Amanda Hendrix

Last updated
Amanda R. Hendrix
AmandaHendrix CassiniPSG.jpg
Born (1968-05-21) May 21, 1968 (age 56)
CitizenshipUS
Alma mater California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
University of Colorado, Boulder
Known forultraviolet spectroscopy
AwardsJPL Lew Allen Award for Excellence, 2006
Scientific career
Fieldsplanetary science, solar system astronomy
Institutions Planetary Science Institute
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado
Doctoral advisor Charles A. Barth

Amanda R. Hendrix (May 21, 1968) is an American planetary scientist known for her pioneering studies of solar system bodies at ultraviolet wavelengths. [1] [2] She is a senior scientist at the Planetary Science Institute. Her research interests include moon and asteroid surface composition, space weathering effects and radiation products. [3] She is a co-investigator on the Cassini UVIS instrument, [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] was a co-investigator on the Galileo UVS instrument, is a Participating Scientist on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter LAMP instrument [12] and is a Principal Investigator [13] on Hubble Space Telescope observing programs. As of 2019, she is also the co-lead of the NASA Roadmaps to Oceans World Group. [14]

Contents

Before moving to PSI, Hendrix worked for 12 years at Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the Comets, Asteroids and Satellites Group. She was the Deputy Project Scientist [15] for the Cassini–Huygens mission (2010-2012).

Hendrix was a NASA astronaut candidate finalist in 2000. [16]

She received a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering Sciences from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Since 2024 she has been the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets . [17]

Awards and honors

Hendrix was awarded the Lew Allen Award for Excellence in 2006. [18] Asteroid 6813 Amandahendrix was named in her honor. [19] The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 25 September 2018 ( M.P.C. 111797). [20]

She was named a Fellow of the American Astronomical Society in 2024, "for wide-ranging studies illuminating thermal, irradiative, and exogenic processing of various species on small body surfaces in the solar system; management of complex autonomous science systems; and devoted service to the planetary and space science communities". [21]

Media and Outreach

While at JPL, Hendrix wrote several blog posts on Cassini results [22] and participated in Cassini Scientist for a Day on several occasions. [23] [24] [25] [26] Hendrix gave a Von Karman lecture (Enceladus: The newest wrinkle from Saturn's tiger-striped moon) [27] in Pasadena in 2008 and the Kepler lecture (Lunar Exploration: From the Apollo Era to the Future) at Mt. San Antonio College in 2013. [28] She has appeared on several episodes of the History Channel's The Universe [29] and the Discovery Channel's How the Universe Works. She spoke at the Griffith Observatory's Cassini Program in 2009 [30] and has written for the Planetary Report [31]

Hendrix has taught undergraduate and graduate level courses at Cal Poly, Pomona, Mt. San Antonio College and University of Colorado Boulder.

Related Research Articles

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Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest in the Solar System, after Jupiter. It is a gas giant, with an average radius of about nine times that of Earth. It has an eighth the average density of Earth, but is over 95 times more massive. Even though Saturn is almost as big as Jupiter, Saturn has less than a third its mass. Saturn orbits the Sun at a distance of 9.59 AU (1,434 million km), with an orbital period of 29.45 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhea (moon)</span> Moon of Saturn

Rhea is the second-largest moon of Saturn and the ninth-largest moon in the Solar System, with a surface area that is comparable to the area of Australia. It is the smallest body in the Solar System for which precise measurements have confirmed a shape consistent with hydrostatic equilibrium. Rhea has a nearly circular orbit around Saturn, but it is also tidally locked, like Saturn's other major moons; that is, it rotates with the same period it revolves (orbits), so one hemisphere always faces towards the planet.

<i>Cassini–Huygens</i> NASA/ESA mission to Saturn, 1997 to 2017

Cassini–Huygens, commonly called Cassini, was a space-research mission by NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Italian Space Agency (ASI) to send a space probe to study the planet Saturn and its system, including its rings and natural satellites. The Flagship-class robotic spacecraft comprised both NASA's Cassini space probe and ESA's Huygens lander, which landed on Saturn's largest moon, Titan. Cassini was the fourth space probe to visit Saturn and the first to enter its orbit, where it stayed from 2004 to 2017. The two craft took their names from the astronomers Giovanni Cassini and Christiaan Huygens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epimetheus (moon)</span> Moon of Saturn

Epimetheus is an inner satellite of Saturn. It is also known as Saturn XI. It is named after the mythological Epimetheus, brother of Prometheus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dione (moon)</span> Moon of Saturn

Dione, also designated Saturn IV, is the fourth-largest moon of Saturn. With a mean diameter of 1,123 km and a density of about 1.48 g/cm3, Dione is composed of an icy mantle and crust overlying a silicate rocky core, with rock and water ice roughly equal in mass. Its trailing hemisphere is marked by large cliffs and scarps called chasmata; the trailing hemisphere is also significantly darker compared to the leading hemisphere.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enceladus</span> Natural satellite orbiting Saturn

Enceladus is the sixth-largest moon of Saturn and the 18th-largest in the Solar System. It is about 500 kilometers in diameter, about a tenth of that of Saturn's largest moon, Titan. It is mostly covered by fresh, clean ice, making it one of the most reflective bodies of the Solar System. Consequently, its surface temperature at noon reaches only −198 °C, far colder than a light-absorbing body would be. Despite its small size, Enceladus has a wide variety of surface features, ranging from old, heavily cratered regions to young, tectonically deformed terrain.

Timeline of <i>Cassini–Huygens</i>

This article provides a timeline of the Cassini–Huygens mission. Cassini was a collaboration between the United States' NASA, the European Space Agency ("ESA"), and the Italian Space Agency ("ASI") to send a probe to study the Saturnian system, including the planet, its rings, and its natural satellites. The Flagship-class uncrewed robotic spacecraft comprised both NASA's Cassini probe, and ESA's Huygens lander which was designed to land on Saturn's largest moon, Titan. Cassini was the fourth space probe to visit Saturn and the first to enter its orbit. The craft were named after astronomers Giovanni Cassini and Christiaan Huygens.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiger stripes (Enceladus)</span>

The tiger stripes of Enceladus consist of four sub-parallel, linear depressions in the south polar region of the Saturnian moon. First observed on May 20, 2005, by the Cassini spacecraft's Imaging Science Sub-system (ISS) camera, the features are most notable in lower resolution images by their brightness contrast from the surrounding terrain. Higher resolution observations were obtained by Cassini's various instruments during a close flyby of Enceladus on July 14, 2005. These observations revealed the tiger stripes to be low ridges with a central fracture. Observations from the Composite Infrared Spectrometer (CIRS) instrument showed the tiger stripes to have elevated surface temperatures, indicative of present-day cryovolcanism on Enceladus centered on the tiger stripes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Exploration of Saturn</span> Overview of the exploration of Saturn

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Kohlhase</span> American engineer

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enceladus Life Finder</span> Proposed NASA mission to a moon of Saturn

Enceladus Life Finder (ELF) is a proposed astrobiology mission concept for a NASA spacecraft intended to assess the habitability of the internal aquatic ocean of Enceladus, which is Saturn's sixth-largest moon of at least 146 total moons, and seemingly similar in chemical makeup to comets. The spaceprobe would orbit Saturn and fly through Enceladus's geyser-like plumes multiple times. It would be powered by energy supplied from solar panels on the spacecraft.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jani Radebaugh</span> American planetary scientist

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enceladus Orbilander</span> Proposed NASA space probe to Saturns moon Enceladus

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References

  1. ↑ Niebur, Susan (April 2011). "Amanda Hendrix, Cassini/Huygens DPS". Women in Planetary Science: Female Scientists on Careers, Research, Space Science, and Work/Life Balance. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  2. ↑ "Google Scholar". scholar.google.com. Archived from the original on 2020-11-11. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  3. ↑ "Exploration Stories: Favorite Historical Moments". Solar System Exploration. Archived from the original on 2016-02-25. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  4. ↑ "Cassini Team Members". Cassini Solstice Mission. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  5. ↑ "Signs of Europa Plumes Remain Elusive in Search of Cassini Data". NASA/JPL. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  6. ↑ "NASA - Cassini Prepares to Fly by Walnut-Shaped Moon". www.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  7. ↑ "Spacecraft zips over Saturn's geyser-spurting moon". in.reuters.com. Archived from the original on February 4, 2016. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  8. ↑ "Passing Saturn's geyser-spouting moon - Science - Specials - smh.com.au". www.smh.com.au. 13 March 2008. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  9. ↑ Chang, Kenneth (2008-03-13). "Cassini Gets a Cool Shower From an Ice-Spewing Moon". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  10. ↑ "Cassini Nears Strange Saturn Moon". www.africaspeaks.com. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  11. ↑ "Jupiter Moon Europa's Giant Geysers Are Missing". Scientific American. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  12. ↑ "LAMP Educational Site".
  13. ↑ "Hubble Cycle 22 Proposal Selection" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 6, 2015.
  14. ↑ NASA Ocean Worlds mission: NASA's space program to search for alien life. Tom Fish, UK Express. 5 March 2019.
  15. ↑ "Saturn and its Largest Moon Reflect Their True Colors". NASA/JPL. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  16. ↑ "NASA - Third Interview Group Begins Astronaut Selection Process". www.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2016-01-31.
  17. ↑ Hendrix, Amanda (8 May 2024). "Introducing the New Editor-in-Chief of JGR: Planets". Eos. American Geophysical Union.
  18. ↑ "Science and Technology: The Lew Allen Award for Excellence Recipients". scienceandtechnology.jpl.nasa.gov. Archived from the original on 2015-05-18. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  19. ↑ "6813 Amandahendrix (1978 VV9)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  20. ↑ "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  21. ↑ "AAS Names 21 New Fellows for 2024". American Astronomical Society. February 1, 2024. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  22. ↑ "JPL Blogs". www.jpl.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  23. ↑ "Cassini Scientist for a Day 2014". Cassini Solstice Mission. Archived from the original on 2014-03-17. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  24. ↑ "Scientist for a Day - 11th Edition". Cassini Solstice Mission. Archived from the original on 2012-08-26. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  25. ↑ "Scientist for a Day - 10th Edition". Cassini Solstice Mission. Archived from the original on 2011-07-05. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  26. ↑ Universe Odyssey (2014-02-08), Cassini Scientist for a Day 2010 , retrieved 2016-01-21
  27. ↑ Universe Odyssey (2014-01-01), Enceladus: The Newest Wrinkle from Saturn's Tiger-Striped Moon , retrieved 2016-01-21
  28. ↑ "Mt. San Antonio College | 2013 Kepler Lecture & Scholarship Awards Ceremony". www.mtsac.edu. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  29. ↑ "Amanda Hendrix". IMDb. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  30. ↑ NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (2010-01-06), Cassini's Roadmap to Saturn: An Evening with the Scientists (Lecture) , retrieved 2016-01-21
  31. ↑ "Amanda Hendrix". www.planetary.org. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
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