Carl Sagan Memorial Award
Encyclopedia
The Carl Sagan Memorial Award is an award presented jointly by the American Astronautical Society
and The Planetary Society to an individual or group "who has demonstrated leadership in research or policies advancing exploration of the Cosmos
." The annual award, first presented in 1997, was created in honor of American
astronomer
, astrobiologist and science popularizer, Carl Sagan
(1934–1996).
American Astronautical Society
Formed in 1954, the American Astronautical Society is an independent scientific and technical group in the United States dedicated to the advancement of space science and exploration. AAS supports NASA's Vision for Space Exploration and is a member of the Coalition for Space Exploration and the...
and The Planetary Society to an individual or group "who has demonstrated leadership in research or policies advancing exploration of the Cosmos
Cosmos
In the general sense, a cosmos is an orderly or harmonious system. It originates from the Greek term κόσμος , meaning "order" or "ornament" and is antithetical to the concept of chaos. Today, the word is generally used as a synonym of the word Universe . The word cosmos originates from the same root...
." The annual award, first presented in 1997, was created in honor of American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
, astrobiologist and science popularizer, Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan
Carl Edward Sagan was an American astronomer, astrophysicist, cosmologist, author, science popularizer and science communicator in astronomy and natural sciences. He published more than 600 scientific papers and articles and was author, co-author or editor of more than 20 books...
(1934–1996).
Recipients
- 1997 Bruce MurrayBruce C. MurrayBruce C. Murray was born November 30, 1931 in New York, NY. He is a professor emeritus of planetary science and geology at Caltech and was Director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory from April 1, 1976 to June 30, 1982.He received his Ph.D...
- 1998 Wesley HuntressWesley HuntressWesley T. Huntress, Jr. is president of the Planetary Society in the United States and Director of the Geophysical Laboratory at the Carnegie Institution. Huntress spent much of his career at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, also teaching as a professor at the associated California Institute of...
- 1999 Ed Stone
- 2000 Arnauld Nicogossian
- 2001 Edward Weiler
- 2002 California and Carnegie Planet Search Team
- 2003 Roald SagdeevRoald SagdeevRoald Zinnurovich Sagdeev is a Soviet and Russian expert in plasma physics and former director of the Space Research Institute of the USSR Academy of Sciences. He was also a science advisor to Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev. Sagdeev graduated from Moscow State University. He is a member of the...
- 2004 Steve SquyresSteve SquyresSteven W. Squyres is the Goldwin Smith 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...
and the Athena Team - 2005 Michael MalinMichael C. MalinMichael C. Malin is an American astronomer, space-scientist, and CEO of Malin Space Science Systems. His cameras have been important scientific instruments in the Exploration of Mars....
- 2006 G. Scott Hubbard
- 2007 Maria ZuberMaria ZuberMaria T. Zuber is the E. A. Griswold Professor of Geophysics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where she also leads the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences. Zuber has been involved in more than half a dozen NASA planetary missions aimed at mapping the Moon, Mars,...
- 2008 Lennard A. Fisk
- 2009 Award not offered
- 2010 Award not offered
- 2011 Charles ElachiCharles ElachiCharles Asshur Al-Wadad Elachi is the Director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory , located in Pasadena, California. He has held this position since May 1, 2001 and also holds professorships in electrical engineering and planetary science at Caltech....