree has been awarded.
- A curriculum vitae.
- A publication list.
Additional material (such as reprints, etc.) will not be considered.
All nomination material must be emailed as a single or multiple PDF file(s) by the deadline to the LAD Secretary ([email protected]).
Please note that the entire package need not be compiled (though this is appreciated, in the order of the above list) or sent by any single or specific person. Anyone involved in the nomination or supporting materials, including the candidate, can email any of the components (1-6, above) to the LAD Secretary and the package will be considered as long as all components are received by the deadline.
Nominators, letter writers, and candidates need not be AAS or LAD members. Self-nominations are allowed. The deadline for receipt of the Dissertation Prize nomination package is 11:59 pm ET on December 31st each year.
Attracting and serving a diverse and inclusive membership worldwide is a primary goal for LAD. In calling for nominations, we wish to remind you how important it is to give full consideration to qualified women, members of underrepresented minority groups, and scientists from outside the United States.
Feel free to email any questions you may have to
Rachel Smith, LAD Secretary, [email protected]
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SUPERCAM MARS DATA USER WORKSHOP AT LPSC 2025
The Perseverance/SuperCam instrument team will host a data user workshop at the Lunar & Planetary Science Conference the second week of March 2025. The workshop is for people outside of the team who are interested in using the publicly available data and/or collaborating
with others on the data. Data sets include visible & near infrared (VISIR) passive spectroscopy, laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and derived elemental chemistry, time-resolved remote Raman and luminescence spectroscopy, acoustic data from the microphone, and
imaging. The day of the week and time of the workshop will be posted in early 2025. The SuperCam team has collected nearly four years of data from hundreds of targets in Jezero crater on Mars, and it is available at:
https://pds-geosciences.wustl.edu/missions/mars2020/supercam.htm
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PEN: LUNAR RECONNAISSANCE ORBITER DATA RELEASE 60
The NASA Planetary Data System announces Release 60 of data from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter mission. This release contains raw, calibrated, and derived data products covering the nominal time period from March 15 through June 14, 2024. Some instrument teams are delivering more recent data. The data are archived at various PDS nodes.
- CRaTER at the PPI Node
- Diviner at the Geosciences Node
- LAMP* at the Cartography and Imaging Sciences Node
- LEND at the Geosciences Node
- LOLA at the Geosciences Node
- LROC at the LROC Data Node
- Mini-RF at the Geosciences Node
- Radio Science at the Geosciences Node
- SPICE at the NAIF Node
NOTE: LAMP data is delayed and will be available soon in both PDS3 and PDS4 format with PDS4 LID urn:nasa:pds:lro_lamp
The data may be accessed from: https://pds-geosciences.wustl.edu/missions/lro/
For a dataset-oriented perspective, go to:
https://pds.nasa.gov/datasearch/subscription-service/SS-20241213.shtml
LRO releases occur every three months. The next release is scheduled for March 14, 2025.
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ROSES-24 AMENDMENT 78: D.10 TESS GENERAL INVESTIGATOR PROGRAM
FINAL TEXT AND DUE DATE
The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) General Investigator (GI) Program (NNH24ZDA001N) solicits proposals for the acquisition and analysis of scientific data from the TESS mission. The primary purpose of the TESS GI Program is to enhance and maximize the science return from TESS.
Phase-1 proposals are due by 4:30 pm Eastern time on March 27, 2025, via the Astrophysics Research Knowledgebase Remote Proposal System.
Go to: https://solicitation.nasaprs.com/ROSES2024
Programmatic questions regarding D.10 TESS GI, may be directed to John Wisniewski at [email protected] or to Joshua Pepper at [email protected]. Technical questions concerning this program element may be directed to the TESS General Investigator Program Lead Christina Hedges at [email protected]
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(EXO-)VENUS SESSION AT EGU 2025 FROM 27 APRIL – 2 MAY, 2025
We are pleased to announce the (exo-)Venus session at EGU 2025 from 27 April – 2 May 2025 (Vienna and online):
PS1.2 Venus: models, observations, (ancient) Earth- and exoplanet analogue
https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU25/sessionprogramme/5526#
Abstract deadline: 15 January 2025, 13:00 CET
Invited talk by: Prof. Stephen Kane (UC Riverside, USA)
Session Summary
In June 2021, NASA and ESA selected a fleet of three international missions to Venus, which are planned to launch in 2031. Moreover, other missions are in preparation, such as Shukrayaan-1 (ISRO), Venus Life Finder (Rocket Lab), and VOICE (Chinese Academy of Sciences). With the ‘Decade of Venus’ upon us, many fundamental questions remain regarding the planet. Did Venus ever have an ocean? How and when did intense greenhouse conditions develop? How does its internal structure compare to Earth’s? How can we better understand Venus’ geologic history as preserved on its surface as well as the present-day state of activity and couplings between the surface and atmosphere? Although Venus is one of the most uninhabitable planets in the Solar System, understanding our nearest planetary neighbor may unveil important lessons on atmospheric and surface processes, interior dynamics, and habitability. Moreover, as an early-Earth analogue, Venus may help us draw important conclusions on the history of our own planet. Beyond the solar system, Venus’ analogues are likely a common type of exoplanets, and we probably have already discovered many of Venus’ sisters orbiting other stars. This session welcomes contributions that address the past, present, and future of Venus science and exploration, and what Venus can teach us about (ancient) Earth as well as exo-Venus analogues. Moreover, Venus mission concepts, new Venus observations, Earth-Venus comparisons, exoplanet observations, new results from previous observations, and the latest lab and modelling approaches are all welcome to our discussion of solving Venus’ mysteries.
We hope you will consider submitting an abstract to this session. We are looking forward to it!
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EGU SESSION PS2.1: JUPITER’S ICY MOONS – WHERE WE ARE AND WHERE EUROPA
CLIPPER AND JUICE CAN TAKE US
The end of the year is fast approaching, and with it is the abstract submission for the upcoming EGU meeting! Do you have any exciting new results on Jupiter’s icy moons science? Please consider submitting an abstract to session PS2.1 entitled “Jupiter’s icy moons: where we are,
and where Europa Clipper and Juice can take us.”
More information about the session is available on the conference website:
https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU25/session/51969
The EGU abstract submission deadline is Wednesday 15 January 2025, 13:00 CET.
We look forward to receiving your abstracts!
Your convening team,
Ines Belgacem, Haje Korth, Thomas Cornet, and Umberto De Filippis
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EGU 2025/SESSION PS2.3: TITAN EXPLORATION: VIENNA, AUSTRIA, 27 APRIL – 2 MAY, 2025
Titan is one of the most complex environments in the solar system, a complexity expressed in a triad of manifestations: in the photochemically intense and seasonally varying atmosphere; in the unique hydrocarbon lakes and oceans, the dunes and other geomorphological features; and in the astrobiologically intriguing subsurface water ocean.
We invite the international Titan community to convene in the 2025 EGU general assembly where all above aspects will be discussed from observational, theoretical and experimental perspectives. We look forward discussing the latest discoveries from the analysis of Cassini-Huygens, JWST and ground-based observations, as well as exploring anticipated results from the forthcoming Dragonfly mission. This is also a great opportunity for the community to exchange ideas with colleagues studying the Earth, the only other planet matching Titan’s systemic complexity.
Share: https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU25/session/51968
The EGU abstract submission deadline is Wednesday 15 January 2025, 13:00 CET.
Please consider submitting an abstract to this session
The Conveners: Panayotis Lavvas, Athena Coustenis, Tommi Koskinen, Conor Nixon, Anezina Solomonidou
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EGU 2025 GREAT DEBATE B1: VIENNA, AUSTRIA, 27 APRIL – 2 MAY, 2025
Habitability in Our Solar System: Do Any Worlds Besides Earth Offer Habitable Conditions?
As our understanding of the solar system expands, so does our curiosity about the potential for life beyond Earth. This Union Symposium aims to bring together leading experts to discuss the latest research and ideas on the habitability of other worlds within our solar system. The symposium will focus on key celestial bodies such as Mars, Europa, Ganymede, Enceladus, and Titan, which have emerged as prime candidates in the search for environments that might support life.
The panel will delve into novel and cutting-edge research on the factors that could make these worlds habitable, addressing critical questions
This symposium will provide a platform for interdisciplinary discussion, drawing on expertise from planetary science, astrobiology, geology, and atmospheric science. The session will be structured as a moderated panel discussion of invited experts who are at the forefront of this research. These panelists will share their insights, engage in a dynamic discussion, and respond to questions from the audience, fostering a collaborative exploration of this critical topic.
The goal of this Union Symposium is to bridge the gap between different disciplines and encourage the sharing of ideas and perspectives that could lead to a deeper understanding of habitability within our solar system. This discussion is not only vital for the scientific community but also holds significant implications for future space exploration and the search for life beyond our planet.
Share: https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU25/session/54293
Convener: Anezina Solomonidou | Co-convener: Joana S. OliveiraECS
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SAVE THE DATE: BINARY ASTEROIDS VI
We are pleased to announce the 6th Binary Asteroids Meeting will be hosted by the Nice Observatory next year. The workshop will be focused on binary and multiple systems among the NEO, Hungaria, main-belt, Trojan, Centaur, and TNO populations. We hope to gather experts on all topics related to binaries, including their detection, characterization, formation, and dynamical evolution.
When: September 15-17, 2025
Where: Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur, Nice, France
Further details and registration information will follow. Please fill out the following form if you are interested in receiving future updates and registration information: https://forms.gle/dCVgFa2t6WXVLMuM8
Regards,
The local organizing committee: Harrison Agrusa, Benoit Carry, Luana Liberato, Raphael Marschall, Patrick Michel, Kate Minker, Paolo Tanga
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CALL FOR NOMINATIONS TO THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE (MEMBER AND CHAIR) OF THE EXOPLANET PROGRAM ANALYSIS GROUP (EXOPAG)
Dear Colleagues:
The Astrophysics Division of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate is pleased to issue this open call for nominations to serve on the Executive Committee (EC) of NASA’s Exoplanet Exploration Program Analysis Group (ExoPAG), both as an EC member and/or as Chair. In the coming months, NASA anticipates making several new appointments to the ExoPAG EC, replacing four current members of the committee who have reached the end of their terms. NASA also anticipates making a new appointment to serve as Chair of the ExoPAG EC. New appointments will start in the Spring of 2025 and will be for a period of three years.
NASA’s Exoplanet Exploration Program (ExEP, http://exoplanets.nasa.gov) is the NASA program office that serves as the focal point for exoplanet science and technology, and devises strategies to help NASA achieve its goals in the area of exoplanet science. The ExoPAG is an open, interdisciplinary forum that provides a way for the scientific community to give input to ExEP, and for conducting analyses in support of ExEP science objectives and their implications for planning and prioritization of Program activities. The ExoPAG is led by a Chair who also serves on NASA’s Astrophysics Advisory Committee (APAC). The Chair works with a volunteer Executive Committee, whose membership is chosen to reflect the broad range of scientific disciplines and interests represented in the exoplanet field (e.g. spanning Astrophysics, Planetary Science, Heliophysics, and Earth Science). Together, the ExoPAG Chair and Executive Committee are responsible for capturing and organizing community input, overseeing ExoPAG analyses, reporting ExoPAG findings and inputs to the Astrophysics Division Director, and keeping the scientific community apprised of ongoing activities and opportunities within ExEP. Detailed information about the structure and function of the ExoPAG, including the current and past membership of the EC, can be found at http://exoplanets.nasa.gov/exopag.
Nominations for the ExoPAG EC and/or EC Chair should be submitted via email to the address: [email protected] . Nominations must include both a cover letter and a one-page CV summarizing the nominee’s relevant background. The cover letter should provide a description of the nominee’s area of expertise, qualifications for service, commitment to NASA’s core value of inclusion, and anticipated contributions to the ExoPAG Executive Committee. Cover letters should indicate whether the applicant is interested in serving on the EC or in chairing the EC (or both). Nominations will only be accepted for scientists who are employed at a U.S. institution for the period of the service. There are no citizenship restrictions. Nominations from individuals at academic institutions—university, college, or non-NASA research laboratory—are strongly encouraged. Self-nominations are welcome and treated equally as external nominations. The deadline for nominations is January 31, 2025, with announcement of selections anticipated in Spring of 2025. Selections will be announced by the ExoPAG mailing list (http://exoplanets.nasa.gov/exep/exopag/announcementList).
We look forward to working with all of our stakeholders to develop a robust and compelling Exoplanet Exploration Program.
Sincerely,
Dr. John Wisniewski, NASA Headquarters Deputy Exoplanet Exploration Program Scientist, ExoPAG Executive Secretary
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MARS MATISSE COMMUNITY WORKSHOP
The 2025 “Mars Magnetosphere ATmosphere Ionosphere and Space-weather SciencE” (M-MATISSE) community workshop will be held on 19-23 May 2025 at University College London, United Kingdom. Everyone with interest in the ESA Medium class (M7) mission candidate is welcome to participate.
The workshop aims to bring the scientific community together to discuss the M-MATISSE M7 mission candidate progress in order to help with the consolidation of the M-MATISSE science report (i.e., the Yellow Book) that it is due in early 2026. This is a chance to help shape the
science of the mission.
Participants are invited to submit abstracts addressing one or more of the scientific goals of the mission that can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/view/m-matisse-workshop
Abstract deadline: 24 January 2025.
Registration deadline: 31 March 2025 – There are no registration fees.
Early Career Support deadline: 24 January 2025. We are able to support a few early careers. The application for this support will open soon, please check our website for updates.
If you have any questions or wish to suggest any changes to the website, please contact us: [email protected]
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VEXAG VENUS EXPLORATION STRATEGY RELEASED
In response to the 2023 Origins, Worlds, and Life Decadal Survey, the Venus Exploration Analysis Group has developed a new strategy for Venus exploration in the coming decade and beyond.
This new strategy has now been published: https://tinyurl.com/VenusExploration2024
The strategy report will be maintained as a living document and updated as needed. Community input and ideas for Venus science, exploration, and partnerships are always solicited and welcome!
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INITIATIVE TO CREATE A PLANETARY SCIENCE DIAMOND OPEN ACCESS JOURNAL
Members of the planetary science community are leading an initiative to create a planetary science diamond open access journal. Diamond open access means that it is free for authors to publish, and free for readers and libraries to access. Over the past couple of years there
has been an explosions of such journals in the geosciences (like Volcanica, Seismica, Tektonika, and Geodynamica, to name a few), and we will be following a similar approach that they used.
All of our internal discussions are occurring in an open forum, and if this is a project that interests you, please feel free to sign in using this link: https://tinyurl.com/yte5zbez
The slides from our kickoff meeting can be found here: https://sdrive.cnrs.fr/s/8XPxxe2A8tymAmZ
And a recording is on youtube here: https://youtu.be/I-sOb51LSFc?feature=shared
You can subscribe to our email list by sending a message to [email protected] with the subject: subscribe planetary-science.doaj
We plan to have an open call for editors and associate editors in March at LPSC, and the launch date is expected to be January 2026 or earlier
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IMPACT CRATERING AND ASSOCIATED RESEARCH US (ICAARUS) WORKSHOP MAY 31 – JUNE 1, 2025, FLAGSTAFF, AZ
The Barringer Crater Company is hosting a 2-day workshop in Flagstaff (and at Meteor Crater) to promote interdisciplinary impact crater science in the US.
The goal of ICAARUS is to reinvigorate impact cratering research in the United States by assessing the current state of impact crater research as well as the funding landscape, and to strategize ways to support a sustained impact cratering community. This workshop will be the first in a series that will consider outstanding scientific problems in impact cratering to generate creative interdisciplinary research and collaboration. This workshop is open to impact crater scientists with the focus on field work, laboratory work, modeling, astrobiology,
analogues, and more!
As part of their initiative to increase impact cratering research, The Barringer Crater Company is proud to host ICAARUS 2025 and fund participants’ travel to Flagstaff.
To all interested scientists, please submit an application due January 15, 2025. Responses will be sent by the organizing committee by February 1, 2025.
The application is available at: https://tinyurl.com/rczr4h63
For more information, contact: Dr. Steven Jaret ([email protected]) or Dr. Carolyn Crow ([email protected])
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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 12 – Volume 5 – The Planetary Science Journal – IOPscience
Icarus:
Icarus | Vol 424, In progress (December 2024) | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier
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JOBS, POSITIONS, AND OPPORTUNITIES
The DPS job board is now working. Job seekers and employers are encouraged to browse DPS’s job listings and advertise open positions **for free**.
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.
- Software Developer for NASA’s Near-Earth Object Surveyor mission
IPAC at Caltech invites applications for a Software Developer to join the team that is developing the Survey Data System for NASA’s Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor mission. As a Software Developer, you will build and maintain the software that will prepare, reformat, and package the NEO Surveyor Survey Data Systems (NSDS) data products for routine ingestion into the NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive (IRSA).
- Quality Assurance Scientist
IPAC at the California Institute of Technology invites applications for one or more Quality Assurance Scientists to work on the Near-Earth Object Surveyor (NEOS) program. NEOS is a NASA Planetary Defense mission, scheduled for launch in late 2027, that will detect, track, and characterize solar system small bodies that pose a hazard to the Earth. The NEOS observatory consists of a passively cooled 50 cm telescope located near Sun-Earth L1 equipped with a wide-field camera that will image the sky simultaneously in two mid-infrared bands. NEOS will detect approximately 200,000 Main Belt Asteroids, NEOs, and comets each day against a background of hundreds of millions of distant stars and galaxies.
- Two Tenure-Track Faculty Positions at the University of Idaho
The Physics Department at the University of Idaho is seeking to hire two new tenure-track faculty members at the assistant professor level. We seek faculty members who will establish strong research programs in experimental, theoretical or computational physics that will complement or build on existing strengths within the department and the College of Science. The department currently has faculty working on various topics in astrophysics, biophysics, condensed matter, nuclear physics and planetary science, and the college is pursuing initiatives in biomedical and bioengineering fields. The new faculty members will be expected to mentor undergraduate and graduate students in the physics program. The University of Idaho places a high priority on hiring faculty with an array of backgrounds and experiences, as well as researchers with a variety of perspectives.
- Postdoctoral Research Associate in Planetary Atmospheric Modeling
The Lunar & Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona has an opening for a Postdoctoral Research Associate I in the field of planetary atmospheres. Efforts from this postdoctoral associate will emphasize developing convection-resolving models and applications of these tools to sub-stellar objects. The postdoctoral associate will also co-develop a computational methods training program delivered to undergraduate researchers from historically underrepresented groups.
- [NASA] ROSES-24 AMENDMENT 63: F.5 FINESST – SMD’S GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH CLARIFICATIONS AND CORRECTIONS
F.5 Future Investigators in NASA Earth and Space Science and Technology (FINESST) solicits proposals for graduate student-designed and performed research projects relevant to NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.
F.5 FINESST has been updated in several ways: Text in Sections 2.3 and 2.6 were moved for clarity, no changes to requirements or scope, clarifying language related to SMD citizen science was added to Section 2.6. A link to a NASA video on Biographical Sketches and Current and
Pending Requirements was added to Section 4.1.6, and a sentence about the opportunity provide a revised budget was added to Section 4.1.10. In Section 12.14 budget instructions were clarified. New text is in bold and deleted text is struck through. The Due date is unchanged: Proposals are due February 5, 2025. Playback information for the December 6, 2024 Webinar and Q/A is posted under other documents on the NSPIRES page for this program element. The Webinar Recording is available at:
For more information regarding FINESST, please visit: https://tinyurl.com/umkc3v3s
Questions regarding F.5 FINESST may be directed to [email protected]
- Research Associate in Mega-Constellation Space Physics
The rise of satellite mega-constellations in low Earth orbit is unlocking the possibility of ubiquitous global monitoring of our planet. This Research Associate in Mega-Constellation Space Physics will explore the potential of harnessing mega-constellations for monitoring the solar wind – magnetosphere – ionosphere interaction to advance space weather science and operations.
By becoming a key member of the exciting UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship project “Harnessing mega-constellations to probe space weather globally” in the Department of Physics at Imperial College London (UK), you will undertake original research exploring how satellite mega-constellation could dramatically improve upon current capabilities. You will develop global spatiotemporal fitting and data assimilation methods for mega-constellation magnetic field observations to unveil the dynamic magnetosphere – ionosphere current systems present. These methods will be tested using Imperial’s global magnetospheric simulations to understand the capabilities of current and future satellite constellations for space weather operations and science. Ultimately the methods will be applied to data collected from Eutelsat OneWeb’s Gen1 mega-constellation of over 630 satellites to advance our current scientific and operational capabilities in space weather. Through this work you will not only set new directions for space missions and satellite operators, but also improve our understanding of the dynamics of the solar wind – magnetosphere – ionosphere interaction in general.
We are looking for people with knowledge of the solar wind – magnetosphere – ionosphere interaction, and practical experience in a broad range of techniques including satellite observations, computer simulations, or theoretical analysis. The deadline for applications is Sunday 5 January 2025. The post is for 3 years, with possibility of extension subject to funding. For full details see https://www.imperial.ac.uk/jobs/search-jobs/description/index.php?jobId=21670&jobTitle=Research+Associate+in+Mega-Constellation+Space+Physics
If you are thinking of applying, you are encouraged to contact the project PI Dr Martin Archer ([email protected]).
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Send submissions to: Denise Stephens, DPS Secretary, at this address [email protected]
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