Issue11-09, June 7th 2011
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1) 2011 DPS ELECTIONS: PROCEDURE AND HOW TO VOTE
2) CANDIDATES STATEMENTS
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2011 DPS ELECTIONS : PROCEDURE
The 2011 election for DPS Vice-Chair and Committee is now open, and will close on July 30th 2011.
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.
You should vote for one of the two candidates for Vice-Chair: Rosaly Lopes and Alan Stern.
The Vice-Chair will become the DPS Chair in October 2011.
You should vote for two of the four candidates for DPS Committee:
Ralph McNutt, Patrick Michel, Ingo Mueller-Wodarg and Bob Pappalardo.
The successful candidates will serve on the committee for three years.
The detailed vitae and position statements for each of the candidates follow. This information is also linked from the main election page,
http://aas.org/vote/
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CANDIDATES STATEMENTS
CANDIDATES FOR VICE-CHAIR (Vote for 1)
a) ROSALY LOPES: VICE CHAIR
Senior Research Scientist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology.
Education:
Ph.D. Planetary Science (Board of Physics), University College London, UK, 1986
B.Sc. (Hons Lon), Astronomy, University College London, UK, 1978
Career: JPL employee since 1991; NASA postdoc 1989-1991; Osservatorio Vesuviano postdoc 1989; Old Royal Observatory Greenwich 1985-1989.
Research interests: Planetary geology and volcanology using spacecraft data. Current research focused on the geology of Titan using Cassini data and the thermal properties of active volcanoes on Io using Galileo and New Horizons data. Research experience includes both inner and outer solar system and imaging, infrared spectroscopy, and radar observations. Publications include 97 peer-reviewed publications and 5 books.
Selected Honors:
Carl Sagan Medal, AAS Division for Planetary Sciences, 2005
American Association for the Advancement of Science: AAAS Fellow, elected 2006
NASA Exceptional Service Medal, 2007
Numerous other awards for education and outreach and NASA/JPL mission related work.
Selected Service:
Member, DPS Committee (2007-2010)
Member, Scientific Organizing Committee, DPS 2010.
Chair, DPS Nominating Committee 2005-2006 (Member 2003-2005).
Member, DPS 2006 Program Committee
Advisor to Local Organizing Committee, DPS 2006.
Co-chair for Local Organizing Committee, DPS 2000.
Member, AAAS Annual Meeting Program Committee (representing planetary sciences, astronomy, education, public outreach, and diversity), 2007-2010
Chair, Outer Solar System Task Group (IAU Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature), 2006-present (Member, 2005-2006)
Member, Advisory Council, The Planetary Society (2007-present)
Member, AAS Astronomy Education Board, 2006-2009
Member of The National Academies Committee on Planetary Protection Standards for Icy Bodies in the Outer Solar System (2010-2012) and Committee to study the next announcement of opportunity (AO) for NASA’s New Frontiers missions, 2007-2008.
Candidate Statement:
Planetary science is exploration at its best. It is about pushing new frontiers and discovering new worlds. Our accomplishments of the first half century are well known around the world. We have placed spacecraft in orbit around all the planets out to Saturn, and became intimately involved in in-situ observations of the Moon and Mars. As a community, we should be very proud that our work is part of history. It is a tremendous honor to be considered for DPS Vice-Chair to help our community push the scientific and exploration frontiers of our solar system and beyond.
Despite our accomplishments, we face a daunting crisis. There is a real prospect of a decade passing before the world initiates another flagship planetary mission. This arises because the various Nation States that support the many national funding agencies for planetary science world wide all face a common problem – a crushing national debt crisis. The world’s planetary science research community can address this crisis but it will require a change in our fundamental way of doing business. We must advance our research program to a far higher level of international cooperation, particularly for large and expensive missions. The DPS should provide the forum to develop this concept. My experience on Cassini has given me a perspective on how well international cooperation in a flagship-type mission can work and, as someone who has lived and worked on both Europe and the US, I feel that I have an international perspective on the challenges our community faces.
At a more internal level, I have long served DPS and feel that I know most aspects of our organization. I was on the Nominating Committee and DPS Committee, I co-chaired the organization of DPS 2000 and served on both scientific and local organizing committees for other meetings. A major concern of the DPS members I’ve talked to is the increased cost of attending meetings. I totally agree that we should do whatever we can to lower registration fees and lodging costs, including offering low-cost options for students. The DPS was forced to raise registration fees in recent years due to losses, including those incurred during some meetings, but we are recovering and can go back to the “not for profit” mode for meetings.
To summarize, I can offer the DPS (i) a strong international perspective; (ii) research experience in both inner and outer solar system, in NRA programs and missions; (iii) experience in serving DPS, knowledge of the organization and deep commitment to its success; and (iv) vast experience in education and outreach which, I believe, will become more important in future years as funding becomes more competitive and, more than ever, we need strong public support.
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b) ALAN STERN: VICE-CHAIR
Associate Vice President, Southwest Research Institute
Education; University of Texas: BS (Physics 1978), BA (Astronomy1980), MS (Aerospace Engineering 1981). University of Colorado: PhD (Astrophysics and Planetary Science 1989).
Professional Background:
U. Colorado: Research Fellow, Center for Space & Geosciences Policy, 1988-1990
SwRI: Principal Scientist, Section Manager, Department Director, Executive Director (1991-2007)
NASA: Associate Administrator/SMD, 2007-2008
SwRI: Associate Vice President, 2009-
Research Interests: Prior PI in NASA Origins, Planetary Astronomy, AISRP, IUE, HST, and Neptune DAP programs. Over 210 published papers on topics including: Kuiper Belt and Oort Cloud; Pluto and Triton; the origin of comets and planetesimals; the atmospheres of the Moon, Io, and comets; UV photometry/imaging/spectroscopy of surfaces and atmospheres; spacecraft rendezvous theory; space policy.
NASA Headquarters Experience: Served in the Senior Executive Services as the Associate Administrator of SMD (2007-2008). Significant planetary related accomplishments included increasing R&A budgets, increasing NAI’s budget, initiating the SARA R&A position within the SMD front office, opening R&A grants to routine 4 year lengths, and starting SALMON, initiating Lunar Quest, LADEE, and NLSI, commissioning the NOSSE study to open up New Frontiers, re-opening SETI studies within the R&A program, and increasing NEA search funds.
Selected Space Mission Experience: Participating Scientist: New Millennium Deep Space-1. CoI: Mars Express SPICAM, Venus Express SPICAV, HST Cosmic Origins Spectrograph. Instrument PI: NASA Sounding Rocket Program (7 flights); Shuttle CHAMP & SWUIS UV imagers (4 flights); Rosetta-Alice UV spectrograph; New Horizons-Alice UV spectrograph; New Horizons-Ralph VIS-IR imager/spectrograph; LRO-LAMP UV spectrograph. Mission PI: New Horizons Pluto-Kuiper Belt Mission.
Selected Past Committee Service: Member: Lunar Science Exploration Working Group (LExSWG), Solar System Exploration Subcommittee (SSES), New Millennium Program Science Working Group (NMPSWG), NRC 2003 Solar System Decadal Survey, Primitive Bodies Panel, NRC 2007 Committee on Scientific Context for the Exploration of the Moon. Chair: HST Planetary Telescope Allocation Committee (TAC), NASA Outer Planets Science Working Group (OPSWG), Commercial Spaceflight Federation Suborbital Applications Researchers Group (SARG).
Selected Career Honors: Graduate Fellowship; National Space Society: 25 Young Leaders in Space; Asteroid (6373) Stern named; Deep Space-1, Hale-Bopp, Rosetta, LRO, and New Horizons NASA Group Achievement Awards; Aviation Week Laurel Honoree for Efforts to Initiate a NASA Pluto Mission; Boulder Daily Camera Top Scientist Father; National Space Club Von Braun Aerospace Achievement Award; Fellow, AAAS and IAA; Mazursky Lecturer, 40th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference; George Norlin Distinguished Alumnus Award, University of Colorado; Distinguished Alumnus, St. Mark’s School of Texas; Time 100 Honoree.
DPS Service & Experience:
Member, DPS Program Committee, 1990, 1994
Member, Nominating Committee, 1998, 1999; Chair 2000
Co-Chair, New Orleans DPS-2001 Local Organizing Committee, 1998-2001
Co-Chair, New Orleans DPS-2001 Program Committee, 2000-2001
Member, DPS Federal Relations Subcommittee, 2004-2006
Chair, DPS Federal Relations Subcommittee, 2006
Vice Chair, DPS, 2006-2007 (resigned to become NASA SMD Associate Administrator)
Candidate Statement:
I believe that exploring our solar system is among the most inspiring and forward-looking things humans do. I’m proud of the accomplishments of our profession and the DPS in advancing solar system exploration.
The DPS plays a pivotal role in representing planetary science to NASA, to Congress, to OMB, and to the public at large. I offer my time and my energy in that service. Among my other objectives are to continue the outstanding annual meetings and ensure that these meetings help the financial position of the DPS. I also want the DPS to continue being involved in the practical training of students and postgraduates to win proposals.
There are also some initiatives that I plan to pursue if elected; these include:
– Once again increasing funds to R&A and MO&DA programs.
– Resolving the “Flagship mission dilemma” and increasing flight rates for New Frontiers and Discovery.
– Building stronger professional and mission-related ties to our colleagues abroad, and to both the NSF and to individual NASA centers, perhaps via designated liaison positions to each.
– Working more closely with other professional organizations like AGU and GSA to advance our common interests, for there is strength in numbers.
– Working with industry to broaden summer intern, postdoc, and early career mentorship programs.
– Exploring how a board of industry, government, academic, educational foundation, and celebrity advisors could help DPS better communicate with Congress, industry, and the public at large.
– Determining how we might create DPS endowments to supplement funds for research and analysis, education and public outreach, student fellowships, travel grants, and other activities of DPS members.
As illustrated in the next two paragraphs, I believe that I have gained the experience and personal relationships to lead DPS in each of these goals.
In addition to being a researcher, I have PI’ed flight instruments, and guided a New Frontiers mission from inception, through political difficulties, through development, to launch. And now 5+ years of flight I’ve organized a DPS meeting. I’ve chaired both the DPS Nominating Committee and the Federal Relations Subcommittee, and served previously as Vice Chair. Managerially, I founded, grew, and directed one of the largest planetary groups in the nation over a 15-year period.
I then served as NASA’s Associate Administrator responsible for all Earth and space science; as a result, I have worked with and know NASA’s current Center Directors and senior HQ management, along with OMB and OSTP staffers, and some key members of Congress and their staff aides. Since leaving the Agency in 2008, I have also worked with the leadership of numerous space firms, ranging from large aerospace contractors to smaller newspace companies, and from Virgin Galactic to Google Lunar X-Prize teams, opening numerous doors that I hope can benefit the DPS.
These kinds of activities are certainly not unique, but they do represent an experience base that can hopefully serve the DPS well. I am honored to be nominated to serve as vice chair and chair, experienced at public service and advocacy, and looking forward to advancing the DPS’s interests if elected.
CANDIDATES FOR COMMITTTEE (Vote for two)
a) RALPH MCNUTT: COMMITTEE
Physicist, member of the Principal Professional Staff, and Science and Analysis Branch Scientist (Space Science) of The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
He received his B.S. in Physics (summa cum laude) at Texas A&M University in 1975 and his Ph.D. in Physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1980. He has been at APL since 1992 and before that held positions at Visidyne, Inc., M.I.T., and Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque.
Dr. McNutt is Project Scientist and a Co-Investigator on NASA’s MESSENGER mission to Mercury, Co-Investigator on NASA’s Solar Probe Plus mission to the solar corona, Co-Investigator on the New Horizons mission to Pluto (principal investigator for the PEPSSI instrument), Co-Investigator for the Voyager Interstellar Mission (PLS and LECP instruments), and a Member of the Ion Neutral Mass Spectrometer Team on the Cassini Orbiter spacecraft.
He has held various NASA grants and served on various NASA review and planning panels and Science and Technology Definition Teams for Solar Probe (twice) and Interstellar Probe. He has also served on a variety of National Research Council committees, including recently as Co-Chair of the NRC Committee on Radioisotope Power Supplies (2008-2009), as a Member of the Steering Committee, Solar System Exploration Decadal Survey (2009 – 2011), and as a Member of the Innovations Working Group for the Heliophysics Decadal Survey (2011). He is a Member of International Academy of Astronautics, Fellow of The British Interplanetary Society, Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Member of the American Astronomical Society and its Division for Planetary Sciences, the American Geophysical Union, Sigma Xi, The Planetary Society, and the American Nuclear Society.
Dr. McNutt is the recipient of eleven NASA Group Achievement Awards. He has published over 150 science and engineering papers and over 250 scientific and engineering abstracts and given over 150 professional and popular talks.
Candidate statement
As noted in the bylaws, the DPS “shall exist for the purpose of advancing the investigation of the solar system and other planetary systems, with special encouragement of interdisciplinary cooperation.” Planetary exploration has always had a primary place within NASA and on the cutting edge of technical capabilities. This role has always led to budgetary challenges, and that is certainly the case today. In some ways, the pressures are not unlike those of the early-to-mid 1990s that required a drastic re-scoping of many of the concepts then in place but also led to the successful Discovery program.
While new significant scientific discoveries and singular technical performance have continued to emerge, so have cost overruns and an increasing sensitivity to them by policy makers. The new Decadal Survey has provided a clear prioritization of program elements, scientific justification of those elements, a plan of action that can be modified to fit growing or declining budgets, and cost estimates that are likely the most robust put forward for such a plan to date. There are three significant challenges: (1) ensure that the cost imperatives put forward are enforced, (2) advocate for the type of budget required in order to implement the “recommended program” of the Decadal, and (3) ensure that the infrastructure – both human and technological – remain in place for carrying out the program. Such advocacy is with the public, non-planetary – but scientific – peers, the legislative branch of the Federal Government, other Federal Agencies, e.g. the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the Office of Management and Budget OMB), and NASA as well.
As a non-governmental, advocacy group, the DPS has the unique ability – and responsibility – to leverage the planetary science community in advocacy of the program across governmental barriers and to the public at large. Part of this role is in educating all of the stakeholders in the value of the program both to science and the nation as a whole. An equally important role is in educating both the DPS membership as well as the outside world in the intricacies – and importance – of highly technical issues, such as Pu-238 availability, launch vehicle costs and in-space propulsion issues, and the issues surrounding deep-space communication. Such technology infrastructure items have long-lead times for changes and high associated costs, yet form a triad of means essential for programs in the past and without which the current program plan can not be executed in the future.
The DPS Committee has a special role to play in ensuring a strong organization, acting as a clearinghouse for information transfer within the membership, advocating planetary exploration and science, and reaching out to other professional societies and organizations, such as engineering societies, where there are common interests and needs in promoting planetary exploration. I look forward to serving in such a proactive role.
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b) PATRICK MICHEL: COMMITTEE
Directeur de Recherches at the French National Scientific Research, France
Educational Background
• 2004: Thesis of Habilitation to manage researches, University of Nice-Sophia (UNS), France; thesis title: “From the fragmentation to the gravitational evolution of asteroids”
• 1997: PhD in Astrophysics (with honors and congratulations of the jury), UNS, France; thesis title: “Dynamical evolution of Near-Earth Asteroids”
• 1994: DEA (Post-master degree) in Imaging, Astronomy and High-Angular Resolution (with honors), UNS, France
• 1993: Diploma of Engineer in Aeronautics and Space Techniques from french Ecole Supérieure d’Aéronautique
Career and Selected Services
• Permanent Researcher at National Center of Scientific Research, CNRS (from October 1999 – present); grade: Directeur de Recherches (equivalent: Senior Researcher or Full Professor)
• Leader of the Group of Planetology of the Cassiopée Laboratory, Côte d’Azur Observatory (From 2002 – present).
• Co-PI of the proposals of the Marco Polo and MarcoPolo-R Sample Return Mission at the European Space Agency; member of the Science Team for the assessment study phase (2008-2010 and 2011-2013).
• Secretary of the Division 3 (Planetary Sciences) of the International Astornomical Union (2009-2012).
• Member of the Group of Experts “Solar System” at National Center of Space Studies, CNES (from 2009)
• Member of the Editorial Board of the Journal Icarus (2007-2010)
• Member of the Near-Earth Object Technical Committee of the International Astronautical Federation
• Member of the Near Earth Object Mission Advisory Panel (NEOMAP) of the European Space Agency (2004-2007).
• External reviewer of several grant applications to the PGG NASA program
• ESA External Fellow at Torino Observatory, Italy (1997-1999)
• Organizer and co-organizer of several international meetings (e.g. 6th and 7th Catastrophic Disruption Workshops in Cannes in 2003 and Alicante in 2007, DDA meeting in Cannes in 2004, Marco Polo Symposium in Cannes in 2008 and Paris 2009).
• SOC Member of the DPS meeting in Padova (Italy) in 1999 and of the DPS/EPSC meeting in Nantes (France) in 2011
• Participation to many outreach activities (French TV and Radio shows, regular public lectures in various exhibitions or specific events).
Research Specialization
• Collisional process between small bodies (simulations of catastrophic disruption including fragmentation and gravitational reaccumulations, development of fragmentation models for different material types, scaling laws, impact experiments)
• Asteroid binary formation
• Granular dynamics applied to the surface and interior of small bodies
• Origin, physical properties, collisional and dynamical evolutions of small bodies
Publications
Over 60 refereed publications, 28 Invited Reviews, several chapters in books and
Encyclopedias, and articles in public newspapers.
Awards
• Prize “Young Researcher” HP-AMD 2006 of the French Society of Astronomy and Astrophysics (SF2A)
• Asteroid 7561 “PatrickMichel” (attributed by the IAU in 1999)
• JSPS (Japan Society for the Promotion of Science) Research fellow in 2000, 2006-2008
Candidate Statement
I want to start this statement by a positive note, although I am fully aware of the difficult economic times in US and worldwide that the DPS will also have to deal with. At the very least, we should appreciate the fact that this epoch has very exciting aspects for a researcher in planetary science. While a few tens of years ago the Earth was still not observed from space, we have now seen amazing detailed images of bodies that evolve several tens of millions to billions miles from us (small bodies, terrestrial and giant planets, planetary satellites). Each time space images are returned, our knowledge is drastically improved and very often requires great revisions. This is one of the advantages of the field of planetology compared with many other astronomical fields: the possibility to observe sometimes in real time some physical phenomena on other bodies (e.g. geysers on Enceladus, comet outburst), in conditions that are so different than those on Earth, allowing us to push our understanding to the limits. Then, we have now more than 400 exoplanetary systems in our growing database after only less than two decades of observations. We must all feel lucky to live and be actors of these discoveries and observations from the ground and from space, despite the fact that our epoch is now faced with great economic difficulties, and also terrible human disasters. And the public with whom we can and must share these discoveries is fascinated. Moreover, the drastic and fast increase in computer performances allows us to explore numerically various kinds of processes, and to derive consistent scenarios of formation and evolution of our solar system and other planetary systems.
The DPS, through its annual meeting and other activities, plays a central role to develop these researches and to achieve the results that come out of them. In particular for non-US citizens, although it belongs to an American Society, the DPS offers us to be part of a unique international community working in this field, involving not only US researchers but also colleagues from a great number of other countries, and to develop fruitful collaborations involving the best world experts. For a graduate student, which I was when I participated to my first DPS meeting, it is a very enriching and exciting experience that opens many doors and possible collaborations. Actually, most of my projects started during discussions at those meetings that bring together the planetary science community. Sharing different culture experiences, different ways of working and different ways of expressing ourselves are so enriching on a personal level, for science advancement and for educating the future generation of researchers, that we must fight to keep it happen despite the economical difficulties that all nations are facing. Having a strong national and international community is a very important signal to the people who take decisions regarding science budgets and policy. If I am elected as a DPS committee member, I would like to follow with great care the discussions of the DPS committee regarding the definition and organization of future DPS meetings, and discuss what is or is not necessary to keep it one of the best (if not THE best) meeting for our community. I would also look for opportunities to create or expand networking among scientists, whether they are permanent researchers, post-docs, or graduate students, through the different means of communications. I would also motivate participation in public outreach activities and projects to communicate our passion and excitement as well as the current knowledge in our field that is so easy to expose thanks to the fantastic images and tools at our disposal (think of the old times when our colleagues only had black boards to describe the current knowledge!). Sharing our passion and knowledge with the public, and seeing its excitement, is a pleasure by itself. Moreover, the public support is also something necessary to encourage the funding of our researches, especially during difficult economic times. I would for instance encourage the systematic organization of one or a few public lectures during DPS meetings in the cities where they take place, as one of the ways to do this. This is already planed for the Nantes meeting in 2011, where I and some other colleagues will indeed make public lectures during the week.
Communicating, sharing different cultures, experiences and knowledge, as well as debating science and related issues (even business ones) are the key for the best advancement of science. The DPS must keep playing its role in those activities. Space missions become now very often too expensive to be financed by one space agency, whether it is NASA, ESA or JAXA, to mention the three biggest ones. Planetary missions are an important component of the space activity of these agencies, and the DPS is certainly concerned by the space policy planed for our field. It recently endorsed the outcome of the NASA decadal survey and the recommended priorities with their implications regarding the partnerships with other agencies. As a European representative, I would also consider myself as a link with the non-US component (at least European) of the DPS, and this is something that I think is a big responsibility, as I need to make sure that my contribution represents fairly and is appreciated by our community on other continents.
In conclusion, I would be more than extremely honored to belong to the DPS committee and serve the DPS community with my greatest excitement.
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c) INGO MUELLER-WODARG: COMMITTEE
Reader at Imperial College London, UK
Education:
MSc (Space Science), University College London, 1992
PhD (Physics), University College London, 1997
Positions:
Post-doctoral positions at University College London and the University of Southampton (1997-2002)
Research Associate (part time), Center for Space Physics, Boston University (1998-2002)
Royal Society University Research Fellow at University College London (2002-2003) and Imperial College London (2003-2010)
Lecturer in Planetary Science, Imperial College London (2005-2008)
Reader (~”Associate Professor”) in Planetary Science, Imperial College London (2008-present)
Visiting Fellow, Center for Space Physics, Boston University (2002-present)
Areas of expertise:
Focus of my work is the study of planetary atmospheres, investigating their responses to solar and magnetospheric forcing, studying their global structures, dynamics and variability. Initially in my career I studied the Earth’s thermosphere-ionosphere system, then successively moving towards different bodies in the solar system, including Titan, Saturn, Venus and Triton. Main tools I use in my work are General Circulation Models (GCMs) which I have developed and run for the above bodies, but my work also utilizes 1-D and 2-D models and consists in part of data analysis. I am member of the Cassini Ion Neutral Mass Spectrometer Science Team, Team Leader for the Venus Express Atmospheric Drag Experiment and member of the Radio and Plasma Wave Consortium for the Europa Jupiter System Mission. A key focus of my work is the comparative approach between solar system bodies, whereby I study them through inter-comparisons to obtain a deeper understanding of the underlying physics.
Recent Service (selected list):
Member, Nasa Planetary Astronomy Grant Panel (2010)
Member, Astronomy Grant Panel, UK Science & Technology Facilities Council (2010)
Associate Editor, Journal of Geophysical Research (2006-2010)
Member, Joint Science Definition Team, Europa Jupiter System Mission (2008-2010)
Chair, Science Advisory Board and Deputy Science Coordinator of Europlanet (2005 – 2008)
Chair of UK Planetary Forum (2002-2006)
Awards:
Royal Society University Research Fellowship (2002-2010)
Candidate Statement:
Planetary scientists today are particularly fortunate in having access to observations and simulation tools of unprecedented quality to study planets and smaller bodies in our solar system. Our knowledge and understanding of the solar system has dramatically increased over the past decades, allowing us to ask increasingly smart questions – a sign of solid scientific advances. The excitement about these unprecedented advances and opportunities is somewhat dampened by increasingly restricted financial resources which impact scientific exploitation of existing data, restrict future career opportunities of junior scientists and limit the planning of future scientific exploration opportunities in space. A real challenge within the community is how to best allocate the limited resources, what areas to focus on over the coming years, decade and beyond.
The DPS plays a key role in bringing together scientists world-wide to encourage and enable scientific exchange on an intellectual level. Via its very successful international meetings it also brings together scientists on a social level, helping establish and maintain many collaborations. Especially the younger generations of scientists benefit immensely from the events organized by the DPS, which often provide “low cost access” to “world class” science and scientists. These meetings also support the crucial communication within the community about strategic issues, such as the definition of future priorities and directions.
If elected into the DPS council I would see myself first and foremost as representative of the international science community and not as an individual with my own interests primarily at heart. Throughout my career I have been fortunate to interact with colleagues from a wide spectrum of interests, helping me see the great fascination of so many other “DPS-related” disciplines, to see the “big picture” rather than my “own backyard” only. In my previous role as Chair of the UK Planetary Forum one key aim was to bring together the community of junior planetary scientists, something we achieved by establishing the “Young Person’s Planetary Meeting” which was very successful at the time and still runs strongly to-date after almost a decade. Now, like then, I have a keen interest in also representing the interests of more junior members of our community whose voices often provide original and fresh insights, while lacking influence. Having organised and co-organised numerous science meetings, edited and co-edited books and journals, contributed towards mission design and more, I have always reached out to colleagues beyond my own specific field, something which has always enriched my experience.
If elected into the DPS council I would continue this principle of reaching out to understand different and differing viewpoints in order to try and most effectively carry out the representative role that I am asked to fulfill. Having worked (and continuing to do so) on both sides of the Atlantic, I am well placed for understanding views from both communities and would thus see it as my particular role to reach across both, to act as “International representative”.
I am very honoured to have been asked to stand as a candidate for the DPS council, and it would be my great honour to be your representative there. Thank you in advance for your support!
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d) ROBERT PAPPALARDO: COMMITTEE
Senior Research Scientist, Planetary Sciences Section, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
Scientific Focus:
Research focuses on processes that have shaped the icy satellites of the outer solar system, especially Europa and the role of its probable subsurface ocean. Europa research includes understanding the satellite’s tectonic structures and stresses, the possible occurrence of solid-state convection, and implications of surface geology for lithospheric properties and the existence of a liquid water ocean. Additional research includes the nature, origin, and evolution of bright grooved terrain on Ganymede; the geological implications of geyser-like activity on Enceladus; and the processes that shape the surface of Titan.
Education:
Ph.D. Geology, Arizona State University, 1994.
B.A. Geological Sciences, Cornell University, 1986.
Professional Positions:
Senior Research Scientist, JPL, 2006–present.
Visiting Faculty Associate, Caltech, 2007–present.
Assistant Professor, Univ. Colorado, 2001–2006.
Research Associate, Brown Univ., 1995–2001.
Research Associate, Arizona State Univ., 1994–1995.
Mission And Pre-Project Involvement:
Chair, Europa Science Definition Team, 2011–present.
Pre-Project Scientist for Jupiter Europa Orbiter, 2009– 2011.
Study Scientist for Jupiter Europa Orbiter, 2008–2010.
Project Scientist for Cassini Equinox Mission, 2008–2009.
Europa Flagship Science Definition Team Co-Chair, 2007.
Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter Science Definition Team, 2003–2004.
Europa Orbiter Science Definition Team, 1998–1999.
Affiliate Member, Galileo Solid State Imaging Team, 1994–2001.
Selected Professional Activities:
Member, National Academy of Sciences Space Studies Board, 2008–present.
Co-Chair, National Research Council’s Committee on the Origins and Evolution of Life (COEL), 2008–2011.
Editor, Europa, Univ. Arizona Press, 2007–2009.
DPS Scientific Program Committee, 2001, 2003, 2006.
NASA Solar System Exploration Subcommittee (SSES), 2004– 2005.
Steering Group Member and Vice Chair of Large Satellites Panel, Planetary Decadal Survey, 2001–2002.
Member, National Research Council’s Committee on Planetary and Lunar Exploration (COMPLEX), 2000–2003.
Candidate Statement:
The DPS is my home: from the day I snuck into the 1983 Cornell DPS meeting as an undergraduate, to the 1989 Brown meeting where I realized that planetary science is definitely the field for me, to an exhilarating invited plenary talk on Europa at the 1997 Cambridge (MA) meeting, to serving on the Scientific Program Committee several times in the 2000s.
Some of you know me through scientific partnerships, past and present institutional affiliations, or my roles on Cassini and Europa. If so, you know that I am determined, persistent, and sincere. My guiding philosophies are that the scientific integrity must always be preeminent, and that transparency and community involvement must be at the forefront. What is best for the scientific community must trump institutional or personal interests.
As a DPS Committee member, I would bring to bear my broad institutional base in university and NASA settings (Cornell, ASU, Brown, the University of Colorado, and Caltech/JPL), which has provided experience in a range of forums: teaching classes and mentoring students; fighting for grants and proposing spacecraft instruments; and working to further missions and interfacing with NASA Headquarters. Along the way I’ve served on COEL, COMPLEX, SSES, and the first Planetary Decadal Survey, and I’ve worked in many other scientific and outreach capacities.
I see the key objective of the DPS Committee over the next several years as actively advocating the planetary program as outlined in the Planetary Decadal Survey. This will involve working with NASA, Congressional representatives, and the public to communicate the breath, depth, and value of our field. There is danger that this carefully considered program could be sidetracked or derailed in coming months or years. An engaged and vigorous DPS Committee and planetary community are required to ensure that this program can take root and flourish.
I would also like to serve as a bridge between the planetary astronomy base of the DPS community to the planetary geology and astrobiology communities, which are historically less active in DPS. At this critical juncture for planetary science, inclusion and unity are vital, and will best serve our broad scientific and programmatic objectives.
I look forward the opportunity to work for you as part of the DPS Committee.
