Tag: NASAu0027s William H. Pickering Lecture

2023 ASCEND to Feature NASA’s William H. Pickering Lecture Showcasing Climate Science Advances

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 5, 2023 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is pleased to announce the 2023 William H. Pickering Lecture, “Observing Earth’s Precious Water from Space,” which will showcase the advances in Earth’s climate science that are being made possible through the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) Mission. The lecture is the featured evening session, 1830 hrs PT, Tuesday, 24 October, during 2023 ASCEND at Caesars Forum, Las Vegas.

Registration for the 2023 ASCEND event is open now. Journalists from around the world are invited to cover 2023 ASCEND; press passes are available for credentialed media by request.

2023 William H. Pickering Lecture: “Observing Earth’s Precious Water from Space”

  • Lecturers: Nadya Vinogradova Shiffer, Ocean physics program manager, NASA Headquarters, and Parag Vaze, project manager, SWOT Mission, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
  • Shiffer will describe the SWOT science, calibration, and validation efforts along with the applications potential that SWOT enables. Vaze will describe the challenges of the development, implementation, and operations of one of the most complex observing systems for observing Earth’s precious waters.
  • Tuesday, 24 October, 1830 hrs PT
  • This lecture will be delivered in person at 2023 ASCEND in Las Vegas and will be recorded and available on demand.

The 2023 William H. Pickering Lecture is about a space mission that will address some of Earth’s most pressing climate change questions of our time by informing decisions about our daily lives and livelihoods. The SWOT Mission was developed jointly by NASA and the French space agency, CNES, with contributions from the UK and Canadian space agencies. Using state-of-the-art “radar interferometry” technology, SWOT is measuring the elevation of water to observe millions of lakes and wetlands with surface areas 250 m2 and thousands of rivers whose width exceeds 100 m, while detecting ocean features with unprecedented resolution, accuracy, and spatial coverage. The primary science payload, a novel Ka-band Radar Interferometer (KaRIn), is the first in-flight demonstration of wide-swath (2, 50Km swaths) SAR interferometry for more accurate and comprehensive mapping of Earth’s ocean and surface water from space.

The SWOT Mission is expected to revolutionize hydrology and oceanography, providing a set of observations for nearly all surface waters on planet Earth, allowing scientists to determine changing volumes of water across the globe. SWOT will also significantly advance climate and ocean sciences by detecting ocean features with 10 times better resolution than present technologies. The higher resolution will reveal small-scale ocean features that contribute to the Earth’s fundamental cycles of heat, energy, carbon, moisture, and nutrients.

Measurements taken by SWOT are key to understanding surface water availability, informing water-resource management, preparing for important water-related hazards such as floods and droughts, improving ocean circulation forecasts, and benefiting ship and offshore commercial operations, along with coastal planning activities such as flood prediction.

Named for the former NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Director William H. Pickering, the lectureship honors his initiation and leadership of America’s robotic scientific space program, from Explorer I in 1958 through the development of the Viking Mars orbiters and the Voyager outer planet and interstellar missions.

AIAA Media Contact: Rebecca Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell

About ASCEND
Powered by AIAA, ASCEND promotes the collaborative, interdisciplinary, outcomes-driven community of professionals, students, and enthusiasts around the world who are accelerating humanity’s progress toward our off-world future! For more information, visit ascend.events, or follow ASCEND on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, or follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

 

AIAA to Present Premier Lecture and Technical Excellence Award During 2022 ASCEND

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NASA’s William H. Pickering Lecture also Scheduled

October 4, 2022 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is pleased to announce the winners of a premier lectureship and a technical excellence award, as well as the recipient of the NASA William H. Pickering Lectureship. The lectures and award will be presented during 2022 ASCEND, 24–26 October, Caesars Forum, Las Vegas, and online.

2022 von Kármán Lecture in Astronautics: “An Orbital Transportation Network to Support the Cislunar Space Enterprise”
  • Kathleen C. Howell, Purdue University
  • Monday, 24 October, 1830 hrs PT
  • This lecture will be delivered in person at 2022 ASCEND in Las Vegas, as well as recorded and available on demand.

The 2022 von Kármán Lectureship in Astronautics has been awarded to Kathleen C. Howell, Hsu Lo Distinguished Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics, College of Engineering, Purdue University. Named in honor of Theodore von Kármán, a world-famous authority on aerospace sciences, the lectureship honors an individual who has performed notably and distinguished themselves technically in the field of astronautics.

Professor Howell’s technical research focus is astrodynamics in complex gravitational environments. She has successfully applied these methodologies to various flight missions and mission proposals. Her contributions include mission planning and trajectory optimization, station-keeping and maneuver design, low-thrust applications including small satellites and the development of interactive visual capabilities for complex mission scenarios.

As a principal investigator, Professor Howell has obtained numerous grants and received various awards related to her research program as well as in recognition as an engineering educator.  She served for many years as the Editor-in-Chief for the American Astronautical Society (AAS) Journal of the Astronautical Sciences; she is also a member of other editorial boards.

Professor Howell is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the International Academy of Astronautics. She is an AIAA Fellow, as well as an AAS Fellow. She earned her B.S. degree in Aerospace Engineering from Iowa State University, and her M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Aeronautical and Astronautical Sciences from Stanford University.

2022 William H. Pickering Lecture: “Early Science Results from the James Webb Space Telescope”
  • Jonathan Gardner, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
  • Tuesday, 25 October, 1830 hrs PT
  • This lecture will be delivered in person at 2022 ASCEND in Las Vegas and will be recorded and available on demand.

The William H. Pickering Lecture will be delivered by Jonathan Gardner, Deputy Senior Project Scientist, James Webb Space Telescope, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. Named for the former NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory director William H. Pickering, the lectureship honors his initiation and leadership of America’s robotic scientific space program, from Explorer I in 1958 through the development of the Viking Mars orbiters and the Voyager outer planet and interstellar missions.

The first science results from the James Webb Space Telescope have engaged the public and surprised the scientists. Early results range from the most distant galaxies to black holes to interacting galaxies
to star-forming regions to exoplanet atmospheres to our own solar system. Gardner will review Webb’s construction, launch, and deployments, and discuss the commissioning of the telescope and its instruments. He will describe what scientists have learned in the first few months of science results from the telescope and look ahead to additional results expected in the coming years.

AIAA Technical Excellence Award: 2022 AIAA Space Systems Award

The Mars2020 Sampling and Caching System (SCS) Team from the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, is being presented with the 2022 AIAA Space Systems Award for “the design and flight operation of the scientific acquisition system that became the foundation of Mars Sample Return.” This award will be accepted by Keith Rosette and Louise Jandura, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The award recognizes outstanding achievements in the architecture, analysis, design, and implementation of space systems and is sponsored by the AIAA Space Systems Technical Committee.

AIAA is committed to ensuring that aerospace professionals are recognized and celebrated for their achievements, innovations, and discoveries that make the world safer, more connected, more accessible, and more prosperous. Visit AIAA’s Honors and Awards Program for more information.

AIAA Media Contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell

About ASCEND
Powered by AIAA, ASCEND promotes the collaborative, interdisciplinary, outcomes-driven community of professionals, students, and enthusiasts around the world who are accelerating humanity’s progress toward our off-world future! For more information, visit ascend.events, or follow ASCEND on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, or follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.