Steve Squyres

Steven W. Squyres (b. 1957) is a professor of astronomy at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. His research area is in planetary sciences, with a focus on large solid bodies in the solar system such as the terrestrial planets and the moons of the Jovian planets. Squyres is principal investigator of the Mars Exploration Rover Mission. He is also a former student of the late Carl Sagan.

Related Topics:
1957 - Astronomy - Cornell University - Ithaca, New York - Planetary sciences - Solar system - Mars Exploration Rover Mission - Carl Sagan

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Squyres received his B.S. in Geology in 1978, his Ph.D. from Cornell in 1982, and then spent five years as a postdoctoral associate and research scientist at NASA Ames Research Center before returning to Cornell as a faculty member. He received the H. C. Urey Prize from the Planetary Division of the American Astronomical Society in 1987.

Related Topics:
B.S. - Geology - 1978 - Ph.D. - 1982 - NASA Ames Research Center - H. C. Urey Prize - American Astronomical Society - 1987

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He has participated in many of NASA's planetary exploration missions, including the Voyager mission to Jupiter and Saturn, the Magellan to Venus, and the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous mission. Along with his work on MER, he is also a co-investigator on the 2003 Mars Express and 2005 Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter missions, a member of the Gamma-Ray Spectrometer Flight Investigation Team for the Mars Odyssey mission, and a member of the imaging team for the Cassini to Saturn. Squyres recently served as Chair of the NASA Space Science Advisory Committee and as a member of the NASA Advisory Council.

Related Topics:
Voyager - Jupiter - Saturn - Magellan - Venus - Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous - 2003 - Mars Express - 2005 - Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter - Gamma-Ray - Spectrometer - Mars Odyssey - Cassini - NASA

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Squyres has been featured as ABC News's Person of the Week for January 9, 2004, and was noted by anchor Peter Jennings on World News Tonight that he "has gotten us all excited".

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ABC News - January 9 - 2004 - Peter Jennings - World News Tonight

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He has written a book called Roving Mars : Spirit, Opportunity, and the Exploration of the Red Planet (published August 2005).

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Squyres has said in an interview that he will not be the principal investigator for the Mars Science Laboratory, due to launch in 2009, as he did not want to be away from his family again for a long period (as happened during the Mars Exploration Rover Mission). http://www.news.cornell.edu/Chronicle/04/8.19.04/Squyres_interview.html

Related Topics:
Mars Science Laboratory - 2009

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