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  • NAU planetary scientist named key partner on NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer mission

NASA

NAU planetary scientist named key partner on NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer mission

Posted by Heather Tate on December 2, 2020

Christopher Edwards sitting in his officeAfter a year of preliminary design and several reviews, NASA recently confirmed its Lunar Trailblazer mission will proceed to the final design and build phase. Selected in June 2019 with planned flight system delivery in October 2022, the Lunar Trailblazer mission targets one of the most surprising discoveries of the decade: the presence of water on the Moon.

The mission is a collaboration led by Bethany Ehlmann,… Read more

Filed Under: College of the Environment, Forestry, and Natural Sciences, Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science

NAU scientists author papers in Nature Astronomy chronicling legacy of Spitzer Space Telescope

Posted by Heather Tate on October 12, 2020

NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, designed to study the early universe in infrared light, was the first telescope to see light from a planet outside our solar system. Launched in 2003, Spitzer contained infrared detectors of unprecedented sensitivity, providing astronomers a never-before-possible look at the universe.

Spitzer made important discoveries about comets, stars, exoplanets and distant galaxies. Decommissioned earlier this year—11 years beyond its prime mission—the… Read more

Filed Under: College of the Environment, Forestry, and Natural Sciences, Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science

NAU planetary astronomer co-authors studies of asteroid Bennu as member of NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission

Posted by Heather Tate on October 8, 2020

Spacecraft collecting sample
OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft Collecting a Sample of Bennu: Artist’s conception of NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft collecting a sample from the asteroid Bennu. Credit: NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft mission, launched on Sept. 8, 2016, is the first U.S. mission designed to retrieve a pristine sample of an asteroid and return it to Earth for further study. The mission’s target is Bennu, a carbon-rich near-Earth asteroid that is potentially hazardous, representing… Read more

Filed Under: College of the Environment, Forestry, and Natural Sciences, Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science

NAU atmospheric scientist maps CO2 emissions for entire U.S. landscape to help improve environmental policymaking

Posted by Heather Tate on October 5, 2020

Vulcan Project mapWith intense wildfires in the western U.S. and frequent, intense hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico, the nation is again affected by extreme weather-related events resulting from climate change. In response, cities, states and regions across the country are developing policies to reduce their emissions of greenhouse gases, chiefly carbon dioxide (CO2). Even though many state and local governments are committed to these goals, however, the emissions data they have… Read more

Filed Under: College of Engineering, Informatics, and Applied Sciences, School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems

NAU global change ecologist leads NASA satellite study of rapid greening across Arctic tundra

Posted by Heather Tate on September 22, 2020

Berner Arctic Greening illustrationAs Arctic summers warm, Earth’s northern landscapes are changing. Using satellite images to track global tundra ecosystems over decades, a team of researchers finds the region has become greener as warmer air and soil temperatures lead to increased plant growth.

“The Arctic tundra is one of the coldest biomes on Earth, and it’s also one of the most rapidly warming,” said Logan Berner, assistant research professor with Northern Arizona University’s… Read more

Filed Under: College of Engineering, Informatics, and Applied Sciences, School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems

NAU planetary astronomer receives NASA grants for two new studies of Main Asteroid Belt

Posted by Heather Tate on September 2, 2020

Cristina Thomas sitting as a computer The majority of asteroids in our solar system are found in the Main Asteroid Belt, which is located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Although millions of objects populate the belt, most are relatively small, and astronomers have not actually studied many of them in detail.

NAU assistant professor Cristina Thomas, whose research focuses on asteroids, recently received two grants from NASA to study two different… Read more

Filed Under: College of the Environment, Forestry, and Natural Sciences, Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science

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