Arizona State University’s School of Earth and Space Exploration (SESE) combines the creative strengths of both science and engineering with the research and educational activities of the school, setting the stage for a new era of exploration – of Earth, of space, and of the future.

We conduct field work on every continent on Earth; send probes to the Moon, Mars, Venus, and Mercury; and employ ground-based and orbiting telescopes to interrogate deep space.

Diverse research mission: • Astrobiology & Exoplanets • Geological Sciences, • Astronomy & Astrophysics Geochemistry, Geophysics • Cosmology • Planetary Sciences • Earth Systems Sciences • Science Education • Environmental Sciences • Systems Engineering

We are developing and employing new strategies for world-class scientific exploration, educating a new generation of explorers, and promoting a greater public understanding and appreciation of science.

SESE is a vibrant community of 71 faculty, over 150 research scientists and postdoctoral scholars, over 130 graduate students, and over 400 undergraduates supported by an administrative and operations staff of more than 20.

Training the next generation of explorers

research with impact

BY THE NUMBERS

• $30M in research expenditures

• Participating in 8 NASA missions, 3 more in the wings

• One of only ~5 universities capable of building flight instruments for space

• Earth Science program ranked #20 by U.S. News & World Report

• Over 30,000 individual meteorites, the largest university-collection in the world

• Annually expose ~5,000 undergraduate students to the Earth and space sciences

• 30,000 visitors in the last year through our facilities

The edge of exploration

Undergraduate Studies • B.S. in Earth & Space Exploration • B.A. in Earth & Environmental Studies • B.A.E. Earth & Space Education* • B.S.E. Aerospace Engineering**

Graduate Studies• M.S. in Geological Sciences• Ph.D. in Geological Sciences• Ph.D. in Astrophysics• Ph.D. in Exploration Systems Design

*In collaboration with the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College | **In collaboration with the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering

degree programs

More than 150 ASU faculty members have some involvement with the space industry. Over the past two fiscal years, these relationships translated into $69 million in research funding through 211 awards. About 60 percent of those awards came through SESE and the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering. ASU scientists will play key roles in several upcoming NASA missions:

OSIRIS REx:This asteroid sample-return mission will include an instrument designed and built at ASU by Professor Phil Christensen called OTES. OTES’ role is to map the asteroid’s mineralogy. This will help mission scientists choose a location to collect a sample of Bennu’s rocks and soil, which will be the first asteroid sample to be returned to Earth. Launch date: 2016

MARS ROVER 2020:NASA will send another rover to the Red Planet to seek signs of past life, to collect and store samples that could be returned to Earth in the future, and to test new technology to benefit future robotic and human exploration of Mars. ASU Professor Jim Bell will design, deliver and oversee the Mastcam-Z imaging investigation, a pair of color panoramic zoom cameras. Launch date: 2020

EUROPA CLIPPER:ASU professors Philip Christensen, Mikhail Zolotov and Everett Shock are involved with NASA’s newly announced robotic mission to investigate whether conditions suitable for life exist at Jupiter’s moon Europa. One of the mission’s instruments, E-THEMIS, will be built at ASU by Christensen.Launch date: 2020s

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Lindy Elkins-Tanton, director

Lindy Elkins-Tanton, an expert in planet formation and evolution, joined SESE in 2014. Her scientific studies explore planetary formation, magma oceans and subsequent planetary evolution, formation of large volcanic provinces and interactions between silicate planets and their atmospheres.

After graduating from MIT with a bachelor’s degree in geology and a master’s in geochemistry, she worked in business for eight years, with five years spent writing business plans for young high-tech ventures, before returning to MIT for her doctorate.

She went on to pursue research opportunities at Brown University, then joined the MIT faculty. Within 10 years of completing her doctorate, she was recruited to Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, D.C., to serve as director of the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism.

leadership

An academic unit of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences SESE.ASU.EDU | 602-710-7169 | ncassis@asu.edu