LPL Newsletter for October 2022

LPL Newsletter for October 2022

Saturday, October 1, 2022

LPL faculty, staff, and students cheered on the DART mission's impact of Dimorphos on September 26. A remarkable number of LPL scientists and alumni are participating in the mission, including investigative team leads Nancy Chabot and Andrew Rivkin, both LPL alums. Moreover, in 1996, LPL Spacewatch scientist Joseph Montani discovered the larger of the twin DART targets, asteroid Didymos, while observing at Kitt Peak National Observatory. This month, we are proud to feature news about that history as well as the current mission of the Spacewatch program as described by Principal Investigator Dr. Melissa Brucker. Also making news this month was the United States Space Command's selection of the University of Arizona as the inaugural member of its new Academic Engagement Enterprise, designed to train the future workforce and increase research and innovation related to space and national security.

Make plans to join us on October 19 for the LPL Evening Lecture featuring Associate Professor Tyler Robinson discussing Finding Other Earths with Next Generation Telescopes.

Director and Department Head
Illustration of DART impacting asteroid

LPL Spacewatch program discovered the larger of the twin asteroids targeted by NASA's DART mission

In 1996, LPL's Spacewatch program discovered Didymos, the larger of the two asteroids that were the focus of NASA's DART mission encounter.

Photo of Tyler Robinson

LPL Evening Lecture

UArizona engineering faculty members Jekan Thanga (right) and Moe Momayez with a low-cost, rapidly designed, 3D-printed rover prototype used for testing a new generation of miniature sensors for applications in lunar mining.

UArizona becomes U.S. Space Command's first Academic Engagement Enterprise partner

The partnership will provide university faculty, students and other partners with a forum to collaboratively address pressing challenges of human security, exploration, development and settlement of space.