Dear Alumni and Friends,
Welcome to the 2018-19 edition of EAPS Scope, focusing on the Earth. Here, we reflect on the most notable achievements and events of the Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS) community from the past year, and share stories about new scientific advances and the people who are helping us achieve our endeavors.
Download full issue PDF (4.91 MB)
Articles
Over Earth’s 4.6 billion-year existence, change is the one constant. EAPS investigators are leveraging the latest technologies to conduct novel, discovery-driven research in order to understand the processes shaping our planet—including how we affect it.
A global science and policy success story: Susan Solomon, the Lee and Geraldine Martin Professor of Environmental Studies, was honored for her contributions to atmospheric science with the 2018 Crafoord Prize.
Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences faculty continue to earn numerous awards and honors in recognition of their innovation and leadership in their respective fields.
Last fall, Richard Binzel, professor of planetary sciences in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS) and Margaret MacVicar Faculty Fellow, was awarded the NASA Silver Achievement Medal for exceptional contributions to the astronomical characterization of the target asteroid Bennu of NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission.
In 2018, eight MIT Professors were elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, including Leigh (“Wiki”) Royden and Sara Seager of the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS).
EAPS congratulates Robert R. Shrock Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences Timothy Grove who was recognized with the 2018 Harry H. Hess Medal by the American Geophysical Union (AGU), awarded annually for “outstanding achievements in research on the constitution and evolution of the Earth and other planets.”
Taylor Perron, associate professor of geology, has been appointed associate department head for MIT’s Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS). He succeeds Tim Grove, the Robert R. Shrock Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences.
Noelle Eckley Selin, associate professor with a joint appointment in the MIT Institute for Data, Systems, and Society (IDSS) and the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS), is the new director for the Technology and Policy Program (TPP) at MIT.
Kristin Bergmann, the Victor P. Starr Career Development Assistant Professor in MIT’s Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS), has been awarded a 2018 Packard Fellowship in Science and Engineering.
Rivers may seem like permanent features of a landscape, often used as natural boundaries, but recent work from researchers in MIT’s Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS) shows them to be dynamic, varying under different climatic conditions and even invading basin territory of neighbors.
Researchers dug into decades of seismic readings to try to understand an anomaly in the data—and in the process discovered that 1 to 2 percent of Earth’s oldest mantle rocks are likely made of diamond.
Back in August 2017, I traveled to Svalbard, Norway with Marjorie Cantine (3rd year graduate student and our drone pilot), Adam Jost (postdoc), Tyler Mackey (postdoc), and Julia Wilcots (1st year graduate student). It was my third field season there and the first trip with only Bergmann Lab Group members.
The Simons Foundation extends its support for microbial oceanography with the establishment of the Simons Foundation Collaboration on Ocean Computational Biogeochemical Modeling of Marine Ecosystems (CBIOMES), led by Mick Follows.
2018 EAPS doctoral graduates Emily Matys and Lauren Kipp traveled to opposite ends of the Earth to unravel the biological and geochemical secrets of icy waters.
A brief history of MIT’s influence on the Hawaii Volcano Observatory’s century-plus of research.
Led by MIT alumni Enders Robinson and Sven Treitel, MIT’s former Geophysical Analysis Group transformed the field of geophysical recording and data processing.
Laurent Demanet has been named director of MIT’s Earth Resources Laboratory (ERL), succeeding Bradford Hager, Cecil and Ida Green Professor of Earth Sciences, who has led the lab since 2012.
Read two examples about how investments from our friends into bold, new ideas from our faculty can catalyze major government funding and research innovation.
David McGee and Terrascope help first-year students who are interested in studying Earth systems and issues surrounding climate and sustainability to navigate life at MIT and beyond.
The story of threats to the ozone layer didn't end with CFCs. Professor Susan Solomon and graduate student Megan Lickley receive funding from the Volo Foundation to assess the risks of HFC and HCFC emissions, and their potential impact on global warming.
2018 marked the 50th anniversary of the MIT-WHOI Joint Program—a union of institutions which has fostered careers and significant developments in oceanography and applied ocean science and engineering.
Maxwell-Hanrahan Fund for Education and Research established to honor former WHOI Provost Art Maxwell.
Born 100 years ago this year, Professors Jule Charney and Edward Lorenz gave us numerical weather prediction and chaos theory, highlighting the value of basic research.
In mid-April 2018, alumni, friends, researchers, and faculty celebrated the 50th anniversary of the MIT Planetary Astronomy Laboratory (MIT PAL).
The Earth Resources Laboratory (ERL) organized a symposium in April 2018 to honor Joseph B. Walsh ‘52, ME ‘56, SCD ‘58 (II).
Hear directly from four of our graduate students as they talk a little about what drives their research curiosity and how they're working to investigate a wide range of probing questions about the natural world.
For further information on giving opportunities or creating a named fund to benefit the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, please contact:
Megan Cokely
Senior Development Officer
Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at MIT
mecokely@mit.edu
Keep up to date with all things EAPS: subscribe to our newsletter - eapsinfo@mit.edu