Bio
BioDr. Patrick Peplowski is an experimental nuclear physicist specializing in nuclear (gamma-ray and neutron) spectroscopy of solar system objects, fundamental nuclear physics, and radiation transport modeling. His spaceflight mission experience includes development and operation of gamma-ray and neutron spectroscopy instruments on MESSENGER, Dawn, Psyche, MMX, and Dragonfly. He is the principal investigator for grants awarded under NASA’s Planetary Mission Data Analysis Program (PMDAP), Mars Data Analysis Program (MDAP), and Discovery Data Analysis Program (DDAP). Dr. Peplowski’s planetary science research is focused on the elemental composition of Mercury, the Moon, and small solar-system objects (asteroids 433 Eros, 4 Vesta, 16 Psyche, and Mars’ moons). He is also involved with nuclear physics research, making measurements of reaction cross sections aimed at improving the understanding of nuclear spallation (breakup) and light-cluster emission/breakup. Dr. Peplowski works extensively on the development of instrumentation, including radiation damage and repair of gamma-ray sensors, and the response of neutron sensors. He is a visiting researcher at Brookhaven National Laboratory and the NIST Center for Neutron Research.
Notable Awards and Leadership
Notable Awards and Leadership| Year(s) | Description |
|---|---|
| Year(s) 2019 | Description NASA Group Achievement Award, Dawn at Ceres Science Team |
| Year(s) 2018 | Description APL Achievement Award, Outstanding Paper in the Johns Hopkins APL Technical Digest (Walter G. Berl Award) for “Dragonfly: A Rotorcraft Lander Concept for Scientific Exploration at Titan” (co-author) |
| Year(s) 2017 | Description NASA Group Achievement Award, MESSENGER Project Team |
| Year(s) 2016 | Description APL Achievement Award, Outstanding Research Paper in an Externally Referred Journal, for “Remote Sensing Evidence for an Ancient Carbon-Bearing Crust on Mercury” in Nature Geoscience |
| Year(s) 2013 | Description APL Achievement Award, Outstanding Research Paper in an Externally Referred Journal, for “Evidence for Water Ice Near Mercury’s North Pole from MESSENGER Neutron Spectrometer Measurements,” in Science magazine (co-author) |
| Year(s) 2011 | Description APL Achievement Award: Author’s First Paper in a Peer-Reviewed Journal or Proceedings, for “Radioactive Elements on Mercury’s Surface from MESSENGER: Implications for the Planet’s Formation and Evolution,” in Science magazine |
| Year(s) 2003 | Description Mary Gates Research Training Grant |
| Year(s) 1999 - 2000 | Description Washington State Promise Scholarship |
