DPS CHILDCARE SURVEY

Please follow the following link and fill out a childcare survey for
DPS.  It will take 5 minutes, at most.  If you have ever, will ever,
need now, or don’t care at all about childcare, please fill out the
survey!  This is especially important for those of you who have had
childcare issues impact your ability to travel.  We will use the
results of this survey to assess the type of support that the DPS can
provide.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SZ9FJDP

 

Thank you for your time!
Rachel Mastrapa, Majd Mayyasi
Professional Development Subcommittee
Questions?  Rachel.M.Mastrapa@nasa.gov

More congratulations are in order!

The Women in Planetary Science blog congratulates Emily Lakdawalla on receiving the Jonathan Eberhart Planetary Sciences Journalism Award from the American Astronomical Society’s Division of Planetary Sciences!  The award is given annually “to recognize and stimulate distinguished popular writing on planetary sciences,” and based on a particular article.  The honored article is Lakdawalla’s The Phoebe Ring, which brings into focus the new discovery by Anne Verbiscer et al. of a gargantuan (I can’t think of a better word than Emily’s) ring around Saturn, from 128 Rs to 207 Rs,  associated with Saturn’s moon Phoebe.  Verbiser’s Nature article announces it, and Lakdawalla’s article explains it, with all the background necessary to understand its context and its significance. 

It’s seriously good reading, and the perfect way to start your Tuesday.

A Graduation Celebration!

It’s May, so that means many planetary science graduate students are donning caps and gowns.  Let’s take a moment to pause and congratulate all of the women who’ve earned a Master’s or Ph.D. in Planetary Science (or a related field) this academic year.  Graduates, well done!  We at the Women in Planetary Science blog salute you!

Here are some of the graduates for the 2010-2011 academic year.  If you aren’t listed, we apologize!  Please add your name, degree received and date, institution, and title of your thesis/dissertation as a comment to this post.  To all graduates: feel free to provide a comment about what you’ll be doing next.

Again, congratulations to all the planetary science MS and Ph.D. graduates!!!

• Kristin Block, MS in Planetary Sciences, 2011, U. of Arizona. “Fulgurite Classification, Petrology and Implications for Planetary Processes.”
• Stephanie M. Brown, MS in Earth and Planetary Science, 2011, MIT. “An Experimental Approach to Thermal and Solar Weathering of Mercury’s Crust.”
• Jennifer Buz, MS in Earth and Planetary Science, 2011, MIT.  “Recent Lunar Magnetism.”
• Selby Cull, Ph.D. in Earth and Planetary Sciences, 2010, Washington University.
• Abigail Fraeman, MA in Earth and Planetary Sciences, 2011, Washington University. Awarded as part of Ph.D. track.
• Sarah Hӧrst, Ph.D. in Planetary Sciences, 2011, U. of Arizona. “Post-Cassini Investigations of Titan Atmospheric Chemistry.”
• Jennifer Meyer, Ph.D. in Planetary Science, 2011, MIT. “Tidal Heating and Tidal Evolution in the Solar System.”
• Margaret Root, MS in Geology, 2011, U. of Oklahoma. “The Effect of Obliquity Change on Gas Hydrate Stability Zones on Mars.”
• Erin Ryan, Ph.D. in Astrophysics, 2011, U. of Minnesota. “Asteroid Constraints on Planet and Planetesimal Formation in the Solar System.”
• Michelle Selvans, Ph.D. in Planetary Science, 2011, Caltech.
• Alessondra Springmann, MS in Earth and Planetary Science, 2011, MIT. “Terrestrial Magma Ocean Solidification and Formation of a Candidate D” Layer.”
• Jenny Suckale, Ph.D. in Planetary Science, 2011, MIT.

Betty Pierazzo

Elisabetta Pierazzo, better known as “Betty,” has passed away.  A memorial page has been set up on Facebook to remember her life and friendship.  Please visit the Memorial for Betty Pierazzo page and/or leave comments here. 

She will be missed. 

Edited 18 May 2011: The following was forwarded to us by the Planetary Science Institute. 

Elisabetta (Betty) Pierazzo, 1963-2011

Elisabetta Pierazzo, Senior Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute,
died at her home in Tucson, Arizona, on May 15. She was 47.

Betty was an expert in the area of impact modeling throughout the solar
system, as well as an expert on the astrobiological and environmental
effects of impacts on Earth and Mars. Her work ranged widely, from providing
detailed insights into the Chicxulub impact that caused the extinction of
the dinosaurs to putting constraints on the thickness of the ice shell of
Jupiter’s moon Europa. She was interested in the rise of life and explored
the delivery of organics to planets and Europa by comets as well as the
creation of subsurface hydrothermal systems by impacts that may have been
favorable sites for life on Mars.

She was also an expert on Meteor Crater in Arizona and made several
appearances on national and international broadcasts of programs including
National Geographic specials, explaining the formation of this well-known
structure. Betty was innovative, rigorous and systematic in her approach to
science. She recognized the need for benchmarking and validating the
different complex numerical codes to model impact and explosion cratering,
organizing and leading a community effort to accomplish this major task.

In addition to her science, Betty passionately promoted science education
and public outreach. She took time away from her successful research career
to teach undergraduates at the University of Arizona, she developed
interactive websites and impact rock and meteorite kits for classroom use,
as well as created professional development workshops for elementary and
middle school science teachers.

Betty arrived in the United States in 1989 from Italy and the following year
attended graduate school at the Department of Planetary Sciences at the
University of Arizona. She handled the difficulties of living in a foreign
country by opening her house and her kitchen to others. She received her
Ph.D. in 1997. The quality of her graduate work was recognized by the
University of Arizona with the Gerard P. Kuiper Memorial Award. She
continued at the University of Arizona as a Research Associate, and in 2002
joined the Planetary Science Institute as a Research Scientist. She was
promoted to Senior Scientist in 2007.

Betty was an active member of the planetary community. She served on
numerous NASA review panels, was an associate editor of Meteoritics and
Planetary Sciences, reviewed papers for numerous scientific journals, served
as organizer of workshops and meetings on impact cratering held around the
world, and was an organizer of the 2007 Meteoritical Society Meeting held in
Tucson, Arizona.

Betty was noted for the intensity with which she approached both life and
work. Whether it was in the office, the classroom, on the volleyball court,
the soccer field, or dance floor, her enthusiasm and joy in the activity was
irresistible. She was cherished by very many people for her staunch
friendship and support. She inspired countless people as a colleague,
teacher, mentor and friend. Her life was even more brightened with her
marriage to Keith Powell in 2007.

Over the past six months, Betty battled a rare form of cancer. She dealt
with it aggressively, and never let it overwhelm her. She was always looking
towards the future. In the last week of her life, in the midst of
chemotherapy, she was grading class papers, working on research papers,
writing reviews and preparing education proposals with her colleagues, all
the while finding time to spend precious moments with her family and
friends. She was ultimately and suddenly struck down by a pulmonary
embolism.

Her loss is great to all those who knew her and worked with her. Hers is a
great loss to the Planetary Science Institute and to our profession. We are
grateful to her husband, Keith, and to her family for the time she did have
with us.

A viewing will take place Thursday, May 19 at 5 p.m. at Evergreen Mortuary,
3015 N. Oracle Road, Tucson, Arizona. Funeral services will be held Friday,
May 20 at 10 a.m. at St. Thomas the Apostle Chapel at 5150 N. Valley View
Road.

NASA Open House

Friends of Women in Planetary Science — Looking for something to do in the LA or DC areas this weekend?  Check out the NASA Open Houses in at least two areas across the country!  For West Coasters, there’s the JPL Open House in Pasadena, CA.  East Coasters, how about the GSFC Open House in Greenbelt, MD.  Both are free and open to the public — and a fantastic opportunity to get a peek into the nation’s space program!  Live farther away?  You can still take a peek at the latest news about our solar system AND a page of fun for kids at NASA’s Solar System Exploration page (also on Facebook).

Kelsi Singer: do research as an undergraduate, and embrace the rewards of grad school

Kelsi Singer is a Ph.D. candidate in Earth and Planetary Sciences at the Washington University in St. Louis where she works with advisor Bill McKinnon. Kelsi studies the geology and geophysics of icy satellites of Jupiter and Saturn, including Europa, Ganymede, and Iapetus.  She is the recipient of a NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship (NESSF) and the Washington University Olin Fellowship.  Most recently, Kelsi was awarded the Stephen E. Dwornik Award for

Discovery missions downselected – and women rule the day

The Discovery mission selections were announced today. Three missions will continue to another year of study before one is selected to be flown.

The downselected missions are: Geophysical Monitoring Station (GEMS), a Mars geophysical lander (PI Bruce Banerdt, JPL), Titan Mare Explorer (TiME), a floating lander to Titan (PI Ellen Stofan, Proxemy Research), and Comet Hopper, to land on a comet multiple times (PI Jessica Sunshine, University of Maryland). That’s 2/3 women PI’s! Congratulations Ellen and Jessica!!

NASA also elected to give three projects further funding for technology development to help them in the next round. Of these, two of three were also women – congratulations Amy Mainzer and Anita Cochran, who was profiled here on WIPS!!

I hope you read about these amazing women here, and next time you’re at a meeting or conference and see one of them, take a minute to introduce yourself and ask questions. All these women are fantastic scientists, dedicated workers, and inspiring role models for all of us.

Friday Fun

Just a little fun this Friday, as we feature a new children’s book about the planets that might be just right for the children in your life.  Read the review, enter the contest, and if you’ll leave a comment about your favorite solar system book(s) for children, I will happily make a resource list to share here, at my personal site, and provide as a resource to Teach Mama‘s We Teach community of over 1500 active parents as teachers!

Angela Green, Lunar Sample Processor

Just before LPSC, I received a note from Angela Green, a contractor at Johnson Space Center.  Intrigued by her job title, I asked her to talk to us for a bit about what a lunar sample processor does and what led her to this job.  Angela earned her M.S. from Louisiana State University (LSU) in May 2008, with thesis: “Characterization of the Lucinid Bivalve-Bacteria Symbiotic System: The Significance of the Geochemical Habitat on Bacterial Symbiont Diversity and Phylogeny.” 

A Dual-Career Job Hunt (with limited data)

My partner and I are both planetary/geoscientists—we’re an example of a dual-science-career couple. Evidently there are a lot of us. Recent surveys show that  80 % of  partnered women in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields within academia (a subset of planetary science, but the only subset where data appears to be available), have an academic partner (and a majority of their partners are also in STEM fields), compared to <40% of their partnered male colleagues.   Being part of a science couple has its benefits and its challenges, particularly when it comes time to finding long-term employment.  My partner and I feel like we’ve won the academic science lottery- we both have tenure-track positions in the same department. 

Dr. Renu Malhotra: pick important problems, and don’t sweat the small stuff!

Dr. Renu Malhotra is a professor of planetary sciences at the University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory (LPL). Her research in orbital mechanics has spanned a wide variety of topics, including extra-solar planets and debris disks around stars, the formation and evolution of the Kuiper belt and the asteroid belt, the orbital resonances amongst the moons of the giant planets, and the cratering history of the inner solar system. She has helped revolutionize our understanding of the early history of the solar system

Speaking to Congress

On Monday night at LPSC, Decadal Survey chair Steve Squyres was emphatic about the need for scientists to talk to Congress.  On Tuesday morning, the conference floor was abuzz with one question: How? 

In today’s post we introduce you to several resources