LPL Spotlight Stories

This image shows the distance between the Apophis asteroid and Earth at the time of the asteroid's closest approach. The blue dots are the many human-made satellites that orbit our planet, and the pink represents the International Space Station. NASA/JPL-Caltech

Planetary Defense Exercise Uses Apophis as Hazardous Asteroid Stand-in

Over 100 participants from 18 countries – including UArizona scientists and NASA's UArizona-led NEOWISE mission – took part in the international exercise.

How to Spot Asteroids

“Stay up all night,” says Gregory Leonard , a research scientist at the University of Arizona’s Catalina Sky Survey , who uses a network of powerful telescopes to find and track what NASA calls near-Earth objects, including asteroids that come within 120 million miles of the sun. Go looking in a place without light pollution on a cloudless night with a steady atmosphere. Avoid a full moon.

Dr. Sarah Moran Named UArizona Sursum Fellow

Dr. Moran was selected for her proposal on Haze Evolution in sub-Neptune Exoplanets through UV Laboratory Experiments .

Dr. Sukrit Ranjan Joins LPL Faculty Starting Fall 2022

Sukrit's work is focused on the origin of life on Earth, the search for life on other worlds, and the atmospheres of rocky exoplanets. He applies photochemistry to questions related to the origin of life on Earth and the search for life on other worlds.
During a visit to campus, NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy discussed some of the space agency's most ambitious and impactful space missions with the UArizona scientists who pursue them.

NASA Deputy Administrator: UArizona a 'Crown Jewel' for the US

During a visit to campus, NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy discussed some of the space agency's most ambitious and impactful space missions with the UArizona scientists who pursue them.
An artist’s conception of a near-Earth asteroid orbiting the sun. NASA/JPL

Planetary Science Decadal Survey Prioritizes UArizona-led Planetary Defense Mission

A new decadal survey from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine recommends NASA fully support NEO Surveyor, a space-based survey designed to discover and measure asteroids and comets that could pose an impact hazard to Earth. Amy Mainzer, a professor of planetary sciences, leads the effort.

Dr. Kathryn Volk, Vera Rubin Early Career Prize Winner

LPL Research Scientist Dr. Kathryn Volk has been named the recipient of the Vera Rubin Early Career Prize, which recognizes an early career dynamicist who demonstrates excellence in scientific research in dynamical astronomy. Dr. Volk received her Ph.D. from LPL in 2013.
This is an artists illustration of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft firing thrusters near the surface of the asteroid Apophis.

NASA Gives Green Light for OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft to Visit Another Asteroid

The extended mission, dubbed OSIRIS-APEX, will study the near-Earth asteroid Apophis, which will have a close encounter with Earth in 2029.
An astrobiologist, an engineer and an ecologist have teamed up to mitigate the worst effects of climate change.

Small but Mighty: How UArizona Professors are Harnessing the Power of Algae to Capture Carbon

An astrobiologist, an engineer and an ecologist have teamed up to mitigate the worst effects of climate change.

Dr. Tyler Robinson Joins LPL Faculty Starting Fall 2022

Ty conducts theoretical studies of the atmospheres of extrasolar planets and brown dwarfs and has made major contributions to the planning for the next NASA great observatories. He has had great success in building diverse research groups.