Division for Planetary Sciences
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Prizes

The deadline for the 2022 nomination period is 15 April 2022.

 

Contents

  • DPS-Sponsored Prizes

  • Previous Winners

  • Nomination

  • Prize Subcommittee Rules and Procedures

  • Prize Subcommittee Membership

 

DPS-Sponsored Prizes

The Gerard P. Kuiper Prize [1] honors outstanding contributions to the field of planetary science.

The Claudia J. Alexander Prize [2] recognizes outstanding achievement in planetary research by a mid-career scientist.

The Harold C. Urey Prize [3] recognizes outstanding achievement in planetary research by an early-career scientist.

The Harold Masursky Award [4] acknowledges outstanding service to planetary science and exploration.

The Carl Sagan Medal [5] recognizes and honors outstanding communication by an active planetary scientist to the general public.

The Jonathan Eberhart Planetary Sciences Journalism Award [6] recognizes and stimulates distinguished popular writing on planetary sciences.

 

Previous Winners

  Kuiper Prize Urey Prize Masursky Award Sagan Medal Eberhart Award Alexander Prize
2021 [7] Therese Encrenaz Lynnae Quick Mark Showalter Nicolle Zellner Camille Carlisle Elizabeth Turtle
        Adam Frank    
2020 [8] Wing-Huen Ip Rebekah Dawson Heidi Hammel Ray Jayawardhana Christopher Crockett  
2019 [9] Maria Zuber Kelsi Singer Phil Nicholson Carrie Nugent Rebecca Boyle  
2018 [10] Julio Ángel Fernández Alves Francesca DeMeo Faith Vilas Bonnie J. Buratti Alexandra Witze  
2017 [11] Margaret Kivelson Bethany Ehlmann Louise Prockter Megan Schwamb Josh Sokol  
        Henry Throop
2016 [12] Stanton Peale Leigh Fletcher Mark Sykes Yong-Chun Zheng Nadia Drake  
2015 [13] Yuk Yung Geronimo Villanueva Christina Richey Dan Durda Stephen Battersby  
2014 [14] Peter Gierasch Matija Cuk Athena Coustenis Guy Consolmagno James Oberg  
2013 [15] Joseph Veverka Anders Johansen Ronald Greeley Donald K. Yeomans Richard A. Kerr  
2012 [16] Darrell Strobel Alberto Fairen Susan Niebur Patrick Michel Michael Carroll  
2011 [17] William Ward Eric B. Ford Benton C. Clark III James Bell Emily Lakdawalla  
2010 [18] Jeffrey N. Cuzzi Jonathan J. Fortney Alan Tokunaga Carolyn C. Porco George Musser  
2009 [19] Tobias C. Owen Sarah T. Stewart-Mukhopadhyay no award Steven W. Squyres J. Kelly Beatty  
2008 [20] Michael A'Hearn no award Jon D. Giorgini G. Jeffrey Taylor
2007 [21] Andrew P. Ingersoll Francis Nimmo Tom Gehrels no award
2006 [22] Dale P. Cruikshank Tristan Guillot Gentry Lee David H. Grinspoon
2005 [23] William Hubbard David Nesvorny J. Kelly Beatty Rosaly Lopes
2004 [24] Carle M. Pieters Jean-Luc Margot Alexander Basilevsky David Morrison
2003 [25] Steven J. Ostro Robin M. Canup Reta F. Beebe no award
2002 [26] Eberhard Grün Brett J. Gladman no award Heidi B. Hammel
2001 [27] Bruce Hapke Michael Brown no award Andre Brahic
2000 [28] Conway B. Leovy Alessandro Morbidelli George E. Brown, Jr. Larry A. Lebofsky
1999 Armand H. Delsemme Douglas P. Hamilton Wesley T. Huntress Clark R. Chapman
1998 Carl E. Sagan Erik I. Asphaug Jurgen H. Rahe William K. Hartmann
1997 Irwin I. Shapiro Renu Malhotra John T. Trauger
1996 Barney J. Conrath Heidi B. Hammel William Quaide
1995 Michael J. Belton Emmanuel Lellouch William Brunk
1994 James A. Van Allen Karen J. Meech Joesph A. Burns
1993 James R. Arnold Roger V. Yelle Mildred S. Matthews
1992 Peter Goldreich Jack J. Lissauer Harlan J. Smith
1991 Edward Anders Richard P. Binzel Carl Sagan
1990 Viktor S. Safronov David J. Tholen
1989 James B. Pollack Chris P. McKay
1988 Rudolf A. Hanel Jonathan I. Lunine
1987 Donald M. Hunten Steve W. Squyres
1986 George W. Wetherill Jack L. Wisdom
1985 Fred L. Whipple Larry W. Esposito
1984 Eugene M. Shoemaker David J. Stevenson

 

Nomination

The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) of the American Astronomical Society awards its named prizes annually (or less frequently).

All DPS members are encouraged to submit nominations for DPS prizes.

For purposes of these prizes, planetary science shall be understood to refer to the multidisciplinary study of our Solar System, as well as other planetary systems, excluding work dealing primarily with the Sun, Earth, or other stars.

The final responsibility for determining the award frequency and for selecting the recipients lies with the DPS Committee.

Anyone (except DPS Officers, Committee members and Prize Subcommittee members, as defined in the DPS Bylaws) may submit a nomination. 

DPS officers, DPS Committee members, and members of the DPS Prize Subcommittee may not submit nominations or supporting letters. Sitting members [29] of the DPS Prize Subcommittee are not eligible for awards. Such nominations will be considered submitted once that member has rotated off the Subcommittee.

The DPS expects that a candidate for nomination follows the AAS Code of Ethics [30] and actively promotes AAS core values. 

A complete nomination submitted by the deadline will be considered by the Prize Subcommittee for three (3) years (i.e. for this year's award, next year's award, and the year after that), or for the duration of a candidate's eligibility, whichever is less.  Past nominees may be re-nominated after the expiration of a prior nomination.

Though DPS Prizes are primarily intended to honor living people, a posthumous nomination (except for the Sagan Medal) may be submitted within the nomination period containing the first anniversary of the date of death of the nominee, and will be considered for three years.  In the case of the Urey Prize, the nominee will be considered for three years, or until the nominee would have reached the time limit following receipt of the Ph.D. as specified for living recipients, whichever is smaller. Posthumous nominations are not renewable. Only living nominees will be considered for the Sagan Medal.

In the case of a posthumous recipient, there generally will be no cash award, but reasonable travel expenses will be offered for an appropriate survivor to attend the DPS meeting and receive the prize certificate and citation.

Please fill out the nomination form [31], and it will be submitted to the Prize Subcommittee.

The Eberhart Award has different rules and procedures than the other DPS Prizes; please see its page [6] for more information.

 

Prize Subcommittee Rules and Procedures

 

Selection Procedure

The Prize Subcommittee assists the DPS Committee in selecting recipients by reviewing all nominations received, verifying eligibility, and preparing a slate of approximately three candidates for each award.

All the nominations and selection procedures will be carried out in a confidential manner.

Prior to the annual meeting of the DPS, the Prize Subcommittee shall provide the DPS Committee with an ordered slate of approximately three choices for each prize, unless there are fewer than two valid nominations for a prize, in which case all valid nominations shall be included in the slate. One of the choices may be a recommendation for no award, which may be placed in any order in the slate of choices. The Subcommittee shall also provide the DPS Committee with all documentation supporting each nominee on the slate.

Final selection - or the choice not to make an award - will be made by the DPS Committee. At an appropriate time, the prize and award recipients will be publicly announced through the DPS Press Officer.

The Eberhart Award [6] has different rules and procedures than the other DPS Prizes; please see its page for more information.

 

Prize Details

For Prize details, see individual listings (Kuiper Prize [1], Alexander Prize [2], Urey Prize [3], Masursky Award [4], Sagan Medal [5], Eberhart Award [6]).

 

Prize Subcommittee Membership

The DPS Prize Subcommittee nominally consists of seven members.  The procedure for appointing new subcommittee members and lists of current and past members can be found here [29].

 

The DPS is a Division of the AAS logo American Astronomical Society.

Send questions, comments, updates to DPS.Webmaster@aas.org

Send graduate school and REU program updates to DPS.EdUpdate@aas.org

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Source URL: https://dps.aas.org/prizes

Links
[1] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/kuiper
[2] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/alexander
[3] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/urey
[4] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/masursky
[5] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/sagan
[6] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/eberhart
[7] http://dps.aas.org/prizes/2021
[8] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2020
[9] http://dps.aas.org/prizes/2019
[10] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2018
[11] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2017
[12] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2016
[13] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2015
[14] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2014
[15] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2013
[16] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2012
[17] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2011
[18] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2010
[19] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2009
[20] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2008
[21] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2007
[22] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2006
[23] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2005
[24] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2004
[25] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2003
[26] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2002
[27] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2001
[28] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/2000
[29] https://dps.aas.org/leadership/prize
[30] https://aas.org/ethics
[31] https://dps.aas.org/prizes/nomination-form