RESTON,
Va., July 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- AIAA is
pleased to announce the 2024 AIAA von Kármán Lectureship in
Astronautics is awarded to Dante S.
Lauretta, Regents Professor, University of Arizona, Tucson. The lecture, "Unlocking the Secrets of
Our Solar System's History: The OSIRIS-REx Journey," will be
presented Tuesday, 30 July, 10:45 a.m.
PT, during 2024 ASCEND, 30 July – 1 August,
Las Vegas.
Lauretta's lecture delves into the challenges, discoveries, and
scientific implications of OSIRIS-REx as it unveils the ancient
secrets of our solar system's history. Lauretta will discuss the
mission's planning and execution, from the spacecraft's voyage to
asteroid Bennu's surface to the precision required to retrieve a
pristine sample of this celestial time capsule and deliver it to
Earth for scientific analysis. He will explore the groundbreaking
findings from the returned sample, which are already
revolutionizing our comprehension of solar system formation and
evolution. This lecture not only showcases human ingenuity and
perseverance, but also celebrates the collaborative ethos driving
the forefront of space exploration.
After receiving B.S and B.A. degrees from the University of Arizona, he obtained his Ph.D. in
Earth and Planetary Sciences from Washington
University in St. Louis in
1997. Transitioning to Arizona State
University for postdoctoral work, Lauretta embarked on
crucial research analyzing the mineral composition and formation
processes of meteorites and asteroids. His pivotal move to the
University of Arizona in 2001 marked
the beginning of his most significant contributions as a faculty
member within the historic Lunar and Planetary Laboratory.
Lauretta's exceptional work in cosmochemistry led to his selection
as the principal investigator for OSIRIS-REx in 2011. The mission
launched in 2016. The Lockheed Martin-built spacecraft reached
Bennu in 2018, collected a sample in 2020, and commenced its return
to Earth in 2021. The samples landed on Earth on 24 September 2023.
Named in honor of Theodore von Kármán, a world-famous authority
on aerospace sciences, this lectureship honors an individual who
has performed notably and distinguished themselves technically in
the field of astronautics. The lecture will be delivered in person
at 2024 ASCEND, as well as recorded and available on demand.
AIAA is committed to ensuring that aerospace professionals are
celebrated for their achievements, innovations, and discoveries
that make the world safer, more connected, more accessible, and
more prosperous. Visit AIAA's Honors and Awards Program
for more information.
Registration for 2024 ASCEND is open. Journalists
from around the world are invited to cover 2024 ASCEND; press
passes are available for credentialed media by
request.
Contact: Rebecca
Gray, RebeccaG@AIAA.org, 804-397-5270 cell
About AIAA
AIAA is the world's largest aerospace technical society. With
nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100
corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and
government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space,
and defense. For more information,
visit www.aiaa.org, or follow AIAA
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SOURCE AIAA American Institute of Aeronautics and
Astronautics