Four NASA-funded researchers received Presidential Early
Career for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) awards today at
the White House.
These National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) awards
represent the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government
on scientists and engineers beginning their independent
careers. The awards recognize recipients’ exceptional
potential for leadership at the frontiers of scientific
knowledge. The NSTC bestows the PECASE award only once during
an individual’s career.
“We are thrilled to honor these promising researchers, and we
certainly will look to them to lead the way for NASA’s future
scientific and engineering endeavors,” said NASA
Administrator Sean O’Keefe. “Encouraging young achievers is
increasingly important, as we work to advance America’s
technology and science initiatives,” Administrator O’Keefe
said.
NASA recipients and their research proposals:
-Dr. J. Marshall Shepherd, research meteorologist and deputy
project scientist for the Global Precipitation Measurement
mission, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
Investigation of Urban-Induced Precipitation Using Satellite-
Based Remote Sensing and Numerical Modeling: Linking Land Use
and Change to Variations in the Water Cycle.
-Dr. Mark Simons, associate professor of geophysics, Division
of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of
Technology, Pasadena, Calif. Constraining Modes of Crustal
Deformation Using Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar.
-Dr. Eric R. Weeks, assistant professor, Department of
Physics, Emory University, Atlanta. Confocal Microscopy of
Colloidal Glass Transition.
-Dr. Thomas H. Zurbuchen, associate professor, Department of
Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Sciences, University of
Michigan, Ann Arbor, Mich. Solar Wind Structure in the Inner
Heliosphere: Rationale for the Location of the Sentinel
Missions.
The PECASE awards were created to foster innovative and far-
reaching developments in science and technology. The awards
increase awareness of careers in science and engineering;
give recognition to the scientific missions of participating
agencies; enhance connections between fundamental research
and national goals; and highlight the importance of science
and technology for the nation’s future. The recipients will
each receive funding for their award-winning research
projects.
For information about the PECASE awards on the Internet,
visit:
http://www.ostp.gov/html/pecase2002.html
Images of NASA PECASE award recipients will be available on
the Internet at:
ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/images/paoimages/misc/20040503_pecase/
For information about NASA and agency programs on the
Internet, visit:
